Cowboys Pregame Three Thoughts for Week 13
Seattle visits to begin Dallas stretch of playing five consecutive likely playoff teams.
The time has finally come where the tests of December will be given. Actually, we will allow the final day of November to get in the mix here as Dallas is about to play five consecutive teams who are in the playoff mix. Is this finally a chance to get everyone off their backs if they can beat Seattle, Philadelphia, Buffalo, Miami, and Detroit?
Well, prepare yourselves for the court of public opinion to change the quality of the win after the fact. Most every team on this list but the Eagles could be converted to a “not that great of a win” if the Cowboys handle them, but perception only matters in college football and the internet. In the actual NFL, each win is worth one win and you keep climbing up or falling down the standings based on that merit.
Seattle comes to town for the traditional Thursday-after-Thanksgiving Cowboys’ affair and these are my three thoughts:
When Dallas has the ball:
– Seattle has the defensive personnel to cause Dallas problems in this matchup if the Cowboys are not sharp, so the Cowboys need to demonstrate that they are ready for the challenge.
Tonight’s game is important as they are playing a team that is capable of pulling an upset for probably the first time in four games. But, in this case, what Dallas wants to make sure they do well is continue to perform with precision and aggression to put them in a fine position for the stretch run. In other words, treat this as it should be treated – a top priority game on the path to the playoffs. The Cowboys are hunting their 9th win and need to keep their foot on the gas and to do it with great authority.
Luckily, the objectives of their offense have been hitting the mark with consistency as you look above at the 10 big metrics and see eight of them in the blue (up with the leaders in the league) and nothing at all in the red. The only mid-table stats right now are rushing yards per game and red zone conversions. We already have told you this week that in the last two months, they are 3rd in the NFL in red zone production. This is a very good offense that keeps getting better. Now, we want to see them stand on that gas and show the league there are no signs of letting up.
The Seahawks are a heavy-zone team that sits in Cover 3 and Cover 4 all day long. They do not blitz much, but they do scheme up a very high number of free runners to the QB as they are top 5 in unblocked sacks. So you better keep an eye on a DB trying to sneak in and ambush Dak if the Cowboys are not on top of their awareness game.