Dallas QB Tony Romo leads the league with 13 picks. Can he cut down the turnovers and give the Cowboys a chance? (US Presswire)

Cowboys vs. Falcons -- Week 9

Where: Georgia Dome, Atlanta (turf, indoors)

When: Sunday, Nov. 4, 7:20 p.m. (NBC)

Spread: Falcons by 4

Forecast: indoors (clear, temperatures in the mid 50’s)

Records: Cowboys (3-5); Falcons (7-0)

Past results: Two most recent meetings -- Oct. 25, 2009: Cowboys 37, Falcons 21; Dec. 16, 2006: Cowboys 38, Falcons 28. Series record: Cowboys hold a 16-8 edge.

What matters: Turnovers seem to be the difference with these two teams. The Cowboys rank seventh in offense and fourth in defense, and the Falcons are 13th in offense and 20th in defense. Atlanta is 7-0 and the Cowboys are just 3-4, mainly because of turnovers. The Falcons rank fourth in the league with a +10 margin; the Cowboys are 31st at -11. Penalties are also a huge difference as the Falcons have committed just 24 and the Cowboys have been flagged 55 times.

Who matters: Tony Romo leads the NFL with 13 interceptions this season. Not all of the turnovers have directly been his fault -- receivers have often run the wrong routes or not fought for the ball well enough -- but Romo still must find a way to get on the same page with his receivers and gain back their trust. Despite the mistakes, Romo is still putting up big stats, including a career-best 437 yards last week against the Giants. Even with the four interceptions, Romo and Dez Bryant nearly pulled off the miracle comeback, which would’ve been the largest deficit (23 points) overcome in Cowboys history.

Key matchups: The Cowboys have had decent depth at cornerback all season, and this might be a game where it’s put to great use. Not only do the Falcons have an explosive receiving corps with Roddy White and Julio Jones, but tight end Tony Gonzalez is always a matchup nightmare. The Cowboys could look to put physical cornerback Brandon Carr on Gonzalez, similar to what they did against the Giants’ Martellus Bennett last week. That still leaves a trio of corners in Morris Claiborne, Orlando Scandrick and Mike Jenkins to cover on the outside and the slot.

Injuries of note: The Cowboys have all sorts of injuries, and it seems to be at the same position where the starters and backups are getting hurt. At linebacker, Sean Lee (toe) is out for the season but Dan Connor (neck) will miss this week as well, opening the door for newly-acquired LB Ernie Sims. The Cowboys are struggling at WR, where both Dez Bryant (hip) and Kevin Ogletree (hamstring) are questionable to play. RB DeMarco Murray (foot) is out again, but Felix Jones will likely start despite being banged up with knee and neck injuries.

Inside stuff: Since taking over as the starting quarterback in 2006, Tony Romo has been remarkable in the month of November, with a 19-2 record. The Cowboys were a perfect 4-0 last season and certainly need Romo and the offense to get hot again here in November this season, sitting at 3-4 and looking for a spark to make a playoff run.

Stat you should know: The Falcons are the 16th team since 1991 to start the season with at least seven straight wins. This will be the fourth time the Cowboys have faced at team 7-0 or better. But the Cowboys are 3-0 in three previous meetings, beating the 11-0 Redskins in 1991, the 9-0 Colts in 2006 and the 13-0 Saints. All three of those teams, however, went on to win the Super Bowl that season.

Looking ahead: The Cowboy are in the middle of a tough stretch of games and it doesn’t get much easier after Atlanta as they head to Philadelphia for their fourth road game in five weeks. The Cowboys are hopeful that playing five of their last seven games at home down the stretch will bring them good fortune.

Prediction: Falcons 26, Cowboys 23

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