NFL
By: Greg Rector
Washington Commanders (1-2) vs Dallas Cowboys (2-1)
The Dallas Cowboys host their number one divisional rival in Washington (On their third name) Commanders in an early Sunday game. Yes the younger crowd may say it’s the Eagles, sorry after this many years there’s still no love lost first and foremost for the team from the nation’s capital. You better believe the Cowboys and their fans relish that it would take the Commanders 15 straight season sweeps just to be .500 against Dallas. Let’s take a look at this NFC East battle.
Dallas Defense vs Washington Offense
The Eagles’ defense feasted on the Washington O-Line last week to the tune of 9 sacks on Carson Wentz. It won’t be much fun on Sunday when the league leaders in sacks with 13 are the next bunch up. While he didn’t have a sack against the Giants, Micah Parsons still drew so much attention that it allowed the rest of the Cowboys’ defense to attack Daniel Jones. pick your poison Commanders because Dallas will come after Wentz from everywhere. The Commanders’ offensive line, tight ends, and running backs are going to have to be much better in pass blocking than last week for Wentz to have any time to throw the ball. I have to say I am surprised the Commander’s passing game hasn’t been better thus far. McLaurin, Samuel, and rookie Jahon Dotson should be a strong group but thanks to the struggles on the line they have only had moments and haven’t been a huge threat. I believe that Wentz has always held the ball a little too long and that’s a recipe for disaster against this defense. The running game hasn’t been effective either for Washington and that’s a problem because the Cowboys’ run defense still gives up too many yards for my liking. That’s the one area the Commanders must see improvement. Being one-dimensional against the Cowboys just means trouble.
Washington Defense vs Dallas Offense
Anyone who knows me knows I don’t care about 400-yard 4 TD passing games, I care about protecting the football, running effectively, and executing in the red zone. Exactly what happened Monday night against the Giants. After three weeks the new number run blocking offensive line is?? You guessed it the Dallas Cowboys. It was a pleasure seeing the immediate impact Jason Peters presence had on the unit. The Cowboys rushed for 176 yards with both Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott being very effective. No Jerry there’s no quarterback controversy despite the efficient play of Cooper Rush, who became the first Cowboys quarterback to win his first three starts (Beat the Vikings last season) and has alleviated the concerns to this point we all had after Dak was injured. This bodes well for the Cowboys as the Commanders’ defense despite having high profile names, especially on their defensive line currently ranks 28th overall defensively. On paper, this looks to be a mismatch. The one area that continues to be a concern for Dallas has to be the penalties. The young players still need to stop committing penalties, especially of the dead ball variety, false starts have to stop. Despite having a couple of bad drops Ceedee Lamb played like a number one receiver against the Giants and that has to continue. Expect Michael Gallup to make his season debut and that should definitely help. Can’t say enough good things about the connection that Rush has with Noah Brown either. Peyton Hendershot filled in nicely for the injured Dalton Schultz despite a couple of those penalties. The biggest difference for the offense has still been on the sideline where finally offensive coordinator Kellen Moore has been more creative. That’s been my major criticism for the duration of his being the OC, and it’s about damn time it appears to be changing.
Prediction
Seeing the Commanders struggle on both sides of the ball warms my cold, cold Cowboys fan heart. Despite the accolades on paper nothing seems to come together for Washington on the field. I truly believe this organization needs a complete reset from the embattled owner on down. I know the Commanders fans are completely frustrated at this point. I look for their frustration to grow after Sunday. The Cowboys have been working towards being this exact type of team that I have begged for oh so many years. Led by a tough defense and an efficient offense the Cowboys finally appear to have gotten the message, it’s a TEAM sport, not a star-driven, country club laid-back attitude franchise. They are far from a finished product but the physical toughness is there on both sides of the football. Improve the mental aspect and commit fewer penalties and I’ll be even happier. Given what we’ve seen from both teams I have the Cowboys going to 3-1 with a 27-10 victory as my score prediction.
Photo by Bob Youngentob
As always you can find me on Twitter @GregsCowboys
