8:31: Al Harris, one of the quietest guys in the NFL, gets a delay of game penalty after spiking the ball. He stole a catch from T.O., but the ref called it dead because of forward progress. Tough call for Green Bay, but maybe Harris will get in Owens' head. And maybe people would get to watch Al Harris if anyone had NFL Network.

8:36: Julius Jones stays in the game in the red zone after a couple nice plays ... and he fails to convert and inside run on third-and-five. And Marion Barber owners everywhere slam something. If anyone had NFL Network.

8:38: A Nick Folk field goal is bad for my Tony Romo-led teams, but good for my wife's 100K consolation bracket squad. To celebrate, she does her best Rockette's kick and then raises her arms. I love being the mature one.

8:43: The Packers go five-wide again on third-down, but Brett Favre holds the ball too long and the pressure gets to him. This is a great game for Dallas' well-constructed defensive versatility to show it's stuff.

8:46: Gumbel starts talking NFL Network/Cable dispute while NFL executives cringe across the country. Collinsworth smartly ends the discussion.

8:48: Barber rips off a long run up the middle. KGB is a tough loss for Green Bay on passing downs, but I think Dallas' big o-line can take advantage of Green Bay's injury at defensive tackle by pounding the ball.

8:52: After a T.O. drop stalls a drive, Nick Folk hits a 54-yard field goal. And Emika Rosenthal officially moves into first place of the 100K consolation bracket. Deion Sanders looks like a soothsayer.

8:54: The 2006 Favre shows up, throwing a centerfield pass to no Packer in particular. It's his first pick in 139 passes. Rough quarter for him. Romo immediately dupes the Green Bay safeties with a play fake and finds T.O. streaking inside the team.

8:56: With Julius Jones in on the goal-line (again!), Romo finds Crayton for an easy score after he beats Jarrett Bush. And my rout of Tiffany in our meaningless season finale for our office league is on. Not that anyone cares about anyone else's fantasy league.

8:58: After Gumbel plugs the NFL.com live look-in, Gumble ask Collinsworth if he understands that sort of "high-tech" stuff. Like ... the internet. Crazy kids.

9:03: Hope you played Ryan Grant. A 12-men on the field penalty by Dallas gives Green Bay a third-and-one and Grant takes it 62 yards for the score as Ken Hamlin and Roy Williams tackle each other and FB John Kuhn (once on my deeep dynasty league team) makes the key block.9:08: The Packers catch a break by getting to re-kick a failed onsides kick. And a looong, bizarre first quarter is over. I need to pace myself.

9:11: Deion's mike is wacky, Gumbel is a disaster, and Deion talked through a touchdown BUT this broadcast still gives you more actual football analysis than most. Deion and Collinsworth explain why things happen, and that just isn't the case normally. I'd take Deion over Kornheiser, which sounds terrible to write.

9:14: Cowboys are making Green Bay's secondary, especially Jarrett Bush, look bad. Long passes to Owens and Fasano and the Cowboys score again, 20-10. They are making it look too easy.

9:18: Favre insanely keeps trying to go deep, and is lucky that two straight passes don't get picked off. The receivers aren't even open. It's like the last eleven games didn't even happen.

9:20: And the next pass is picked off as Favre gets slammed to the ground. That's three good shots he's taken and at least five passes the Cowboys have touched before the Packers.

9:21: Gleeman checks in with the observation that flea flickers never seem to work anymore. I used to love that play as a kid - it seemed so exciting.

9:23: The Packers are just abusing Jarrett Bush - a long pass interference puts Dallas in Marion Barber territory. Favre owners at least can enjoy the fact that the Packers are about to be down three scores with 40 minutes left in the game.

9:25: I think Bill Parcells drafted Anthony Fasano because he reminded Parcells of a Sopranos character. Fasano does his best Tony Scheffler impression with an athletic end zone grab, but can't hold on.

9:28: T.O. gets wide open for a touchdown, then raises the important question: Is popcorn a prop? It's 27-10 early in the second quarter and the Packers are lucky it's that close.

9:30: Favre is having his arm looked at, and is not coming out for the Packers. This game has taken an ugly turn. At least I can work on my Aaron Rodgers outlook for next year.

9:32: A reader asks where is Jason Witten. He's been in there, and even a primary read on one play that T.O. caught. I think Romo is just finding the open man, and that's been everyone but Witten tonight. Amazing it's a blowout and we haven't even mentioned Atari Bigby.

