After months of speculation regarding whether or not to release or trade him, Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones has decided to hang onto wide receiver Terrell Owens.

Financially, this was a wise move. Cutting T.O. wouldn’t have created much cap space and there’s nobody on the open market outside of T.J. Houshmandzadeh who matches what Owens brings to the field. That said, Jones better realize that he has nobody but himself to blame if Owens turns around and makes a mess of things in the locker room this season.

Something is wrong in Dallas, this much we know. They have more than enough talent on both sides of the ball to compete for a Super Bowl, yet they can’t even make the playoffs in a weak NFC. For the Eagles to make the postseason after looking so bad mid-year, there’s no reason a team composed of Owens, Tony Romo, Jason Witten, Marion Barber and DeMarcus Ware should miss the playoffs. And yes, Barber’s injury hurt the ‘Boys towards the end of the year, but a team as talented as the Cowboys should be able to overcome one player’s absence.

The word that keeps coming up with this team is chemistry. The Cowboys don’t have enough good chemistry to win. If that’s the case, then that hangs on Jones’s shoulders and again, he should be held personally accountable. He put this team together and he’s the one that believes a bunch of malcontents like T.O. and Pacman Jones can survive under one roof.

Jones jettisoned one bad apple (Pacman), but decided to keep another (T.O.). If the decision to keep Owens sours (pardon the apple pun) in the end, then Jones needs to look in the mirror and discover that the main problem is staring him right in the face.

Granted, guys like Peyton Manning, Larry Fitzgerald and Troy Polamalu had wonderful seasons. But don’t they already get plenty of love? With our third-annual NFL All-Spectator Team, we want to shine the spotlight on the players that had great seasons, but for one reason or another, missed the postseason.

So there won’t be any Steelers, Cardinals, Eagles or Ravens on this team. Nor any Giants, Panthers, Vikings or Falcons. They’ve had their opportunity to shine. We’ll recognize those great players that spent the postseason on their couch, or maybe on a beach somewhere. After all, it’s not their fault that they’re on a mediocre (or a crappy) team, is it?

Hell, we’ll even honor a couple of Detroit Lions – how’s that for spreading the love around?

Check out our 2008 and 2007 All-Spectator squads.

QB: Drew Brees (NO)
5,069 yards, 34 TDs, 17 INTs, 96.2 QB rating
For the second straight season, Brees is our choice at QB. On one hand, it’s a nice honor because it means he’s consistently productive, but we’re sure he’d rather be guiding the Saints into the playoffs. Brees improved his numbers across the board, and almost broke Dan Marino’s single-season yardage record; he averaged 317 passing yards per game! He posted the second-highest QB rating of his career and even turned someone named Lance Moore into a fantasy star. For this, he was named AP Offensive Player of the Year, a well-deserved honor.

RB: Matt Forte (CHI)
1,238 rushing yards, 63 rec., 477 receiving yards, 12 total TD
It was a tough call between Forte and Thomas Jones, but with 1,715 total yards, the rookie gets the nod. Some draft pundits questioned his ability to be an every down back, but didn’t have any problems taking over as the Bears’ RB1. He caught an eye-popping 63 catches and was (by far) the Bears’ best offensive weapon. It’s scary to think what he could do if Chicago had another playmaker in the passing game that would keep defenses from stacking the line against the run.

FB: Earnest Graham (TB)
563 rushing yards; 23 rec., 174 rec. yards; 4 total TD
Were there better fullbacks that we could have chosen? Yeah, especially considering Graham isn’t technically even a fullback. But we chose Graham (who missed the last six games of the year with an ankle injury) because of his unselfishness this season. He volunteered to move to fullback when the Bucs were in need of a power blocker and he never griped about losing his feature back role. When he went down with a season ending injury in Week 11, Tampa clearly missed his power running style over the past two months of the season and even more so, they missed his leadership.

WR: Andre Johnson (HOU)
115 rec., 1575 yards, 8 TD
All AJ did was lead the NFL in catches and yards, anchoring one of the league’s best offenses in the process. He posted 9+ catches eight times and went over 100 yards in each of those games. This included success against the very best competition; he racked up 11 catches for 207 yards and a TD against the Titans, who have one of the top pass defenses in the league. A big day for AJ usually meant a Texans win; Houston was 6-2 in games where Johnson went off.

WR: Brandon Marshall (DEN)
104 rec., 1265 yards, 6 TD
Marshall missed the first game of the season due to suspension, but he made up for it the next week, posting an amazing 18 catches for 166 yards and a score against the Chargers. He was one of the most consistent wideouts over the rest of the season, catching no fewer than four passes in 12 of the next 14 games. Surprisingly, he only caught six touchdowns, but with the third-most catches and seventh-most yards in the league, his stats are plenty impressive.

