If the Dallas Cowboys thought they had their hands full with the San Diego Chargers and New York Giants offenses the last two weeks, they won't know what to do with themselves when they enter the Superdome on Saturday night.

The best news for the Cowboys may be that the game is airing on the NFL Network and hundreds of thousands fewer fans will see the game. I wonder if Wade Phillips has sent mercenaries over to Jerry Jones house to tear down his satellite dish. Of course, it won't matter, as Jones will no doubt be sitting in a suite. And if things don't go well for the Cowboys' offense, he may very well be stalking the sidelines, trying to call plays to keep his team in the game ... trying to keep his team in the playoff hunt.

As everyone knows, Dallas, and quarterback Tony Romo do not have the best history of performing well in December, when it matters most. If they can't right that ship, and soon, this season will go down a failure like the last 10, and Phillips will be looking for a new job or a comfy rocking chair.

With his career possibly on the line, it must be daunting for the head coach to have to take his team into the home of a team looking to become only the second in history to go 16-0.

Phillips knows that stopping the Saints offense is a challenge that most teams are not up to, and realizes the task is twofold: contain the Saints, and still find a way to outscore them. That won't happen with field goals.

“You have to score,” the Cowboys coach said. “Hopefully not 50, but you can’t go in thinking you’re going to hold them to 10 or 17 maybe.”

The best way to limit the Saints from scoring is to keep them off the field. The Cowboys will have to try and replicate the success that other teams have had -- in losing efforts -- by grinding the ball on the ground and extending their touchdown drives into the 6-8 minute range. The Dolphins did it with Ricky Williams, the Falcons with Michael Turner, and the Cowboys will try it with Tashard Choice, Marion Barber and Felix Jones. If they can't score touchdowns, which they have done on less than 25 percent of their drives this year, they have no chance of winning.

The problem is, the Cowboys passing games accounts for more than double the yardage as their running game. And, as evidence in recent goal line failures, the Cowboys have not proven they can get the yards when they absolutely have to. That makes third-and-two much more daunting, especially when you know that Drew Brees and his offensive gang are standing on the sidelines waiting to come in and rip your heart out.

The Saints have only scored as few as 24 points once all season. And it's not just Brees, Pierre Thomas and Marques Colston who pose a threat to a Dallas defense that may be missing DeMarcus Ware and has a gimpy Ken Hamlin at safety. The Saints are better than every defense they face not because of their top three on offense, but because of their 1-6. The Cowboys secondary is physical, but their speed will be put to the test. Dallas may want to grind out possessions to score touchdowns, but the Saints want to kill you with speed. And then come out and kill you some more.

If the Cowboys settle for field goals or can't sustain drives, New Orleans will run them out of the Superdome and the playoffs, and may run Wade Phillips out of Dallas.

Prediction: New Orleans 34, Dallas 24