Dallas Cowboys at Denver Broncos - A Few Good Questions With....Dave Halprin, BloggingTheBoys.com

Felix Jones is out, Marion Barber is back.  Do you think he is 100%?  If not, can Tashard Choice carry the load for 4 quarters?

Tashard Choice can absolutely carry the load for four quarters. We know this because at the end of last year he had to do it for a stretch of games when Felix Jones was out and Marion Barber was either out or hobbled. And he did it against defenses like Pittsburgh and Baltimore and put up good numbers, so we think Choice is the equivalent of a starting NFL RB, he's just stuck behind two others on the depth chart. Hard to say if Barber is 100%, but he was very close to playing last week, the team had to step in and say no. That was the luxury of having Choice. We'll just have to wait and see how Barber looks in the game.

Jason Witten is Tony Romo's favorite target.  Let's say the Broncos do a good job taking him out of the game - do you feel confident that the Cowboys receivers can make enough plays?

Absolutely. The Cowboys have competent receivers, a lot of them. Roy Williams isn't T.O., but he had four catches last week for 75 yards, that's productive. Patrick Crayton has been one the best third receivers in the league the last few years (check the numbers), but now has to fill the #2 role. I've seen better #2's, but Crayton will produce. Miles Austin can be a deep threat, but has yet to get any consistency. Martellus Bennett, the other Cowboys TE, has physical talent to spare, but has been quiet so far this year. It's not a star-studded cast, but a nice ensemble. The Cowboys will also throw to their backs when needed.

Dallas is using a spread the ball around approach this year - unless Witten is open. And that dude is open a lot. If you can take him out, you're double-teaming him, and someone should be able to take advantage. Still, the Cowboys, this year at least, should spend more time running than passing.

On a scale of 1-10, what is the confidence level of Cowboys' fans in Tony Romo and why?

1-10. Ha! No way that I'm going to take a shot at generalizing the fans thoughts on Tony Romo, which run from 1 to 10. Now, if you ask me personally, mine's about a 7. I've seen enough to know that he could be one of the top three or four QBs playing in the league with a few, but crucial, changes. When Romo is on, he's as proficient as anybody. And he's on a lot. So I know he has what it takes to dominate games. But his consistency needs to improve. He throws in too many clunker games to be that elite QB yet. If he could get control of his turnover demons, that would go a long way towards propelling him to the top. Then, he needs to win in December and the post-season. That's really a team goal, but team wins are always reflected back towards the starting QB, as are losses.

Thought's on Wade Phillips.  Is the writing on the wall?  What would it take for Phillips to be on the sidelines in 2010?  Is the criticism fair?

Here's the writing on the wall for me with regards to Wade Phillips. If he gets Dallas into the post-season and they make some serious noise, like winning a couple of games, then he stands a good chance of returning. If Dallas fails to make the playoffs or goes one and done, then I don't think he survives. Sure the criticism is fair, the guy has never won in the playoffs, until he does, he's going to be on the hot seat.

Finish this statement - The Broncos will win if....

Tony Romo throws in a clunker or the Dallas defense leaks like a sieve, which it's been known to do.

Prediction time - Who will win, what will be the score, and why?
I'm going with my Cowboys (big surprise). I like the running game and the offensive line is playing well. Romo hopefully learned a lesson last week that he doesn't always have to be brilliant for us to win. Just managing the game when the running game and the defense are doing the job is enough. I readily admit I don't have a good feel for the Broncos, I haven't seen too much of their games so far. I see the 3-0 record, I see the schedule, I see the stats, but until I really watch them in a game, I just don't know what to think since there's been so much turnover from last year's team. So I'm basing this on shaky foundation, but I'll say Dallas 23 - Broncos 17.