TE: Tony Gonzalez (KC)
96 rec., 1058 yards, 10 TD
Gonzo makes his second-straight appearance on our All-Spectator Team. Jason Witten may have earned this spot if not for a midseason injury that hindered his production, but Gonzalez was every bit the top TE in the league this season. He was 12th in the league in yards and tied for 4th in catches. What’s most impressive about Gonzo’s season is that, at 32, he turned in what was arguably his third-best season of his illustrious 12-year, Hall of Fame career.

OT: Ryan Clady (DEN)
The Broncos might have produced one of the worst collapses of any team in NFL history by surrendering a four game lead over the Chargers with only four games remaining in the season, but Clady deserves praise for his exceptional play this year. The rookie gave up just a half sack and helped anchor the left tackle position for an offensive line that tied the Titans for fewest sacks allowed in the NFL (12). He’s the type of player the Broncos can build their O-line around and he was clearly a Pro Bowl snub.

OT: Joe Thomas (CLE)
Did Thomas take a slight step back this season? Yes. Even some in Cleveland’s organization will admit it. But offensive linemen aren’t immune to having sophomore slumps and even though his production might have dipped a little, Thomas was still one of the best tackles in the AFC and worthy of his Pro Bowl roster spot. He was also part of a Browns’ offensive line that finished eighth in sacks allowed. Some are going to wonder where Jason Peters’ (Bills) name is, but don’t strain your eyes looking too long because he didn’t make the cut. Peters gave up more sacks (11.5 sacks in just 13 games) this year than any starting left tackle in the league.

OG: Leonard Davis (DAL)
Two years ago, the Cardinals gave up on Davis because they didn’t feel he was consistent or dominant enough to be their cornerstone left tackle. Not that they were wrong, but they might regret giving up on him with the way he’s excelled since the Cowboys moved him to right guard after signing him to a seven-year, $49.6 million contract in March of 2007. Davis had another outstanding year and some believe that he was the most dominant right guard in the NFL this season. The Saints’ Jahri Evans (who made our honorable mention list) got a starting look for our guard positions, but in the end we couldn’t pass up pairing Davis with Alan Faneca.

OG: Alan Faneca (NYJ)
The Steelers didn’t want to pony up to pay a 32-year old guard with plenty of mileage on his body, but the Jets signed the veteran to a five-year, $40 million contract and it’s safe to say that Faneca was worth the money. After breakout seasons as rookies in 2006, the play of left tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson and center Nick Mangold dropped in 2007. But the addition of Faneca turned out to be the shot in the arm that the two youngsters needed. Faneca’s presence also helped running back Thomas Jones bounce back after a rough 2007 campaign, as he rushed for 1,312 yards this season.

C: Dan Koppen (NE)
Whether it was because of a down year or the inexperience of quarterback Matt Cassel, the Patriots’ offensive line was brutal in pass protection this season. They gave up 48 sacks despite returning all five starters from their Super Bowl team. Regardless, the Patriots still had the fifth best offense in the NFL and were the sixth best running team. At the center (no pun intended) of their success was Koppen, who continues to be a quiet leader on a team filled with exceptional players. Cassel’s success this season had a lot to do with having a veteran center setting the line protection every play and guiding the young signal caller along the way.

At some point it has to happen, right? At some point all of this nonsense that was created by Terrell Owens a week ago has to catch up with the Dallas Cowboys, right?

As Dallas gets set to take on the Baltimore Ravens tonight, there seems to be a cloud hanging over Valley Ranch just ready to unleash a bolt of lighting and destroy the Cowboys’ season in a moments notice. And while everything looked just peachy in a 20-8 victory over the Giants last week, I’m not buying that things have completely smoothed out for Owens, Tony Romo, Jason Witten, Wade Phillips and everyone else that dons a big star logo on their clothing appeal these days.

First and foremost, everything is always great among teammates when they win. So it was no surprise to see Owens, Romo and Witten all smiles at the end of the Cowboys-Giants game last week, because Dallas won. Problems seem to get pushed off to the side rather quickly when everything is copasetic on the field.

But what has to worry Cowboy fans is that eventually, off-field issues rise to the surface at some point. And one has to wonder if some point is tonight.

