Dallas Cowboys travel to Seattle to take on the Seahawks

Dallas Cowboys Corner: Next Up Seattle

By: Greg Rector

Welcome back to Cowboys Corner.

Week three sees the Dallas Cowboys travel to Seattle to face the Seahawks, minus the 12th man on Sunday afternoon. This game might not have the scrutiny of the Chiefs vs Ravens game, however, this is potentially a game that might end up being the most entertaining on the slate for Sunday. Here’s what to look for.

OFFENSE:

Led by the NFC Offensive Player of the Week, Dak Prescott the Cowboys offense will need to keep firing on all cylinders this week. The Cowboys have 41 plays after two weeks of play over 10 yards, more than any other team in the NFL, meanwhile, the Seahawks defense has given up 47 plays over ten yards, a stat no defense wants to have. The Seahawks secondary has been hit by injuries, and even when healthy in week one gave up a ton of yardage. This certainly is not an offense that the Seahawks want to see coming to town.

Personally, while I would enjoy Prescott airing it out all day long, that would be a huge mistake, you cannot get into a back and forth with Wilson on the other side of the field. Sustaining drives and using the clock to keep him on the sideline, is the smart way to go. That means feeding Elliott a healthy dose of carries while taking what Seattle gives you in the passing game. If the Seahawks don’t drastically improve their coverage’s this week then yes attack that weakness, but keep in mind the less time the Cowboys banged-up defense is on the field the better.

I watched both Seahawks games as where I live they are the team with broadcast rights. The Falcons handed Wilson too many short fields and last week they were one goal-line play away from defeat against the Patriots. The Cowboys have enough weapons to give the Seahawks defense nightmares. The one thing that cannot be repeated is the turnovers, avoid those and this offense has a major edge.

If the big plays are there, take them obviously, but definitely try to win the time of possession battle. The less time number 3 is on the field the better.

DEFENSE:

As I feared last week the Cowboys defense did indeed have a hard time against the Falcons. There’s no doubt they are missing key parts. This week they need to have a singular focus on containing Wilson. This is a game that Trysten Hill, who did a decent job last week in run stoppages, needs to also bring pressure right up the middle on Wilson. The rest of the line needs to get their hands up as well, Wilson is a smaller stature QB, much like Brees, impairing his vision is vital. The other key is for the ends to not break contain, Wilson can scramble at a very high level. Stay in your lanes or he will burn you downfield all day long.

I believe that Jaylon Smith will be designated to spy on Wilson, he will need to be on his game to be in Wilson’s grill as much as possible. Joe Thomas and the line will also need to limit Chris Carson, who is a dual-threat out of the Seahawks backfield. The biggest threats though are DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, both can break for big plays at any time and have great hands. I would expect to see more zone defense and the secondary has to keep themselves between the receivers and the end zone. Expect Trevon Diggs to go up against Metcalf all game long.

PREDICTION:

This game lines up as another shootout. Two offenses that can light up the scoreboard, and two defenses that are far from healthy. For me, the game will come down to winning the turnover battle. The Cowboys must protect the ball and defensively they need to be far more aggressive in trying to force turnovers. Yes, folks have the heart medication handy, fill up the oxygen tanks before kickoff, because this will likely be another nail-biter.

Wilson has always caused problems for Dallas, well this week it’s time to reverse that trend. For the veteran Cowboys, they remember seeing his wife moonwalk on the Cowboys star December 26th, 2017 after the Seahawks 26 – 12 playoff win. That insult should never be forgotten.