IRVING, Texas - Stubble hid the remains of 13 stitches and a scar on Tony Romo's chin, and a bandage covered a splint on his left middle finger Wednesday afternoon.
The quarterback doesn't like to talk about pain, and he was pretty good at concealing the sting he must have felt in the third quarter Sunday when three Browns combined on the hit that earned him those tough-guy badges of honor.
The ball left Romo's hand just before he was rocked on the play. Blitzing linebackers Kamerion Wimbley and Willie McGinest beat the Cowboys tackles around the outside. Normally Romo is able to avoid that type of pressure by stepping up into the pocket, but there was nowhere to run on this play. Veteran defensive tackle Robaire Smith supplied a quick rush up the middle, using a swim move to get by the Cowboys' Cory Procter with ease.
Romo needs to be able to trust Procter to stop his guy. McGinest made the hit, but Procter is also responsible for the biggest bump of Tony Romo's pro career. Romo had virtually all day to throw throughout the Browns game, but the lasting impression will be No. Nine lying on the ground, wincing. With their franchise quarterback at the mercy of his offensive line, one blocker's mistake could essentially end the Cowboys season.
Continuity is an offensive line's best friend. The Cowboys offensive line only missed two starts to injury the last two seasons, and whenever a backup has been forced to play during that time, it has been Procter.
He started two games as a center a year ago, but this was the first action at left guard of Procter's NFL career, filling in for the injured Kyle Kosier (foot). Overall, the Cowboys were pretty pleased with his work. Romo wasn't sacked at all, and Procter cleared the way for Marion Barber's second touchdown run, pulling left. But Procter had his struggles as well - he was beaten a few times by nose tackle Shaun Rogers, and was guilty of an ugly holding penalty in the second quarter, chasing behind Rogers while grasping his jersey. At 6-4, 350-pounds, Rogers provides a stiff test for any offensive lineman, but particularly Procter, the smallest of the Cowboys unit at 6-4, 308-pounds. Procter made up for the 42-pound advantage Rogers had with determination.
"It was harder on (Procter), I think, because of his size, when (Rogers) got on him some," Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said. "But he fought him every play. Every play he was on him he fought hard. He's going to have some physical battles, certainly. He's not the biggest guy, but he will battle you."
In his second week starting at left guard, Procter may actually have a tougher test. Philadelphia defensive coordinator Jim Johnson has a well-known penchant for bringing extra pressure to get after opposing quarterbacks. Sometimes it seems like the Eagles blitz on every play, in fact. They piled up four sacks in Week One.
It's not hard to figure out where Johnson's defense will try to attack the Cowboys on Monday night. His blitzers will have to get through a front five that consists of three returning Pro Bowlers and another guy, right tackle Marc Colombo, who has started every game the last two years and only rarely allowed a sack.
Procter, naturally, is the unproven one of the bunch.
And while Philadelphia doesn't have a Goliath-type mauler like Rogers, the Eagles will run games inside, twisting starting tackles Mike Patterson and Broderick Bunkley, two former first-round picks. Johnson will also stunt defensive end Trent Cole inside, he of the 12.5-sacks last season.
"I think their down linemen . . . they're more active than the ones we played last week," right guard Leonard Davis said. "They're smaller, but quicker and faster also.
"It's just neutralizing those guys, opening up holes and protecting the quarterback."
When the Eagles came to town last Dec. 16, they were able to stop the running game, forcing the Cowboys into obvious passing situations and making their blitz all the more effective. While some blame Jessica Simpson's attendance for Romo's struggles that day - the 36.1 percent completion rate and three interceptions - Philadelphia's defense and the pressure they created probably had more to do with it.
Romo was sacked four times in the game, and three times on Christmas Day 2006, when the Eagles came to town and Romo turned in another poor outing. The Cowboys had just 83 rushing yards in the 2006 home game against Philly, and only 53 in 2007.
Getting the running game going will open up the passing game. Otherwise the Eagles can tee off on Romo.
"They're not going to let the quarterback sit back there and hold the ball," Romo said. "They're a very disciplined chaos."
With all the confusion up front, plus linebackers bringing the heat, Philly will throw everything but the kitchen sink at Procter, schematically.
But that approach may actually play right into Procter's hands. While he's played less than a half against Philadelphia during his Cowboys tenure, finishing a game for the injured Andre Gurode last season, he has seen the Eagles on film plenty during his four years in Dallas. As tricky as Johnson's front seven is, it actually hasn't changed too much over the years, and Phillips doesn't expect anything new for this game.
"They run a lot of the same things year after year with different players," Phillips said. "I think they disguise it well. They give you one look and then they blitz from the other side or they give you a blitz look and then they come out of it."
Phillips praised Procter's smarts and his ability to make the calls, a responsibility he tackled while serving as the primary backup to Gurode. If he can successfully identify the blitzers Monday, the offense could be in for a big night.
"I think anytime a team wants to get after you, you feel that your opportunities will be there for big plays," Romo said, no-doubt considering the possibility of slants to Terrell Owens, quick throws to Jason Witten, or even a flat pass to the slippery Felix Jones.
"Really the Giants and the Eagles are very similar," Romo said. "They're not going to let you sit there and read it all out. You've got to work fast and teams that do that also give you a chance to create big plays if you know their personnel, or if you know what to try and hope for."
Romo is confident he can hold up his end of the bargain if his offensive line and running backs can do their part by blocking the blitz. If Procter can do his, he may hold off the newly-acquired Montrae Holland for the starting job until Kosier can return in a few weeks.
Holland, who the Cowboys got from Denver in a trade the last week of the preseason, said he knows 70-75 percent of the playbook and is receiving some one-on-one tutoring from offensive line coach Hudson Houck. Since Holland has been in Dallas, Phillips hasn't seemed committed to Procter as the fill-in starter, calling Holland "more of an anchor."
Come Monday, Procter will have the chance to prove he should remain the starter, which may only add to the pressure of protecting Romo against the vaunted Philadelphia defense. But if nothing else, he has his chance, about all a career backup, utility interior lineman can ask for.
Romo and the team's coaches, players and fans need to be able to trust that Cory Procter will take advantage of that chance - maybe this week more than ever.
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