Sleepless nights for Keyshawn after loss

TOUGH DEFEAT — New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress, right, tries to break a tackle by Dallas Cowboys' Aaron Glenn during the second quarter Sunday. The Cowboys (7-5) lost the game, 17-10, and the Giants are in first place in the NFC East as a result. Dallas wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson isn’t satisfied. AP Photo IRVING (AP) — With the Dallas Cowboys’ latest loss keeping him up most of the night, Keyshawn Johnson’s mind began to wander.

Johnson started out thinking about the 17-10 loss to the New York Giants on Sunday, then moved on to the team’s twogame losing streak. Next came playoff scenarios, followed by bigger, deeper questions.

“Am I going to get back to the playoffs? How much longer is this guy going to coach? How much longer is that guy going to play?” Johnson said. “I was trying to figure everything out.”

Johnson said he slept for only about an hour. He ended up leaving his home early Monday and going to team headquarters for treatment. His thoughts were still on overdrive, so much that he considered flying out of town late in the afternoon just to clear his head.

While Johnson often beats himself up over losses, he said it’s been a long time since one bothered him this much. Then again, it’s been a long time since the Cowboys played a game with ramifications this big.

A win would’ve given Dallas a one-game lead over New York for the NFC East lead plus the tiebreaker, which essentially would’ve been a two-game lead with four to play. Instead, the Cowboys (7-5) are a game behind and stuck in a pack of teams fighting for at least a wild card.

Dallas coach Bill Parcells says he thinks it’ll take 11 wins to be division champs. For the Cowboys, that means winning out, which won’t be easy with Kansas City coming to Texas Stadium on Sunday, followed by games at Carolina and Washington. They close at home against St. Louis.

It’ll be even tougher if Dallas doesn’t do something about the offensive line problems that were at the root of the latest loss.

Drew Bledsoe completed only 15 of 39 passes, his worst percentage of the season, and matched season worsts with two interceptions, two fumbles and four sacks. While he certainly had his share of forgettable moments, he was forced into several mistakes by a ferocious Giants defensive front that met little resistance from Dallas blockers.

Dallas’ line has been out of whack since left tackle Flozell Adams went down with a season ending knee injury in the sixth game. Torrin Tucker took over, but needs help protecting Bledsoe’s blind side. Problem is, the Cowboys already were helping rookie right tackle Rob Petitti.

“Getting to the playoffs for me doesn’t get it done. I’m trying to win my division,” he said.

“I don’t want to be the sixth seed. That’s not my mentality. I’m trying to win a Super Bowl, I’m trying to win a championship. I want to win. I didn’t come here to sit around and be the sixth seed. I could go anywhere and be the sixth seed.”

Extra points: Parcells said CB Aaron Glenn “has got a chance to be OK.” Glenn injured his left ankle after making his second interception Sunday and had an MRI exam. ... The Cowboys got within 17-10 in the third quarter, but failed to score on their final five possessions. One ended with a long incompletion on third-and-1. “You try to do things to make a play and sometimes you just do the wrong thing,” Parcells said.