Cowboys tender 4 of their 5 RFA's

The Dallas Cowboys have placed 2nd-round tenders on 4 of their restricted free agents: WRs Miles Austin and Sam Hurd, OL Cory Procter and DE Stephen Bowen.

The Cowboys will pay all 4 players a 2009 salary of $1.545 million unless another team signs them. If another team signs any of the players, they would have to compensate the Cowboys with a 2nd-round pick.

TE Tony Curtis will become an unrestricted free agent.

Jones tells coaches including Phillips not to talk to media

In an effort to prevent leaks, the Star-Telegram is reporting that Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has issued a gag order for all Dallas Cowboys coaches.

While it's common for a head coach to be the voice of the team and not allow their assistants to talk to the media, it's uncommon for the head coach of a team to not be allowed to talk to the media.

Arriving at his hotel in Indy Thursday for this weekend's NFL Scouting Combine, Phillips wouldn't talk to the media.

“Can’t,” he said. “Against the rules.”

If the team is going to be more disciplined and focused in 2009, Jones needs to stop undermining Phillips' authority. Being a nice guy as it is, it would have been nearly impossible for him to a be a tougher coach in 2009 as he promised. But Jones is certainly not helping.

Assessing back-up QB free agents

Todd Archer of the Dallas Morning News took a look at the QB free agents available this off-season.

With the commitment to Tony Romo, the Cowboys certainly won't be seeking deals with the top free agent QBs, such as Kurt Warner of Arizona, Kerry Collins of Tennessee and the franchise-tagged Matt Cassel of New England.

Bryant Leftwich is played well when called to duty as back-up to Pittsburgh is looking for a starter job.

That leaves Chris Simms, Dan Orlovsky, Kyle Boller and J.P. Losman as possibilities.

Out of that group, Simms would make the most sense. But he has expressed an interest in returning to Tennessee.

I'm not a fan of the other three and not sure how much of an upgrade they would be over Brooks Bollinger, who is an unrestricted free agent and who replaced Brad Johnson as the team's back-up last season.

2009 Dallas Cowboys opponents

The NFL should release the 2009 NFL schedule in a few months. But here are the Cowboys' opponents for 2009:

Home opponents (records in parenthesis):

New York Giants (12-4)
Philadelphia Eagles (9-6-1)
Washington Redskins (8-8)
Atlanta Falcons (11-5)
Carolina Panthers (12-4)
Oakland Raiders (5-11)
San Diego Chargers (8-8)
Seattle Seahawks (4-12)

Road opponents (records in parenthesis):

New York Giants (12-4)
Philadelphia Eagles (9-6-1)
Washington Redskins (8-8)
New Orleans Saints (8-8)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7)
Denver Broncos (8-8)
Kansas City Chiefs (2-14)
Green Bay Packers (6-10)

Note: bold denotes 2008 playoff team.

"Bullet" Bob Hayes selected for class of 2009

Today "Bullet" Bob Hayes was selected as part of the 2009 class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

“We played together in the college all-star game,” former Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach said in a telephone interview. “We were all good athletes, and we were all fast people, and then there was Bob Hayes. But he was not just fast; he was a football player. No one could guard him.”

Hayes, the "world's fastest man," won 2 Olympic gold medals. He changed how defenses played the game.

In a statement, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said, "This is a deserving honor for one of the Cowboys' most and truly gifted stars. We all know he changed the game on the field, but he also brought a unique star quality to the NFL that helped make professional football the most popular sport in the world."

The other 5 inductees are Bruce Smith and Rod Woodson (both in on their first ballot) and Derrick Thomas, Ralph Wilson and Randall McDaniel.

Cowboys-Ravens Prediction, 12/20

Tonight the Cowboys host the Ravens in the final game of Texas Stadium.

The Ravens and Cowboys are both 9-5 and in the playoffs as wildcard teams if the season were to end today.

Here are the keys to the game for the Cowboys according to the Sporting News:

1. Fluster Flacco. The Cowboys have flustered some of the league's top quarterbacks -- Ben Roethlisberger and Eli Manning -- the past two games. The Cowboys sacked Roethlisberger five times and Manning eight. The key, though, is taking away the running game and making teams one dimensional. Flacco passed for just 115 yards against Pittsburgh. In fact, he has passed for more than 200 yards just once in the last six games, with eight touchdowns and five interceptions. He's only been sacked 25 times this season.

2. Feed of emotion.This is likely the last game at Texas Stadium. Combine that with the emotion and intensity fans usually bring to a night game, and the Cowboys should have every emotional advantage. Baltimore is not equipped to play from behind with its conservative offense and rookie quarterback. If the Cowboys can score early and make the Ravens abandon their running game, they'll have a significantly easier time with this team.

3. Use Tashard Choice early and often. It's hard to believe, but Tashard Choice has been the Cowboys' best offensive player each of the last two weeks. He had 166 yards in total offense against Pittsburgh and 143 yards against the Giants. He's equally effective in the running and passing game, and he's provided the offense with yet another player with big-play capability.

Game Prediction: Cowboys 17, Ravens 9

Cowboys-Giants Prediction, 12/14

The Cowboys have dealt with a huge distraction this week caused by Terrell Owens. How's the saying go - those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it or something like that? We've seen this all before and we saw last week how difficult it can be to win with distractions like the Giants experienced.

Tonight, the Cowboys will look to disregard those distractions and focus on the Giants, who have looked like the best team in the NFL. They are without Brandon Jacobs, but it will be interesting to see how the pass distribution of the Cowboys affects T.O.

Here are the keys to the game for the Cowboys according to the Sporting News:

1. Make the Giants one-dimensional. Dallas can't allow the Giants to be balanced on offense, because coordinator Kevin Gilbride too many options. The Giants have rushed for more than 2,000 yards and Eli Manning has passed for more than 2,700 yards. The best thing for the Cowboys to do is take away the running game, even if they consistently put eight men in the box. If the Giants can run the ball effectively, they can control the clock, wear down the defense and set up play-action passes that can lead to big plays. The Cowboys' run defense has allowed more than 100 yards just once in the past five games.

2. Get Romo to protect the ball. Tony Romo will continue to have trouble in big games if he keeps turning the ball over. Romo accounted for four of Dallas' five giveaways last week with three interceptions and a fumble. He is careless with the ball and reckless in his never-ending quest to make a big play. That recklessness is also the reason he's one of the best quarterbacks in the league. Still, he can't have more than one turnover against the low-risk Giants and expect to win.

3. Avoid a Pittsburgh hangover. The Cowboys were outscored 17-0 in the final seven minutes last week as the Steelers overcame a 13-3 deficit. The loss was devastating for a team fighting to make the playoffs. Dallas probably needs to win at least two of their final three games to make the postseason. They can't afford to come out sluggish or spend the week having a pity party over the loss to Pittsburgh.

Prediction: Giants 21, Cowboys 13 (Hate to admit it, but think the distractions will really hurt.)