OnOff
FRISCO, Texas- The 5-3 Dallas Cowboys host the 6-3 Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
Defensively, the Cowboys have recorded seven takeaways in the past two games and need another dominant performance against the Vikings. Dallas’ defense has to create pressure on Kirk Cousins in the pocket and get off blocks quickly to prevent Dalvin Cook from finding a seam and sneaking to the next level. That will be a difficult task with Gary Kubiak’s outside-zone run scheme that benefits the team’s featured back and the NFL’s leading rusher in week nine.
“ They are really good at it, “ Jason Garrett told me.
“ Coach Kubiak has done a fantastic job throughout his career with the scheme and it’s something they believe in. They coach it really well. The offensive line are outstanding at it. And their runner is really good. So your gap discipline, setting edges, winning in your gap, being physical; all the things you preach every week…These things will be at the forefront of our minds this week.”
Offensively, Ezekiel Elliott had 139 rushing yards and 23 carries against the Giants and come Sunday, Dallas’ offense has to start fast and get the ground game rolling to set up the pass. The Vikings like to experiment with blitz packages and a variety of coverages to keep opposing offenses guessing. Marc Colombo’s offensive line will have to make the necessary pre-snap adjustments to put the rusher in Dak Prescott’s field of vision.
I spoke with guard Zack Martin on the Vikings’ front seven and he responded, “ they are very talented up front. We were watching some tape, we played them back in ’16, and it’s pretty much the same defense. They have a lot of consistency up there so those guys know that system well and they do it at a very high level. It will be a huge matchup for us up front.”
The main factor for the Silver and Blue will be eliminating penalties. Against New York last week, the Cowboys accumulated 10 penalties for 104 yards and managed to pull through in the fourth quarter to beat a struggling Giants team, but Dallas will not survive against the Vikings if they have a repeat of Monday night’s production early on. They cannot shoot themselves in the foot and come away with a W this time around.