The Ravens have a nasty taste in their mouths after losing at home to the Steelers last week when they essentially had a victory locked up. Ben Rothlisberger and the Pittsburgh offense had done virtually nothing until their final drive of the game, yet they made plays when it mattered most and pulled victory out of the jaws of defeat. Now Baltimore’s playoff hopes remain in flux, but a win over Dallas would go a long way in solving that issue.

If things start going array for the ‘Boys tonight, can they hold everything together? Or will Owens start complaining that he’s not getting the ball enough? And will Romo start turning the ball over again like he has a penchant for doing when the Cowboys are losing? Or will Jason Garrett have an answer for the Ravens’ stout defense if his offense isn’t clicking? (Especially if Marion Barber doesn’t play or cannot be effective with an injured toe and calf.)

Many purists think the Cowboys are back on track after their impressive victory over the Giants last week. They can’t stop writing about how Phillips has fixed the defense and how the trio of Owens, Romo and Witten are all best friends now. Hey, maybe they’re right. Or maybe the win over New York just kept the issues at bay for a week. Either way, we’ll find out very soon what kind of team Dallas is made out of because a win would go a long way in proving that this team is what many people thought they would be at the start of the year: A Super Bowl contender.

Randy Galloway of the Star-Telegram ripped Dallas Cowboys’ wideout Terrell Owens for calling ESPN reporter Ed Werder a “liar� last week when it was reported that T.O. had a problem with Tony Romo favoring Jason Witten in the passing game because the two are best buds.

You already know the story of what Werder reported last week. You already know Owens went on national TV after the Sunday night win over the Giants and called Werder a “liar.” You might or might not know Owens climbed atop the interview room podium a few minutes later and maybe a half dozen times called Werder a “liar,” and “unprofessional,” and said “he made it all up.”

That was Eldo’s story and he was sticking to it.

But on Tuesday, Werder’s employer, the mighty Bristol boys (by the way, I also draw a paycheck from those people), gave Owens free time to once again jump the butt of one of the nation’s most respected and most veteran NFL reporters, someone who has covered the Cowboys since 1989.
Maybe the suits in Bristol are smarter than I thought. Or maybe Owens is dumber than I thought. OK, nope, that last part couldn’t have been the case.

Anyway, Owens trapped himself with this comment on national TV:

“I believe someone said it,” he revealed. Really, Mr. Owens.

“Someone” would be the unidentified teammate who told Werder that Owens was jealous of the Tony Romo-Jason Witten friendship, and he believed they were conspiring to keep the ball from being thrown Eldo’s way.

So after repeatedly calling Werder a “liar,” after repeatedly saying Werder “made it all up,” now this fool tells a national audience he “believes someone said it.”

Galloway goes on to say that T.O. owes Werder an apology and that other Cowboy players (including linebacker Bradie James) aren’t denying having to play peacemaker between Owens and Romo.

All of this drama and yet the Cowboys stifle the defending Super Bowl champions on Sunday night. Amazing…

The Dallas Cowboys’ talented trio of Tony Romo, Jason Witten and Terrell Owens appeared to have put their problems aside Sunday night in an impressive 20-8 win over the New York Giants. But both Romo and Witten were no-shows at Owens’ annual birthday party, which has turned into a celebrity fund-raiser in the Dallas area.

Cowboy officials wanted to paint a picture of team unity at this event and cited that both Romo and Witten were receiving treatment for injuries sustained in the game on Sunday as the reason for them not showing up at the charity event.

Cowboys LB Greg Ellis said it was important to send the message that “we are one team. There are not any problems. We are not a team divided and we are sticking together.”

The beneficiary of Owens’ fund-raiser was his Catch-A-Dream Foundation, which raises money to aid 81 families in the Dallas area for the holiday season.

According to a report by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Cowboys’ wide receiver Terrell Owens and tight end Jason Witten had to be separated after getting into a heated debate during a team meeting on Friday.

“It’s a dead issue,” receiver Patrick Crayton said.

It might be, but it didn’t come without a near altercation Friday between Owens and tight end Jason Witten in the Cowboys’ locker room. According to two sources, the two exchanged words before being separated. Both players acted as if everything was fine when the media was allowed in the locker room. But Owens was still clearly miffed.

Which is why it’s not a dead issue and won’t be unless the Cowboys can pull together and not only beat the Giants but make a playoff run.

Despite the best efforts of all those involved to dismiss, deny or downplay any and everything, it’s become apparent the loose semblance of control has unbuckled at Valley Ranch, and the fragility of a team of which so much is expected continues to crack. A season that should be about what happens on the field continues to be more about everything but.

No. 1: Owens denied an ESPN report that he is envious of the relationship between Witten and Tony Romo.

