FRISCO, Texas- The 6-4 Dallas Cowboys face the 9-1 New England Patriots on Sunday in Foxborough. The Patriots have won the last five matchups against the Cowboys and Tom Brady has never lost to America’s Team.
Dallas’ defense will have their work cut out for them in week 12 going up against arguably the greatest coach and quarterback duo in NFL History: Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. The pair has been to three straight Super Bowls in the last three years and has won two. The Cowboys D has to create pressure on Brady up front and force him to make mistakes. In the secondary, Dallas needs to have tight coverage on his go-to-target, Julian Edelman.
I spoke with safety Jeff Heath on Edelman’s ability and he told me, “ He is really tough. He is a really good route runner. He is a gamer- he goes in there and does the dirty work. Really good run after the catch and then how they use him; they put him everywhere and get him the ball in a lot of different ways. “
The Cowboys’ run defense has struggled in recent weeks and the Patriots will likely exploit that by pounding the football and handing it off. They will have to do a better job tackling in space and eliminating yards per carry.
Offensively, the Cowboys’ passing game has been dominant the past few games predominately influencing the unit being ranked first in the league in total offense averaging 444.6 yards-per-contest. Conversely, New England ranks first in total defense. It will be a battle. The Cowboys have to start fast and move the chains against the Patriots’ game plan specific defense that mixes between fronts, coverages, and rush concepts. The team primarily uses a 3-4 but Belichick has a reputation of being the greatest in-game adjustor in the business today. They like to get their linebackers heavily involved against the pass, and their secondary is the best in the league with Stephon Gilmore and Devin McCourty in the backfield.
Gilmore is one of the top press corners in the league and I had a chat with Michael Gallup on his effectiveness. He responded, “he does what he is supposed to do, but he also does all the little things right. Staying on top like he is supposed to, reading what the offense is trying to do, and he’s a smart corner. Also, everybody knows he watches film religiously so he is making sure he is one step ahead of his opponent. “
Sunday will definitely be a measuring stick game for Dallas.
