After Seattle, the Cowboys have a rematch with the Eagles around the corner
There is one more game left for Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys before the much awaited NFC East rematch.
The Seattle Seahawks, who come to town on Thursday night, are an opponent with a winning record this time around. The Cowboys (8-3) will get a little vacation before the Philadelphia Eagles visit town on December 10.
Dallas, which is riding a 13-game winning streak at home, has defeated three straight teams that are double-digit favorites by an average of 30 points. FanDuel Sportsbook says that the Seahawks (6-5) are in a close game, with Dallas favored by nine.
However, the Cowboys declare that they will not be snooping around to see the Eagles, who defeated Dallas 28–23 in Philadelphia to begin November in a game that Dallas could have easily won.
“Seattle is giving us plenty to worry about, plenty to focus on.” Coach Mike McCarthy stated,”The distance from Seattle to the next one is considerable. That doesn’t seem like a problem to me at all.”
With 18 touchdowns and just two interceptions since one of his worst games of the season, a 42-10 loss at San Francisco on October 8, Prescott is enjoying one of his best seasons to date.
After losing to the Niners 31-13 on Thanksgiving, the Seahawks are reeling from their second straight loss. Quarterback Geno Smith needs to snap a 20-game run without an offensive touchdown.
In a victory over Washington prior to the two-game losing streak, Smith passed for a career-high 369 yards.
Let’s get him well first. Smith was nursing an elbow ailment. “Let’s get him really healthy, a whole week of practice, that’ll be good,” head coach Pete Carroll stated. Just a few weeks prior, he had one of his best performances ever. All we have to do is stay in time.
HOME COOKING
Dallas is the first team in NFL history to win at least 20 points in each of its opening five home games of the season.
On Thanksgiving against Washington, the score was 10 points heading into the fourth quarter. However, an NFL-record fifth interception return for a touchdown this season by DaRon Bland capped a 25-point quarter and a 45-10 victory.
The problem for the Cowboys is that their eight wins have all come against teams that are currently in the losing league.
Prescott remarked, “We’ve won some games in a tough league.” But ultimately, the focus should be on the upcoming game, and a strong Seattle team is playing right now. I am aware that they have lost a few games here lately, but they are a strong team and they most likely need this victory more than many other teams in the league at the moment.”
ACT QUICKLY
It was obvious after the previous few weeks that Seattle’s passing game needed to be adjusted. Everyone concerned agrees that the first step is to remove the ball from Smith’s hands as soon as possible.
San Francisco sacked Smith six times last week, a season-high, and in several of those instances, Smith held the ball longer than necessary before the pocket collapsed.
Although Seattle anticipates right tackle Abe Lucas’s return, throwing in rhythm and avoiding having to hold the ball against Dallas’ formidable defense have been Smith’s top priorities.
Smith declared, “Coach (Pete) Carroll is right.” “Instead of throwing guys open like I usually do, I think I’ve been holding the ball a little too long to try to see them open.”
AVOID DISCOURAGING
Even with their current winning ways, the Cowboys will need assistance to catch the defending NFC and division champion Eagles in order to avoid having to travel to the postseason for the second straight year.
Philadelphia’s lead is two games, and Dallas probably hoped to gain ground with the Eagles facing Kansas City and Buffalo the past two weeks. The Eagles held on to beat the Chiefs, then pulled off an improbable win over the Bills when Jake Elliott forced overtime with a 59-yard field goal in the rain.
McCarthy claims that his group won’t give up.
McCarthy remarked, “The road to the championship is always under construction in this league.” For two teams, it’s never the same. Plenty of football still needs to be played.
RESTART THE RUSH
The Seahawks were receiving the kind of reliable pressure they were hoping for from the pass rush for more than five weeks.
Even in other weeks during the stretch, the Seahawks were getting three or four sacks and consistently getting the quarterback to move, with the exception of the 11 sacks they had against the Giants.
Some of that pressure-related success has faded recently. In the last four games, Seattle has racked up six sacks; however, three of those came in the team’s lone victory against Washington.
This week’s task won’t get any simpler. For the first time in Prescott’s eight seasons, the Cowboys have not allowed a sack in the last three games.
Jarran Reed, a defensive lineman for Seattle, stated, “We have to get teams behind the sticks so we can really let our pass rush go get after guys.” We’ve been allowing them to reach third-and-shorts by kind of giving up a few yards here and there. More third-and-long downs are required.