Apparently, it doesn't take Terrell Owens(notes) to cause a receiver controversy in Dallas -- all you need is a trade in which Jerry Jones got fleeced by the Detroit Lions, one maddeningly underachieving diva, and an undrafted free agent that came out of nowhere to put up two of the finest performances at his position in recent memory.

The diva in question is Roy Williams, the ex-Lions receiver who hasn't come close to fulfilling the price Dallas paid for him -- first-, third-, and sixth-round picks in 2009, plus a seventh back in 2010. Through Week 8 of the 2009 season, Williams has 14 catches for 249 yards and two touchdowns. He's fourth in receiver productivity on the team, behind Jason Witten(notes), Patrick Crayton(notes), and some guy by the name of Miles Austin(notes), who has put up individual-game performances of 250 and 171 receiving yards in the last month. Austin is getting his first starts this season, and he's making the most of it. The same cannot be said of Williams, whose resemblance to Owens is only in sheer disgruntlement.

"I'm the No. 1 receiver," Williams recently told the Dallas media. "But things are just going No. 2's way." No. 2 is obviously Austin, and Williams wasn't done shifting blame away from himself.

"(Austin) gets the ball thrown correctly his way. I'm stretching and falling and doing everything. Everybody who's been here's balls are there. Our footballs are everywhere right now."

What Williams is trying to say, in a convoluted fashion, is that Tony Romo(notes) is throwing footballs with extreme efficiency to everyone else on the team, and hurling Ryan Leaf goatballs to him. That, and not Williams' sloppy routes and alligator arms, is the reason Dallas' "star receiver" has caught 14 of the 37 balls thrown his way, for a pathetic catch rate of 38 percent (as opposed to Crayton's 51 percent and Austin's 62 percent).

Now, it's come out that Michael Irvin offered tips to Williams and Austin during the Cowboys' training camp about anticipating the snap count and using correct catch technique. Irvin recently said that while Austin was a willing and grateful pupil, Williams wasn't interested. Say what you will about Irvin, but there haven't been many receivers in NFL history with his absolutely demonic competitive spirit once he got on the field. Austin understands that every little bit helps. Williams clearly doesn't.

The Cowboys have a major problem on their hands with Williams. His high price forces the team to put him in a lead role he hasn't earned and doesn't deserve, and it may take more bad plays and blamescaping before this sad experiment comes to an end.

"Cry, Whine and Moan" is a weekly Sunday evening feature where fans of victory-challenged teams can gather to commiserate. Feel free to vent your frustration with your team's players, coaches or management in the comments below. And please, fans of teams who aren't on the list: Leave those less fortunate alone. This post is a taunting-free zone. The losers deserve that much.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bucs didn't play this week, but still found a way to lose. At the beginning of the day, the Titans and Rams provided them company as winless NFL teams. Now, the Bucs are all alone as the target of ridicule.

Detroit Lions. The Bucs can thank the Lions for leaving them alone in the Winless Club. They lost to the Rams ... you know, that football team in St. Louis. This is what can happen, Rams, when you let Steven Jackson do some of his running when he's near the other team's endzone.

Jacksonville Jaguars. This is the other team that lost to someone winless. It's hard to be that fired up about it, though, because it's not completely unexpected from Jacksonville. Really, nothing they could do would surprise me. I fully expect them to lose to the Chiefs by 65 next week, then beat the Giants by 40.

New York Jets. Admit it, Jets fans, that one hurt. The Manchize threw for 265 yards and 2 TDs, Thomas Jones(notes) broke the 100-yard mark, you bottled up the Dolphins run game, Chad Henne(notes) was Chad Henne, and you outgained the Fish 378 to 104 ... and you still lost. Oof. That would hurt even if it came against some random NFC team you didn't care about, but to the Dolphins? After all that trash-talking? That's got to feel like a good, solid kick to the pancreas.

Cleveland Browns. After the game, running back Jamal Lewis(notes) announced that he was retiring at the end of the season. Here's what I'm wondering: Why freakin' wait? What's the plan, to squeeze a couple more months of enjoyment out of your career? Good luck, my man. Hope you like getting drilled at the line of scrimmage.

Oakland Raiders. It wasn't an all-together terrible performance by the Raiders today, but it was the 13th straight time that they've lost to the Chargers, which can't feel good. It's the longest active such streak in the NFL.

Buffalo Bills. The Bills had been building a little momentum with consecutive wins, but that all ground to a halt today when the Texans drubbed them. There is good news, though. Terrell Owens(notes) scored his second touchdown of the season, so that investment is really starting to pay off. 

New York Giants. Remember Week 5, when everyone thought that the Giants were really good? Man. we were so young and naive back then! Everyone's got to grow up sometime, though.

We're heading into Week 7 on the NFL season, the Buffalo Bills are 2-4, and Terrell Owens(notes) has caught just 15 balls through six games. Among the receivers in the NFL who have more receptions than Owens are Dennis Northcutt(notes), Keenan Burton(notes), and Kelley Washington(notes), none of whom are on the path to the Hall of Fame.

What have we heard from Owens? Not a peep. Not word one.

I felt like it was time to congratulate him on that fact. True, dozens of other receivers in the NFL aren't catching as many balls as they'd like, and the overwhelming majority of them haven't said a word about it, either, but I like to see personal growth. In life, it's not always easy to turn over a new leaf. So let's applaud Terrell Owens, as he sort of applauds himself:

"As of now, you see that I haven't had any gripes about anything," Owens told reporters Wednesday at the Buffalo Bills' facility. "I'm just going with the flow of what’s going on and going with the plays that are called."

The "as of now" part is a little bothersome, because it implies that this might be a temporary situation, but I'm willing to glance past that. The fact of the matter is that Terrell Owens isn't producing, the Bills aren't very good, and he's gone almost seven weeks without whining or throwing any teammates under the bus. With 100% seriousness, I congratulate him on that, because I wasn't sure he could do it.

It's a long season, though, and if the losses mount for the Bills (my guess is that they will), it'll be harder and harder for Terrell Owens to remain a team player. But you can do it, T.O. I believe in you.