IRVING, Texas – The Lions have one of the more dominating receivers in all of football. They've got a No. 1 overall pick at quarterback who has a rocket arm and has the ability to rack up stats.
They've also go a dynamic running back who can hurt defenses two ways.
But quietly, the Lions are 11-5 this year because the defense has been consistent all season long.
In fact, Tony Romo said Sunday's matchup with the Lions will probably be better than any other unit his Cowboys have seen all year."Yeah, they're outstanding. I think they're going to be as good a test as we're going to have all season," Romo said of the Lions defense. "The game in a lot of ways may come down to our ability to… that matchup up front. I think it'll be a great test for our guys and I think they're up to the challenge."
Obviously the Lions got great news this week when the NFL overturned a one-game suspension for All-Pro defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, who was initially ruled out for Sunday's game for stepping on Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. But Suh won his appeal and will be able to play Sunday.
As for the change, Romo said the mindset hasn't and won't change from the Cowboys' perspective.
"We don't get into that … we just go play," Romo said. "Our mindset all year has been whatever time, whatever day, whoever we're playing against… It just doesn't change for us. We're going to go out and play. I think that's worked well for us just to go put our head down and attack whoever we're going against and not worry about what's going on around you."
The Lions are the NFL's best run defense, allowing just 69.3 yards per game. This past week, Packers' running back Eddie Lacy rushed for 100 yards exactly, making him the first 100-yard rusher against the Lions all year.
Conversely, DeMarco Murray set a franchise record with 12 games of 100 yards or more.
Romo said he expects the Cowboys to do what they've done all year.
"We're going to just be who we are," Romo said. "We're going to do what we do and obviously we'll do some different things this week than we've done and hopefully that'll give them some trouble and then just be aggressive and attack them."
The Cowboys have been on the attack lately, scoring their four-highest point games in the last four weeks, topped off by last week's 44-17 win over the Redskins. The Cowboys scored on their first five possessions in that game, and scored on their first four the previous week against the Colts in a 42-7 rout.
Romo, who was named NFC Offensive Player of the Month, along with his fourth Pro Bowl selection, said there's not one specific thing the Cowboys are doing differently during this run.
"I just think we're being very aggressive on offense. We're making things tough on defenses," Romo said. "We've got to change it up on (the Lions) and do different things, but you've got to be efficient in what you do. We're upset when we don't score on a drive. Ultimately where you want to get to as an offensive unit. We're doing a good job of that. Keep going, keep improving on that."
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