The latest to speak up was a franchise legend, who’s unsure if Big D has what it takes to overcome Big Blue on Sunday night.

Per Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com, former running back Emmitt Smith openly questioned the Cowboys’ mental toughness Thursday, saying they need to bring their A-game for 60 minutes if they want to start off the new year right — as NFC East champs.

“Talent-wise, I think they have it,” Smith said in an ESPN interview. “Leadership-wise, they have some good leaders on the ballclub. Do they have enough? Probably not. Can they go up to New York and be mentally tough in this situation? I think Jason (Garrett) has done a very good job of preparing the guys to be physically and hopefully mentally tough, but I think mental toughness is the thing needed in games like this.

Smith added, “Mental toughness for four quarters or five quarters, if you have to go that far. But that’s something our Cowboys have not been able to do in close games. And that’s where mental toughness comes into play.”

There’s facts to support the claim made by the league’s all-time leading rusher.

Dallas has experienced four fourth-quarter collapses this year, leading to losses against the Jets, Lions, Patriots, and Giants — all by four points or less.

In order to emerge from MetLife Stadium victorious, the 8-7 Cowboys will have to play near flawless football against the Giants, also 8-7. They already proved it’s no easy task, blowing a 12-point fourth-quarter lead to the G-Men just a few weeks ago. It was their last agonizing defeat, and the one that opened the floodgates for criticism.

They’ll need quarterback Tony Romo — bruised hand and all — to avoid a meltdown performance, something he’s no stranger to. They’ll need Rob Ryan’s defense, which has looked susceptible as of late, to play up and contain Eli Manning and the Giants’ passing attack. They’ll need Jason Garrett to keep his composure on the sidelines, and not make any questionable coaching decisions that could impact the game.

Otherwise, it’s likely that a season filled with lofty expectations and the usual excessive amount of hype, will end in absolute mediocrity.

It’s a moniker that carries more weight than most, considering the popularity of the sport among the country.

Now, technically, it would be incorrect to refer to Dallas as such — another team has claimed the title.

In a survey conducted by Public Policy Polling, 22% of the 700 voters said the Packers are their favorite team in the NFL. The Cowboys followed behind, receiving 11% of the vote.

Other popular choices included the Bears, Giants, and Steelers, each totaling 8%.

In fact, Big D’s fall from grace was particularly steep, as 22% of the voters named the Cowboys as their least favorite NFL team.

As for the Pack, it was a good day to be a member of the organization. Earlier, quarterback Aaron Rodgers was chosen as the AP Male Athlete of the Year.

If you’re Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, you probably answered none of the above, and are instead feeling frightened at what’s to come from the once dubbed ‘Dream Team.’

Per Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com, Jones appeared on a local area radio station Tuesday and admitted to being scared of the Eagles, who shellacked Dallas, 34-7, during their first meeting of the season.

“Because it is the Eagles and after the butt-kicking they gave us up in Philadelphia, I’m scared,” Jones said Tuesday on KRLD-FM. “It’s that kind of feeling. The respect turns into being afraid of what they can do to you if you have some breakdowns out there, so you can put that scared there if you want to. I think sometimes I know I do my best when I’m scared.”

The ‘Boys and birds face each other this Saturday at the Jerry Dome and the tilt will have major playoff implications. As shocking as it may be, Philadelphia could actually capture the division by beating Big D, and by receiving some help from the Giants, who’d need to lose to the Jets this week and beat the Cowboys in Week 17.

Under that scenario, each of those three teams would finish 8-8, with the Eagles winning the NFC East due to a 5-1 divisional record.

Dallas, on the other hand, would clinch a postseason spot with a win and a Giants loss, a more likely outcome but far from a sure thing.

During the first quarter of Sunday night’s tilt between the Giants and Cowboys, Murray was tackled awkwardly by a Dallas defender, causing him to remain on the turf for a considerable amount of time before eventually limping to the sideline.