9:33: Collinsworth (who I preface by saying is my favorite football analyst on TV) on DeMarcus Ware: "What a tool he is."

9:35: Rodgers gets a couple balls tipped and the Packers are forced to punt after making one first down. I'd say the Green Bay defense might be getting tired, but they've barely stayed on the field. Favre is getting his forearm massaged. Hard to tell what the problem is.

9:36: Big Jeffy chimes in, defending Bryant Gumbel. That's a new one. Am I out on a limb here? I tell everyone I know NFL Network is far better than ESPN in nearly every respect, but it's hard to defend Gumbel in this case.

9:38: T.O. is over 100 yards after he beats Al Harris deep. FootballOutsiders' numbers says this has been a down year for Harris. Injuries and age are starting to catch up to Harris just as he's getting long-overdue recognition.

9:41: The Packers finally get a stop with 5:30 left in the first half. Sort of. Tony Romo misses wide open receivers on back-to-back throws. Which is good because 34-10 would pretty much end this.

9:45: Just a huge play by Greg Jennings, taking a short pass and making people miss on the way to a 43-yard gain. I was conservative projecting Jennings this season, and couldn't have been more wrong. He can do it all and is going to be a solid fantasy option for a long time. They are in good shape with Jennings and Jones early in their contract. Now the Packers can cut it to two scores before halftime and run the clock down.

9:49: News aside: We find out Travis Henry's fate tomorrow. As a Selvin Young owner in practically every league, the Friday timing of the news is a worry. We'll see.

9:50: Rodgers has had a couple shaky plays that remind me of his disastrous rookie preseason. Rodgers has improved since then, but it's hard to evaluate a guy who's barely played when it mattered. It's weird Favre hasn't gone to the locker room.

9:52: Jennings does it again. Aaron Rodgers sees the blitz, gets it to Jennings, and he makes two Cowboys miss on the way to the end zone. Jennings has ten scores in nine games. Steve is loving life. I could make a list of running backs that don't add up to ten touchdowns, but that would take research.

Halftime

10:00: Steve Mariucci's connection to Brett Favre pays off. Favre says that a nerve in his arm got it, and he has numbness in his fingers. It's uncertain whether he'll be able to return. I'm no doctor, but it sounds like Favre may have avoided a long-term problem even if he doesn't come back.

10:05: One advantage of NFL: A camera looking in the locker room.

First Half thoughts: Green Bay's defense just isn't the same because of their injuries. You saw it some in the second half of the Detroit game. Ted Thompson has done a good job, but you can only have so much defensive line depth. The secondary, like most, looks pretty thin when covering the Cowboys.

Tony Romo and Terrell Owens are the best two players on the field tonight. Oh, and Nick Folk.

Third Quarter:

10:10: Mason Crosby makes a tackle on Miles Austin. Two words for the second half: Mason Crosby.

10:11: Favre is coming back out to the field after taking x-rays. His elbow is swollen and he's in a baseball hat. Looks like he's not coming back.

10:12: The only bad throws Romo makes are when he's looking for Jason Witten. As I'm writing this, he hits Witten.

10:14: I defended Julius Jones as long as I could, and still believe he'd be a great fit for a zone-blocking scheme, but there is no earthly reason for him to take a fourth-and-2 carry over Marion Barber. Big stop for the Packers to open the second half.

10:16: Favre owners start in a hole this week. Looks like he'll finish with 56 yards and two picks. Which makes one fantasy point. Donald Driver and Marion Barber owners also needing a big second half.

10:21: Rodgers getting good protection, then delivering the ball on time to his receivers. Rodgers has played very well, making plays with his feet.

10:22: Gleeman on Rodgers: "He hasnt had a haircut since they took the team pictures, apparently"

10:24: Another Packer drive extended by a dumb Dallas penalty.

10:25: John Kuhn almost scores! He can't be stopped. I should have kept him these last two years just for this moment. I know Kuhn is a Rotoworld guy when Gleeman and Silva both IM me about Kuhn when he makes a catch.

10:26: Packers showing a lot by getting this score back to 27-24 after a Ryan Grant touchdown run. Dallas' penalties have cost them 11 points. And I hear the Celtics are beating the Knicks by 46. Life is good. I'd say more, but then I'd be an obnoxious Boston fan. Everyone hates those guys.

10:29: More Gumbel discussion from Gleeman, who is writing this blog for me at this point: My dad was here when i first turned the game on. He knows zero about football and the first thing he said was, 'what's wrong with this guy's voice?'

It's essentially the equivalent of taking some 500-lb guy and making him a swimsuit model."