“What do I have to be jealous of?” Owens said. “Look at me, I’m … Anything that goes on, I am going to be the scapegoat. I’m handsome as hell. trying to figure out how I make the headlines and I don’t even say anything.”

Asked if he was cool with Witten and Romo, Owens said: “I’m cool with everybody. We addressed everything. Coach addressed everything. Everything is everything.”

Said Witten of having priority with Romo: “I don’t want people thinking that. Obviously I have a lot of respect for Terrell and I think it’s the same way. He’s a hell of a player.”

No. 2: The meeting Crayton, Owens and Roy Williams had with offensive coordinator Jason Garrett about trying to get the ball more, and the alleged tunnel vision Romo has for Witten.
The official line Friday was that meetings take place all the time; it’s no big deal.

The unofficial line is those players were irritated at not being thrown the ball late in the Cowboys’ 20-13 loss Sunday in Pittsburgh. They want the ball. Period.

No. 3: Cornerback Terence Newman’s phone interview with ESPNFirst Take on Friday morning, when he said there is not enough accountability by players, as well as the coaching staff.

One of two things usually happens when internal bickering starts to take over a team: 1) Players will band together and rise above it or 2) The team will implode on the field and frustrations will boil over. Considering the Cowboys have a brutal three-game stretch ahead of them, it’ll be interesting to see if the players unite or tear each other apart at the seems. Either way, it’s been an interesting week at Valley Ranch.

A couple of the Cowboys’ wide receivers (presumably Terrell Owens, Roy Williams and Patrick Crayton) held a meeting with offensive coordinator Jason Garrett about their role in the Dallas offense compared to tight end Jason Witten, who they say quarterback Tony Romo favors because the two are buddies.

At issue is the perception that Romo relies too heavily on tight end and best friend Jason Witten, and doesn’t always throw to the open man. The breaking point was Sunday’s 20-13 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, in which the Cowboys blew a 13-3 fourth-quarter lead in the final 7 minutes, 15 seconds.

Romo was throwing to Witten on the final interception. Owens openly acknowledges he was open on the play and complained vociferously on the sideline during the game. Romo also missed a wide-open Crayton down the seam on the final drive of the game, and then threw incomplete to Witten on the final play when Crayton was also open.

Crayton said it was a good meeting, a needed meeting, in the interest of trying to win games and have a better offense.

He said they weren’t complaining because they went in with a positive tone and had a frank and honest discussion.

Romo, who talks on Wednesday, was not available for comment.

The Dallas wideouts need to freaking grow up. This isn’t backyard football where you focus on getting the ball to your friends – this is the NFL. I highly doubt Romo is only focusing on getting the ball to Witten. And T.O. saying he was open on the final play in Pittsburgh is no surprise because, well, he’s always open.

Considering the Cowboys are on the brink of making the playoffs but face an incredibly tough final stretch of games, you’d think the team would come together instead of some players holding meetings and complaining about not getting the ball enough.

Jennifer Floyd Engel of the Star-Telegram.com writes that the media should stop giving Tony Romo a free pass and call him what he is in December: a choker.

Sunday was just about that point for Romo. The Cowboys were on the verge of what would have been a gigantic, momentum-building victory in Pittsburgh. It was not a stretch to say this could have been defining. Until they collapsed, in a 20-13 loss to Pittsburgh

And Romo has to be dropped in the grease for this.

He was responsible for four of the five Cowboys turnovers. And he is lucky the tuck rule saved him from another. The last, of course, was the worst — a pick to Steelers cornerback Deshea Townsend that went for seven in the other direction. It was the game winner.

The Cowboys needed him to be his best Sunday, or at least not screw it up for the defense who was finally playing theirs. He was not … not even close. There were moments of good, but not enough. Too often, what we saw from Romo was the recklessness Big Bill had often warned about, the one play in the game that ends up negating the others.

Romo has a bit of a December problem, much like his team. He has not brought his best self in said games which often is synonymous with big games. And he is no longer young or inexperienced or all of the other things people like me say to defend him when he is being attacked.

The reality is, if this were anybody else, he’d have no defenders.

But this is Romo. So we tiptoe around the reality that he has to start showing he has what it takes to win when it counts. Or else he’ll prove something else.

This fits under the old adage that quarterbacks take too much credit when their teams when win and too much blame when they lose. Romo wasn’t very good in Pittsburgh Sunday but he also was playing without his running back due to injury and he can’t help if Jason Witten runs the wrong route. I will agree that he gets less criticism than say, Donovan McNabb, but the media needs to go on a game-by-game basis and then paint the larger picture.

