FRISCO, Texas — The embattled NFC East will finally have a contender on Sunday heading into the postseason. The Dallas Cowboys are still in the hunt for the division title. If the Cowboys win and Washington loses to the Eagles, Dallas will get home field advantage in the playoffs. If Washington wins, the Cowboys are eliminated and the WFT is in. Does not get better than that in December football. Sunday will decide the fate of the NFC East; the wild regular season ride will come to a close.
It is no secret that both the 6-9 Cowboys and 5-10 Giants have struggled this season and both clubs have been moving in opposite directions. Dallas holds the momentum coming off a three-game win streak and the Giants conversely have lost the last three.
New York’s offense has struggled to sustain drives converting on third downs and finding the end zone in recent weeks, averaging 17 points per game and rank near the bottom of every statistical category. Dallas on the other hand, has found their groove on offense. People can say what they want about the losing opponents as of late, but Andy Dalton is more comfortable in the pocket behind a consistent offensive line and has been able to spread out the ball to multiple weapons. The offense has fired on all cylinders with over 30 points scored during their three-game winning stretch. Credit to Kellen Moore for dialing up specific game plans and calling plays to accommodate injuries, playing into the strengths of available players on the gridiron.
Last week against the Eagles, the Cowboys posted two, 100-yard receivers with Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup, in addition to a 100-yard rusher with Ezekiel Elliott. To top off the explosiveness on offense, Dallas has not turned the ball over (one turnover in the last three games). Instead, have capitalized on the defense’s takeaways (ten in the previous three games). The forced turnovers have set the tone and have contributed to the last several wins for the squad. Dallas is now plus nine in the turnover margin since the win-streak began.
Winning the turnover differential will be big this week for Dallas. On the road in week 17, the projected forecast in New York will be cold and rainy. Not the best conditions for protecting the football. Ball security will be essential for the Cowboys. Giants’ quarterback Daniel Jones has struggled with turnovers this year under pressure and the Cowboys will need to try and exploit the issues by actively pursuing to knock the ball out and staying on the positive side of the spectrum in turnovers, not giving New York a short field to work with.
Mike McCarthy told media, “we’re doing such a better job finishing each play as we carry the football. You’re seeing the details in the fundamentals from the reps in practice and just an emphasis that the players are doing a really good job of protecting the ball with a second-hand cover when contact is coming upon and keeping the ball above your elbow and all those little details that you’re always emphasizing…we’re getting ourselves in position to create more takeaway opportunities and then you see when guys are doing a really good job executing the fundamentals of that.”
Giants’ defensive coordinator, Patrick Graham likes to utilize multiple looks and coverages on defense, relying mostly on a 3-4 base, and the Cowboys’ will need to continue with a balanced attack: Controlling the tempo with the running game and opening up favorable opportunities for the wideouts.