10:34: And just as Romo and company looked on the ropes after a delay of game penalty to set up a third-and-very long, Romo hits Crayton wide open for a 35-yard gain. I have no rooting interest, but find myself cheering for the Packers now because it would be a gutsy win.

10:36: Reggie Miller on Celtics score (100-52) : Belichick has his hands all over it.

10:40: Packers challenge a T.O. catch on the sideline, and it's overturned. Has any truly dominant Hall of Fame receiver like Owens ever had worse hands? That wasn't an easy catch, but it's also one you don't expect Owens to make very often. I don't think his fantasy owners are complaining.

10:42: T.O. is eating Al Harris up. Might cost Harris a trip to Honolulu. That third-down play to Crayton was a killer, with Dallas threatening to go back up by two scores as we end the third quarter.

Fourth Quarter

10:46: Bart asks if Ryan Grant is a top-ten running back at this point. You saw the graphic - he's leading the NFL in rushing yards since he took over. He's playing on a loaded offense that forces defenses to keep only seven in the box. Grant is absolutely a top-ten guy.

10:49: T.O's owners are complaining now. Or at least Tony Romo owners are. You'd be hard-pressed to find a worse drop than Owens' play in the end zone. That wasn't just a drop, it was like watching someone self-destruct. It looked like Owens had the touchdown, got excited, and started flailing his arms before it was secure, popping it in the air for Al Harris. Hard to explain. I give John Kuhn the credit.

10:52: Packers go three-and-out. I spend my time making fun of a T.O. owner.

11:00: For Susan: I think we've ranked Grant well for the most part and believed. I put him 15th this week, which I thought was optimistic and would keep him in most lineups. That big play against a strong run-defense like Dallas is tough to expect.

11:03: Romo smartly doesn't throw to Owens on their touchdown drive. It's amazing he has 294 yards and four scores in only 29 attempts because there is at least 60-70 hidden yards on long pass interference calls. (The one on this drive looks shaky in retrospect). Great performance by the best quarterback in the NFC. Ten points in seven minutes could be tough, even for John Kuhn.

11:05: At least we've made it an entire night without an Eli Manning Eco-Citizen watch ad. That deserves it's own post.

11:09: Koren Robinson makes a catch. Would like to see him become part of the offense, but it won't happen this year. And really, the Packers don't want him stealing time from Jennings or Jones.

11:12: Two words: Mason Crosby!! What a gutsy kick by a rookie who has been rock solid all year. You have to give Mike McCarthy credit for calling for a 52-yard kick there, because percentages say you go for the first down. Somewhere, Herm Edwards and Justin Medlock are watching this Folk vs. Crosby showdown and shaking their heads.

11:14: Not timely, but here are Patrick Crayton's fantasy point totals during the season. 8, 0, 5, 37, 19,15, 0, 17, 3, 19. He's the new Joey Galloway.

11:16: Nice job by Tony Romo. The Packers bring eight in the box, Romo goes to Jason Witten in single coverage. And Atari Bigby gets a huge 15-yard facemask penalty. Only a matter of time before Bigby happens.

11:19: Marion the Barbarian time. I'm not sure there is a back in football you'd rather have in this situation. The Packers are in trouble.

11:22: Cousin Ronnie: I'm confused by the timing, but the Rosenthals have conferred and we believe we have had the black bean Taquito's from Trader Joes. A winner.

11:25: The Cowboys can do anything they want on offense. They can pound you, and they can go deep. They can throw over the middle to Crayton. And Jason Witten, who was very quiet all game, absolutely took over in the fourth quarter on the way to 67 yards.

Final Thoughts:

* The Packers did a great job staying in this game. But let's face it - the Cowboys outclassed them from the first minute, even before Favre's injury. The Packers will get some people back healthy, but they will be fighting an uphill battle trying to win in Dallas in the playoffs. It can be done, but Dallas is a complete team.

* Aaron Rodgers can play. The last time he replaced Favre, Rodgers broke his ankle. Tonight, he actually turned the Green Bay offense around. Favre owners who can make roster moves tomorrow may want to pick him for safe keeping.

* Ryan Grant is matchup-proof. Not that it matters much because the Packers have a favorable schedule the rest of the way.

* Marion Barber still isn't getting all the short-yardage carries, and it could have cost the Cowboys tonight. It certainly cost fantasy owners.

* Two words: Nick Folk.

Thanks for stopping by tonight. There's a chat at 2PM tomorrow. Until then...