Murray Absent in Cowboys Loss

Not much was positive for the Dallas Cowboys about Sunday's overtime loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

The Cowboys four-game winning streak was halted, and to make matters worse the New York Giants, as expected, lost to the Green Bay Packers meaning a Cowboys win would've set up the chance to clinch the NFC East next week when the Giants come to town.

There was timeout-gate and some other questionable coaching decisions to put Jason Garrett on the fire this morning, and then there was the absence of rookie running back DeMarco Murray, the November NFC Rookie of the Month.

Murray has been the Cowboys starter at running back for six games now, and that doesn't include his 253-yard performance against the St. Louis Rams, a game he didn't techincally start.

In each of those starts prior to Sunday, he'd run for at least 73 yards and had at least 20 carries, showing he could be the workhorse back the fans in Dallas have craved since the glory days of Emmitt Smith.

On Sunday? Twelve carries, 38 yards. No es bueno.

It's not like the Cowboys were blown out, as they were against Philadelphia in Murray's first official start when he was taken out of the game early on because of the Cowboys' need to pass. It was a close game throughout.

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So what happened to the running game?

Well, the offensive line is obviously having some issues right now, and it seems the Cowboys, mainly Murray, really miss the services of fullback Tony Fiammetta, who has now missed three games with his mystery illness.

Since his absence, Murray hasn't been quite as dominant as he was with his lead blocker. So should Cowboys fans be concerned that Murray can't get the job done on his own? Probably not, but it is something to consider. Fiammetta will reportedly be back for Sunday night's NFC East showdown with the Giants, which couldn't come at a better time.

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