Shortly after, he was almost immediately taken to the lockerroom, an ominous sign.

The diagnosis proved to be just as bleak.

Murray suffered a fractured right ankle and high right ankle sprain, ESPNDallas.com reports. He’s almost certainly headed for injured reserve, as these injuries usually take 6-8 weeks to heal on average.

This was the knock on Murray coming out of Oklahoma — he’s a bit of an injury-prone player, which might’ve caused him to slip to the third-round of the draft. Although blessed with talent and unlimited potential, he has trouble staying healthy. That doesn’t bode well for his longevity in the league.

Murray was just 103 yards away from the 1K mark on the ground. He made highlight reels with a franchise-record 253-yard explosion against the Rams in his first NFL start.

With Murray out of the equation, Felix Jones will regain his role as Dallas’ featured back.

The main catalyst behind their recent success has been the play of quarterback Tony Romo, who looked especially impeccable against the visiting Bills on Sunday.

During Dallas’ 44-7 rout of Buffalo, Romo posted a virtually perfect statline, completing 23-of-26 passes for 270 yards and three touchdowns. More importantly, he didn’t turn the ball over, and completed 88.5% of his passes, a franchise record.

From the outset, it was apparent Romo was in for a big afternoon. On just the fifth play from scrimmage, he hooked up with receiver Dez Bryant for a 34-yard touchdown.

Later, he connected with Laurent Robinson, in for the injured Miles Austin, on scoring receptions from five and 56-yards out.

Romo has recovered from early season miscues and untimely turnovers to begin looking like the Cowboys’ franchise quarterback — one that’s surrounded by a bevy of talent, even without Austin. It also helps to employ a dominant rushing attack, anchored by rookie DeMarco Murray, who had 191 total yards and a touchdown in the game.

In any case, Romo has a good chance to keep his hot hand going against the mediocre Redskins’ defense in Week 11.

On Sunday night, the team announced that Miles Austin is expected to miss the next two to three weeks after straining his right hamstring during Dallas’ 23-13 victory.

The injury occurred during the second quarter of the game, when Austin pulled up gimpy after a 37-yard reception. He hobbled to the sidelines and never returned to action, donning street clothes and giving way to backup wideout Laurent Robinson, who finished with 32 yards and a touchdown in his place.

Austin is set to undergo an MRI Monday, though the initial prognosis seems accurate considering his reaction.

“Randomly on that one play, my other hammy just grabbed up, out of nowhere,” Austin said. “It’s hard to describe how it feels, but it really hurts.

Fortunately, Austin’s left hammy, which caused him to miss two games this season, was unaffected.

Assuming Austin is sidelined for a few weeks, Robinson would replace him in the starting lineup opposite Dez Bryant. Robinson was a nice pickup for the ‘Boys, as the former Ram has totaled 24 receptions, 368 yards, and two scores in six games, while displaying a good rapport with quarterback Tony Romo.

Ryan dubbed Philly the “all-hype” team and vowed that the ‘Boys would “kick their ass” all over the gridiron.

On Sunday night, the time finally arrived for him to back up the bold words. Instead, after much talk, his unit failed to walk the walk as they were absolutely shredded to bits by Michael Vick and Co.

Afterward, Ryan took full responsibility for the nightmarish defensive performance, admitting that the Eagles’ coaching staff got the better of him, ESPNDallas.com reports.

“The whole thing is I got outcoached by [Andy] Reid and their staff,” Ryan said. “I mean, it’s ridiculous. I never gave our guys a chance. The whole [expletive] thing was on me. If I gave them any extra motivation, hell, I certainly never backed it up. I gave our guys a lousy plan. We had no chance, and it’s all on me.”

Granted, containing Philadelphia’s explosive weapons is easier said than done, but Dallas’ defense was absolutely taken to task, surrendering 495 total yards — 239 of which came on the ground, courtesy of Vick and LeSean McCoy, who went off for 185 yards and two scores in the rout.