Romo was bad yesterday, but the Cowboys were a completely different team without him when he was out with a pinkie injury. The Cowboys aren’t knocking on the door of a playoff berth without him and Pittsburgh’s defense can make any quarterback look silly. So let’s relax on the here-we-go-again mindset with Romo in regards to his December play and let’s see how this thing plays out.

Entering their game with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, the Dallas Cowboys had a great opportunity to take a one-game lead for the final Wild Card spot in the NFC because the Atlanta Falcons lost to the New Orleans Saints earlier in the day.

After tying the game 3-3 just before halftime, the Cowboys built a 13-3 lead just before the start of the fourth quarter after Terrell Owens caught a 12-yard touchdown pass from Tony Romo and Nick Folk converted on his second field goal of the day.

Earlier in the fourth, Dallas also came up with a huge goal line stop on fourth down, but they couldn’t carry the momentum from the play and finish the Steelers off. Pittsburgh managed to cut the Cowboys’ lead to 13-6 on a Jeff Reed field goal, then scored a touchdown four minutes later when Heath Miller caught a 6-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger.

Then disaster struck for the Cowboys as Romo was picked off by Deshea Townsend, who returned the gift 25 yards for the game-winning touchdown as Pittsburgh held on for a 20-13 victory. On the interception, it appeared that tight end Jason Witten ran the wrong route.

Even with the loss, the Cowboys still hold onto the sixth and final playoff spot in the NFC because the Falcons’ loss to the Saints goes against their conference record. But that said, Dallas can’t feel too good about practically handing the Steelers a victory. It hurt not having Marion Barber on offense, but the defense played well enough to win and had Witten run the right route on the interception, the Cowboys might have drove down the field or at least forced overtime.

The Steelers did not look good offensively, but their defense is sick. And the funny thing is, because the offense hasn’t looked particularly sharp, this team continues to fly under the radar. But even with how good the defense has been this year, the Steelers still have some glaring, underlying issues. The offensive line is being held together by duct tape, Roethlisberger still holds onto the ball way too long and every once in a while, Mike Tomlin shows his inexperience as a head coach. For example, Dallas made a great play on that goal line stand, but Tomlin’s decision to go for it instead of making it a one possession game with the entire fourth quarter left to play was a questionable decision to say the least.

That said, even anyone thinks that the Steelers aren’t a Super Bowl contender, you’re dreaming. Their defense is that good.

Florida vs. Georgia
The winner of this game should become the SEC East representative against Alabama in the conference’s title game, while the loser will probably not play in a BCS bowl game. Florida has revenge on their mind; they remember Georgia’s end-zone celebration from a year ago. Bulldogs coach Mark Richt ordered the entire bench on to the field after scoring their first touchdown in a 42-30 victory. Gators coach Urban Meyer was upset by the antics but has downplayed the animosity between the schools this week. You can expect fireworks on the field this Saturday at the Gator Bowl. National coverage will begin at 3:30 PM ET on CBS. Click here for the official Florida vs. Georgia smack thread.

Texas vs. Texas Tech
Texas is completing the final leg of their gauntlet schedule; they defeated: then-No.1 Oklahoma on Oct. 11, then-No. 11 Missouri on Oct. 18, then-No.7 Oklahoma State last week, and now face No. 6 Texas Tech in Lubbock on Saturday evening. Another week, another Heisman Trophy candidate will line up against the Longhorn defense. Red Raiders quarterback Graham Harrell has thrown for 3147 yards with 28 touchdown passes on the season. The winner of this contest will have the inside track to win the Big 12 South title, a division that features four teams ranked in the top nine of this week’s BCS bowl standings. National coverage will begin at 8PM ET on ABC. Click here for the official Texas vs. Texas Tech smack thread.

Dallas Cowboys vs. New York Giants
Dallas Cowboys had home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs last season, thanks in large part to a pair of victories over the New York Giants that propelled them to a NFC East title. But the Cowboys postseason run came to a quick end, as the Giants defeated them during their improbable run to a Super Bowl title. The Cowboys are hurting coming into this week’s game, with quarterback Tony Romo missing his third straight game because of a broken right pinkie and tight end Jason Witten will be a game-time playing decision due to his broken ribs. 40-year-old Brad Johnson will be in charge of the Cowboys offense, and he has looked his age at times on the field. He has been sacked six times in two weeks, and against a Giant defense that leads the NFL with 26 sacks, Johnson’s lack of mobility will be a major concern for the Dallas coaching staff. Regional coverage will begin at 4:15 PM ET on Fox.