NFL
New York Giants vs Dallas Cowboys Preview
Date: Sunday, September 16, 2018
Time: 8:20 pm Eastern Time
Location: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX
Team Records:
New York Giants 0-1-0
Dallas Cowboys 0-1-0
Sunday will mark the 113th meeting between these two familiar foes. The expectations were high for both teams coming into the season, but a loss for either one of them puts them in an 0-2 start.
Week 1 Recap
The Giants offense actually produced some pretty good individual numbers against one of the best defenses in the league in the Jacksonville Jaguars. Eli Manning looked like his typical self going 23/37 with 224 yards and 1 interception. The return of Odell Beckham Jr. saw him catch 11 passes for 111 yards. Even the highly anticipated debut of their rookie running back Saquon Barkley lived up to the hype as he had 106 yards rushing on 18 carries. However, they could only produce 15 points in their loss.
Dak Prescott probably wished he could have a do-over as he went 19/29 with only 170 yards passing. He was also sacked 6 times with a QBR (quarterback rating) of 23.7. Running back Ezekiel Elliott had 15 carries for just 69 yards, but he did have the only touchdown for the Cowboys.
Week 2 Preview
While I’m sure that the G-Men are ecstatic to have Beckham back in the lineup, they shouldn’t rely on trying to feed him the ball if they really want to win this game. Beckham now has 20 games in his career with at least 100 receiving yards. The Giants’ record in those games is 7-13. Huge numbers for OBJ aren’t necessarily a good thing for the Giants. I believe that they should try to spread the ball as much as possible. The middle of the field tends to stay open for the Dallas defense. They should also give as many touches to Barkley as they can.
The play-calling for the Cowboys is going to have to get better. They don’t have a threat down the field at all. That fact was a huge factor last week against the Carolina Panthers. Their tenacious defense was able to load the box and focus on Elliott, but that doesn’t mean that they should have abandoned the run. Elliot gets better towards the end of games so feed him, and feed him often. Prescott is also going to have to use his legs if they want to win. It often seems that he tries too hard to prove that he is a legit pocket-passer, but if the lane is there he should take it.
With all of that said, this is a rivalry game, and stats are often thrown out the window. The games between these two teams tend to be very close, and I don’t see it changing this Sunday under the bright lights at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX.
Photo credit to Keith Allison via Flickr
