Fantasy Player Projections

Tony Romo

It's hard to say what to make of last week's loss to New York. Romo was both terrible and marvelous, and had both the yards and interception to prove it. The Falcons' secondary is not as inexperienced as New York's, so this game could provide more bad than good memories for Romo owners.

DeMarco Murray

There is a chance Murray will be ready to play in Week 9. Cowboys fans everywhere have their fingers crossed. Dallas' rushing attack has been awful without Murray in the lineup, and the Cowboys have little hope of having success against Atlanta's defense without some sort of balanced attack.

Felix Jones

Here are the numbers from last week: 19 yards, 1.5 yards per carry and a long run of five yards. Jones may be watching the game from the bench this week, whether DeMarco Murray returns to the lineup or not.

Dez Bryant

Bryant was two fingers away from being a hero last week. Prior to his near game-winning score, he was not far from being the goat, failing to play on the same wavelength as Tony Romo for much of the afternoon. It's tough to predict how he'll do series-to-series, let alone week-to-week.

Miles Austin

In Austin's last game against Atlanta, he averaged 28.5 yards per catch and scored twice. He has found the end zone in three of four road games this year, and has found success against pass defenses of all shapes and sizes.

Kevin Ogletree

Consider this: Last week, when Tony Romo passed for 437 yards, Ogletree didn't record a single catch. The Cowboys have several receivers on the roster, but lately only Dez Bryant, Miles Austin and Jason Witten have been catching balls.

Jason Witten

Coming off a record-setting day, Witten is closing in on Michael Irvin's all-time Cowboys record for catches. And at the age of 30 he is on pace to record his first career 100-catch season.

Dan Bailey

Having DeMarco Murray parked on the sideline helped Bailey put up respectable totals in recent weeks, as a lack of balance on offense resulted in a number of stalled drives.

Despite the absence of Sean Lee, the Cowboys' run defense held firm last week, and the pass defense remains one of the best in pro football. The pass rush, however, has been a mystery.

Matt Ryan

Ryan has thrown three touchdowns in four of Atlanta's wins so far this season, and he has attempted fewer than 30 passes just once. It's hard to say if he should be placed alongside the league's elite quarterbacks, but he deserves to be called an elite fantasy passer.

Michael Turner

Last week was Turner's first 20-carry game of 2012. It won't be his last. The Falcons love to pound their veteran back at the end of close games to eat up clock and punish the defense, and it could be the formula they use for putting the final touches on a very hungry Cowboys team this weekend.

Jacquizz Rodgers

A look at last week's box score might indicate the Falcons are shifting toward a heavier dose of Rodgers, but the team seems content feeding under-performing Michael Turner the bulk of the carries.

Julio Jones

Jones has five touchdowns and has caught a pass of 25 or more yards in all but one game this season. He made the Eagles' cornerbacks look foolish last week, so it's unlikely Dallas' talented defensive backs will scare the second-year star.

Roddy White

Last week was the only blemish of White's 2012 campaign. Although not as explosive as Julio Jones, he is far more consistent. Few fantasy receivers provide as much stability.

Tony Gonzalez

Gonzalez has lost favor in the Atlanta passing game the past two weeks, seeing a combined 12 targets. Gonzalez is still someone to start on a weekly basis, but he is not performing on the same level as when he was tearing up the league in September.

Matt Bryant

Bryant has tallied 32 points in three home games this season. Last week, the Cowboys' bend-but-don't-break defense allowed New York's Lawrence Tynes to nail five field goals.

The Falcons hope to follow the Bears' and Giants' formulas for defending Tony Romo: applying pressure to create turnovers. Atlanta has the personnel, ranking among the top 10 in opponent QB Rating.