The Dallas Cowboys underwent a regime change three weeks ago when former head coach Wade Phillips was fired and offensive coordinator Jason Garrett took over the troubled 1-8 team.

Cowboys players were accused of many things in the weeks leading up to and following Phillips' firing.  Players looked as though they were giving up, taking advantage of their former soft head coach and not putting forth a 100 percent effort. 

None traces of those unattractive characteristics could be found in the heartbreaking 30-27 loss to the New Orleans Saints on Thanksgiving Day. 

Dallas was overwhelmed by a 17-0 hole in the first quarter after the Saints marched 80 yards downfield and scored a touchdown in less than two minutes. Then, center Andre Gurode prematurely snapped the ball resulting in a Cowboys punt that the Saints converted into another touchdown. 

"We talk a lot about adversity," Garrett said.  "Adversity is going to happen to you individually, it's going to happen to your football team." 

For the first few minutes of the game, it looked like Cowboys that took the field in the first eight weeks under Wade Phillips that was undisciplined, unfocused and looking to pack it in. 

But the Cowboys team of the last few weeks has taken on the attitude of its' new head coach Garrett and rose to the occasion instead of shying away from it as they did in the 45-7 loss to the Green Bay Packers. 

"Offense picked up the defense, defense picked up the offense, special teams got involved and we kept fighting," Garrett said. 

The Cowboys front line was dominant in the second quarter, constantly pressuring Brees and keeping the Saints out of the end zone, allowing just a field goal. 

The Cowboys offense did its job in the third quarter, outscoring New Orleans 14-3 after Miles Austin burst upfield for a 60-yard touchdown off a reverse that brought the Cowboys to within a touchdown. 

Just a few plays later, Michael Irvin's "4th and Long," reality show winner, Jesse Holley, stripped Reggie Bush on a punt return deep into Cowboys territory, which running back Marion Barber turned into a touchdown for Dallas. 

With the game being neck-in-neck and Drew Brees jogging onto the field, it just seemed like the Saints quarterback was due for a touchdown.  But safety Gerald Sensabaugh capitalized off a tipped pass to Saints' tight end Jimmy Graham

Once the Cowboys began marching downfield, it seemed the Garretts third consecutive win.

After a few successful running plays for first downs, the Saints defensive line stood strong, forcing Kitna to pass.  Wideout Roy Williams caught a slant route from Kitna and streaked 47-yards up the field, but just as Williams approached the end zone, Saints cornerback Malcolm Jenkins stripped the ball and recovered what surely would have been the nail in the coffin for New Orleans. 

"It's one of those things you preach and you drill all the time," Garrett said.  "Don't turn a great play into a disastrous play because that's how the defender can get back into the play.  In that situation, the most important thing is the ball." 

WIlliams took full responsibility for the costly turnover after the game. 

"I lost the ball game," Williams said.  "Let my teammates down.  That was a 'W' if I get tackled or just long-jump my way into the end zone, we win." 

Brees took over with three minutes remaining in the game and torched the Cowboys secondary time and time again.  Brees favored Terence Newman's side as the quarterback couldn't seemed to be stopped from making huge plays on the right half of the field.  

The Cowboys secondary was unable to stop the Saints after two huge plays on Newman and a touchdown over the middle on cornerback Mike Jenkins. 

"Honestly, it's a blur," Newman said after getting burned an a 55-yard pass from Brees to Robert Meachem.  "I just remember tackling him." 

If Newman had to choose, Thursday's game against the Saints would be a sure favorite to forget as the safety was constantly caught out of position and always seemed a step behind. 

Kitna had just 1:55 to march at least 40 yards down the field to get within a reasonable field goal distance but came up a little shorter than expected after back-to-back miscommunications with wideout Dez Bryant. 

Kicker David Buehler was wildly inconsistent throughout the first half of the season but was perfect from the field against the Saints leading up to the final kick.  Kitna left Buehler with a 59-yard attempt which Buehler pulled just left that left the Saints proudly marching into the locker room. 

It was an odd scene in the locker room following the Saints loss as several players tried to take sole responsibility for the teams loss.  

"We all know that it's a bottom-line business for everybody and ultimately, you've got to get the bottom line right," Garrett said.  "We talk about fight and battling and playing the right way, and we're going to continue to to do that and hopefully the results will come our way." 

Kitna finished the game with 313 passing yards on 30-of-42 passing.  Although Kitna played well, the quarterback seemed to take the Saints loss very hard. 

"You can't explain this," Kitna said.  "This is an emotional game, an emotional league and this game, if you let it, will rip your heart out." 

While the Cowboys certainly aren't into moral victories, it was a good sign to see every player scratching and clawing their way back into the game. 

"Everyone fought offensively," defensive tackle Jay Ratliff said.  "Defensively, everybody just played their hearts out.  The way we played and the emotion we had today, I'm not going to hold my head down about that, not at all." 

It will become very evident in the next few weeks whether Garrett is the guy for next seasons head coaching position.  The Cowboys face the always dangerous Indianapolis Colts led by Peyton Manning on Dec. 5 and Michael Vick and the Philadelphia Eagles in the following week. 

The Cowboys front office should have a good idea if Garrett is the future of the organization, as good performances against the Colts and Eagles after the Cowboys have been all but eliminated from the playoff hunt will earn him major brownie points.  As long as Garrett has the Cowboys playing with the same fire and intensity as Thursday night's game against the Saints, Garrett's future should be secure.

The Dallas Cowboys are playing host to the visiting New Orleans Saints on Thanksgiving day, in what many consider interim head coach Jason Garrett's first real test. 