The lone bright spot, as always, was linebacker DeMarcus Ware, who finished with four sacks to bump his season total up to 12. The rest of the Cowboys defenders never showed up to play and their highly-touted run defense was consistently gashed every which way. It was a very uncharacteristic showing for all of the NFL’s fifth-ranked group.

“Andy Reid was reading my mail,” Ryan said. “He kicked my ass. I’ve just got to go back and work harder. I’ve got to be smarter than this. That’s all it comes down to.”

Considering they were fresh off of a bye week, and were going up against their hated rivals in a critical game, there’s little good to take out of this defeat. Nevertheless, Ryan will have to wait until Week 16 for his chance at revenge against the Eagles, though he’d be wise to keep his mouth closed this time around — well, after he removes his foot from it first.

Choice’s inability to make an impact apparently resonated with the coaching staff, who’ve decided to move on from the 2008 fourth-round pick.

Citing a team source, ESPNDallas.com reports that the Cowboys waived Choice on Saturday. An injury settlement will be agreed to if he clears waivers.

Shortly after the move was announced, Choice posted a farewell message on his Twitter account.

“I just want to say thanks to all the great dallas cowboy fans. My time in Dallas has come to an end and the best is yet come. God bless,” Choice tweeted.

Although a bit surprising, Dallas’ decision to part ways with Choice was justified by his lack of production and the various injuries he was battling. In the last week alone, he injured both his shoulder and hamstring, the latter needing an MRI exam.

The Cowboys are stocked at the position, with Jones, Murray, and rookie Phillip Tanner all providing different elements in the backfield.

Choice, on the other hand, could latch on elsewhere if he can shake what ails him. He has 75 rushing yards on 28 carries for the season.

In Week 7, against the depleted and downtrodden Rams, Murray filled in for injured starter Felix Jones and quickly made an impression, exploding for 253 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries.

The yardage total set a new Cowboys record, surpassing the old mark of 237 yards by Hall of Famer Emmit Smith.

Murray, the team’s third-round pick out of Oklahoma, opened the game with a bang, scoring from 91-yards out on his first carry of the afternoon.

Although the Rams are statistically bad against the run, it was still an incredible showing and one that’ll likely make it harder on the coaching staff going forward. Jones hasn’t lived up to expectations this season and Murray made him look irrelevant after this performance.

Assuming Jones is again sidelined in Week 8, Murray has a chance for another big outburst as he faces the rival Eagles and their lacking run defense.

Per ESPNDallas.com, Redskins cornerback DeAngelo Hall said Wednesday that he’ll be specifically targeting the injured ribs of Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo on Monday night, hitting him whenever possible with the intent of inflicting additional pain.

“Absolutely. I want to get a chance to put my helmet on whatever’s hurt,” Hall said. “Romo’s ribs — I’m going to be asking for some corner blitzes.”

Another banged-up Cowboy — running back Felix Jones — won’t be spared by Hall or his defensive teammates, either.

“If I know Felix Jones’ shoulder’s hurt, I’m not going to cut him. I’m definitely going to try to hit him up high, so that’s just part of it,” Hall said.

“If somebody gets injured, you want to go after that injury,” (Brian) Orakpo said on a conference call with Valley Ranch media.

As for Romo, who suffered a fractured rib and a punctured lung in Week 2, he was specially fitted for a protective vest that would shield some of the beating his midsection is going to inevitably take, a necessary precaution if he’s aiming to suit up on Monday.

Ironically enough, the same company that manufactured the vest also made one for Eagles quarterback Michael Vick last season when he suffered damaged rib cartilage against, you guessed it, the Redskins.

Even this early into the season, inter-division grudge matches are always intense and hard-hitting games; bloodbaths, if you will. New levels of this rivalry have been reached now that there’s a bulls-eye squarely on Romo’s torso, and a chip likely planted atop Dallas’ collective shoulders. It should make for a very entertaining three hours of football.