ESPN’s Morning Sports talk show First Take reported on Wednesday that because of the controversy surrounding Jessica Simpson and boyfriend star quarterback Tony Romo, Simpson will not attend the Cowboy’s Sunday Playoff Game in person. Fans, columnists and sports radio call-in shows have been critical of the two after Simpson attended a Dallas Cowboys home game that ended in a loss for her QB hunk.

The ESPN morning show played a clip of Dallas head coach Wade Phillips, who dismissed questions about the Romo-Simpson relationship being a distraction for the team. However Newsday columnist, Johnette Howard, points out that before Simpson and Romo began dating, the cowboys were an impressive 13-1. And since the quarterback and former Daisy Duke hooked up, the Cowboys have been a pathetic 1-2.

The panel of columnists and former athletes on First Take was also critical of the Cowboys quarterback, despite the fact that the team has made the playoffs and won their division. The panel criticized Romo for a weekend trip with his famous girlfriend to Mexico, where the couple was snapped by TMZ enjoying themselves at an exclusive resort.

Particularly dismissive of Romo and Simpson was First Take contributor and Dallas sports columnist Skip Bayless, who said Romo’s “life is in shambles.” Bayless described Tony Romo as a hick from rural Wisconsin who is ”way in over his head” dating the pop-singer and reality TV star.

Of course a win Sunday will surely quiet critics, but a poor performance by Romo in Sunday’s game against the New York Giants could mean doom for the new romance.