Cowboys Take on the Giants in a Pivotal Week Two Matchup
As Sunday approaches, the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants look to forget their unfortunate losses from a week ago and get an old-fashioned ‘W’. The Giants expect to go into Dallas and spoil their home opener. The Cowboys look to keep the streak of beating the Giants in the past eight games. Even though the Giants added a couple of key players to their roster, with the Cowboys having the narrative of ‘owning’ the Giants the past couple of seasons, there’s no reason to believe that they won’t be adding a ninth game to the record, especially with the game being in Dallas.
Background Between the Two Teams
This is an intense rivalry between two historic franchises with passionate fanbases and two teams that wanna make their mark on the NFC East. The first ever meeting between the two was when they were in different divisions, and it resulted in a tie. It ramped up in the 1980s when they joined divisions. Throughout the years, both franchises and fanbases feel that it’s more personal than a game; it’s a battle for pride and bragging rights.. Let's face it, both teams hate each other, and every time they play, no matter their records and talent levels, anything can happen. In this rivalry, every hit is hard, every yard is earned, and every individual battle is fought with passion and some resentment.
Cowboys Look to Rebound After Unfortunate Start
Sunday’s affair looks to be a breaking point in both teams' seasons because this would be the second game in the division since both teams played a divisional game last week. Going 0-2 in your first two divisional games makes winning the division highly unlikely. For Dallas, they look to bounce back from their Week One game against the Eagles. The truth is that the Cowboys played a solid game, and if CeeDee Lamb did not have three easy drops down the stretch, they probably would have won. Their offensive line played solidly and needs to be sharp this week against the Giants' elite defensive line, headlined by Brian Burns and Dexter Lawrence. This will be a challenge, but they can handle it given the way they performed last week. The Cowboys will look to establish the line of scrimmage and get the run game going early, so they can have a nice balance. If they can hold off the Giants' defensive line, then this will allow Dak Prescott and the Cowboys offense to hit on passes down the field. Since last week was George Pickens' first game with the team, we can expect his volume to go up in this game. Also, while Lamb dropped three pivotal drops down the stretch, he will have the opportunity to bounce back strong and show why he’s a top-five receiver in the league. Prescott has never lost to the Giants at home, and he will hope to continue that this Sunday.
Giants Need to Find Rhythm
For the Giants, they will hope to find rhythm on offense and cause havoc on defense. Last week against the Commanders, their quarterback, Russell Wilson, had no time in the pocket, causing him to have to evade the pressure early on in his reads and ultimately run for his life. This week, they hope to get their blindside left tackle, Andrew Thomas, back in the lineup, which will hopefully help Wilson get a clean pocket and buy enough time to hit his receivers down the field. Look for Wilson to get Malik Nabers involved early and often. If the offensive line holds up, this will allow Wilson to have enough time to hit his Pro Bowl wide receiver, Nabers, amongst others. They will need to establish the run early and get into some easy third-down situations. The recipe for success for the Giants is winning the trenches, so they can control the game, keeping the Cowboys' offense off the field. This will allow Wilson to find his rhythm throughout the game.
In the end, even though the Giants made some nice moves this offseason, adding quarterback Russell Wilson, safety Jevon Holland, and drafting linebacker Abdul Carter, the Cowboys still seem like the more complete team. If the Cowboys can handle the strength of the Giants' defensive line and allow Prescott to find his rhythm early, it will be hard to stop the Cowboys' offense. With history repeating itself, we can expect Dak and the Cowboys to go out and set the tone early. Until the Giants can prove themselves, expect the Cowboys to win by a touchdown or more.