Saints quarterback, Drew Brees, led New Orleans on a 4-play, 81-yard drive just 1:51 into the first quarter and the Saints continued to add on to its lead. 

The Cowboys are in a 20-6 hole after a sloppy first half, something that's been uncharacteristic  as of late under Garrett.  Cowboys center Andre Gurode had two bad snaps, one that led to a punt and the other stalling a Cowboys drive. 

The Saints defense wanted to make sure that no matter what happened, rookie wideout Dez Bryant wasn't going to be a factor in the first half.  Bryant has no receptions and the Saints haven't punted or kicked a ball in the electrifying returner's direction in the first half. 

Aside from a Jon Kitna interception to a Saints lineman, the backup quarterback had a solid first half.  Kitna went 17-for-21 but has yet to get into the end zone. 

Give credit to the Cowboys defense, that gave up a pair of big plays in the first quarter, but have since buckled down, put the heat on Brees and held the Saints running game to 36 yards. 

Field goal kicker David Buehler has been cause for much concern over the past few games but is two-for-two today with 21-yarder and a clutch 53-yard field goal to close out the first half and bring the Cowboys down 20-6. 

Garrett is going to need to break the seal off of the end zone in the second half and get his pair of wide receiver standouts, Miles Austin and Dez Bryant involved in the game.

The Dallas Cowboys were one of the more highly regarded football teams coming into the 2010 season with many experts picking them to be the first ever team to host its' own Super Bowl. 

If there was still even a hint of optimism for February aspirations after a dreadful 1-4 start, any mirage of a postseason was shattered when quarterback Tony Romo was sidelined with a broken left clavicle.  Romo will not need surgery, however, he will still be sidelined for six-to-eight weeks, with eight weeks being more likely than six. 

New York Giants linebacker, Michael Boley, blitzed into the backfield untouched and got a clean shot on Romo, taking the quarterbacks legs form underneath him and driving Romo's left shoulder into the ground.  Initially, it looked like Romo may have just got the wind knocked out of him but after lying on the ground for several minutes, it appeared the injury was much worse. 

"I didn't know that it was broken," Romo said.  "I felt like it was kind of sprained, maybe.  I was really light-headed, I couldn't get my senses." 

Romo wasn't New York's first victim this season.  Including Romo, the Giant's have knocked off five quarterbacks and even left backup Cowboys backup quarterback Jon Kitna with a bloody nose. 

Leading up to Monday night's showdown with the Giant's, Dallas was the most penalized team in the NFL.  The team brought in officials last week during practice to help alleviate some of the penalties that cost the Cowboys several games this season.  Although, the Cowboys did a much better job of avoiding flags Monday night, the team just couldn't seem to catch a break. 

"We're sitting out there watching the game go by and it seems like nothing really goes our way," Cowboys cornerback Terence Newman said. 

Newman let one pass slip through his fingers but got an interception on the very next play.  The secondary made a few key plays in the first half but failed to counter Giant's quarterback, Eli Manning's halftime adjustments. 

Manning threw three interceptions against the Cowboys, two in the first quarter but finished with over 300 yards in passing, 4 touchdowns and had two receivers go for over 100 yards. 

Giant's wideout Hakeem Nicks was peculiarly in single coverage with a safety covering him on each of his two touchdown grabs and although, the three interceptions look good on paper for the defense, the Cowboys secondary got torched time and time again in the second half. 

"Third quarter's pretty much a blur to me," Newman said.  "We couldn't stop them." 

The Cowboys might have to get familiar with being unable to stop opposing teams as Kitna led several three-and-outs once the backup took over.  Although Kitna looked better as the game wore on, the Cowboys offense was still unable to convert a third down all night, going 0-10.

Cowboys wideout Roy Williams played with Kitna when both players were sporting Detroit Lions uniforms and Williams may need to undergo some medical treatment himself after his post game comments. 

"Tony Romo is our starter but Jon Kitna is just as good," Williams said.  "He's going to put the ball where it needs to be.  He's going to make mistakes but we have to help him win." 

While it's commendable that Williams is willing to tell a few white lies in supporting a fellow teammate, saying Kitna is just as good as Romo is nothing short of delusional, especially considering that Williams had no catches in the loss to New York.

Cowboys tight end Jason Witten had no illusions about what Romo being out would mean for the Cowboys. 

"Let's not kid ourselves," Witten said.  "Anytime you lose a guy like Tony [Romo] it hurts, it's hard." 

With the Cowboys going 1-4 with Romo it's scary to imagine just how bad the remainder of the season could play out with Kitna at quarterback.  The Cowboys are amongst the NFL's worst and are the only NFC team without a home win. 

"At this point, we've just got to do what teams that are 1-5 try to do," Newman said.  "That's just try to make every week like a Super Bowl.  Try to salvage as much of the season as possible."

The Cowboys defensive front struggled as well, unable to put significant pressure on Manning.  As expected when a teams star quarterback goes down, moral wasn't very high in the locker room . 

"We're not in the playoff hunt right now," linebacker Bradie James said.  "We're just surviving." 

Best case scenario, Romo might be available to return after six weeks, but it's very doubtful that there will be anything left to play by that time. 

Cowboys coach Wade Phillips, Roy Williams, Jon Kitna and the rest of the Cowboys will try to do everything possible to at least appear as though there is still hope but need to look no further than owner Jerry Jones for a reality check.

"We're going to go as far as Romo takes us," Jones said several weeks ago when referring to how successful the Cowboys could be this season.

Romo is out and the Cowboys are 1-5.  Time to cut out some eyeholes in a brown paper bag.