The Rams are heavily favored over the Cardinals in Week 17.
Neither the Rams nor the Cardinals have anything to play for in Week 17 besides their own pride as both teams have been eliminated from playoff contention. The Rams were most recently eliminated from the playoff race by losing 34-31 to the 49ers on Saturday night.
With several players banged up after the loss, the Rams could play it safe and keep their top players out of harm’s way to avoid further injury before the offseason. But as of now, the Rams are big favorites over the Cardinals, who just beat the Seahawks in Seattle on Sunday.
According to BetMGM, the Rams are 7.5-point favorites over the Cardinals in Week 17. The over/under is 48.5 points.
The Rams have beaten the Cardinals in five straight games, all coming by at least 16 points. Most recently, they blew out Arizona on the road, 34-7, in Week 13. It was one of the Rams’ best performances of the season as a team.
Kyler Murray left Sunday’s game with a hamstring injury, so his status for the season finale is up in the air. If he doesn’t play, the spread could move further in the Rams’ direction. Brett Hundley would get the start in that scenario.
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I know Cowboys fans don’t want to hear this, but it’s something they need to hear: Dallas’ deflating 17-9 loss to the Eagles on Sunday was for the best.
It’s frustrating, sure. The Cowboys were the better team all season. By point-differential, they’ve been one of the best teams in the NFC. But, let’s face it: This team wasn’t winning a Super Bowl, and Jerry Jones did not need any excuse to keep Jason Garrett around for another wasted season.
If the Cowboys make the playoffs, he’d have one. Getting wrecked by the first good team they played would not have been worth another season of this…
I know losing to the Eagles hurts, but it’s better this way. Trust me.
Jones has put himself out there as the face of the organization, so a lot of this will fall on him. I just don’t know how fair that is. He did his part and gave the coaching staff a talented roster. This lost season, like many before it, ultimately falls on Garrett. Look, Dallas was never going to take the next step with him maniacally clapping on the sideline. The Cowboys needed a new coach. This massive underachievement will force Jones’ hand.
As bad as things are now, the Cowboys are actually in decent shape going forward. They’re sitting on about $85 million in unused cap space for 2020, and they can easily get that number up near $100 million with a few moves. The financial flexibility is there. Dallas still owns all of its top draft picks. If Jones and the front office play this correctly, it’s not hard to imagine this team taking a leap next season.
Step 1: Clean out the coaching staff
(AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
From top to bottom.
Garrett obviously has to go. His zeal for settling for field goals and his lack of situational awareness cost this team too many points in 2019. The Cowboys ranked second in both offensive DVOA and Expected Points Added but they’ll finish outside of the top-five in points scored. Somehow, Dallas has scored fewer points than a Patriots offense that hasn’t looked right all season. Coaching has been the difference.
(Yes, New England’s defense has scored a ton of points, but still … it shouldn’t be this close.)
You’ll undoubtedly hear out-of-touch media types wonder why Dallas didn’t lean on Ezekiel Elliott more this season and accuse offensive coordinator Kellen Moore of abandoning the run too often, but, if anything, the Cowboys were TOO committed to the run this season. Here’s Dallas’ dropback rate vs. the rest of the NFL based on win probability, via the excellent @CowboysStats:
@CowboysStats
It’s not until things really get dire — when their win probability drops below 15% — that the Cowboys abandon the run. In neutral game states, the Cowboys are actually running more often than most teams, which makes little sense considering how effective the passing game has been compared to the ground game…
@CowboysStats
Garrett’s warts were on full display in Philadelphia. The Cowboys found themselves in several fourth-and-short situations (including a fourth-and-1 with Dallas trailing by 11 in the fourth quarter) and every time, Garrett elected to kick, leaving points on the board in a game that came down to one possession. That’s been the theme of this season for Dallas.
Playing by the book has always held Garrett’s Cowboys teams back, and we may have seen the worst example on the game-deciding play. Amari Cooper and Randall Cobb were sitting on the sideline for the key fourth-down play.
Instead, the team trotted out Jason Witten’s corpse, Blake Jarwain and, holy crap, is that Tavon Austin? It is!
Why weren’t two of Dak Prescott’s top targets on the field for the most important play of the season? Garrett was playing things by the book…
Why weren’t Amari Cooper & Randall Cobb on the field for the Cowboys 4th down chance to tie the game? Jason Garrett said both players were on the fieledfor a lot of plays in 2-minute offense & neeed a rest. Cooper said it was part of normal rotation.
As bad as the offensive coaching staff was on Sunday, the defensive staff may have been worse. Sure, the Eagles only scored 17 points but they moved the ball at will despite playing their C-team on offense.
Rod Marinelli and Kris Richard called a dreadful game. They insisted on playing soft zone coverages instead of challenging an underwhelming set of receivers at the line of scrimmage.
I’m miffed by the amount of zone the Cowboys have played today vs a depleted Eagles’ offense. Giving away yards w/o challenging backups on the perimeter. Doesn’t really make sense
That allowed Doug Pederson to create some unfavorable mismatches.
How about Greg Ward against a washed-up linebacker? Sure.
Dallas Goedert against Jeff Heath one-on-one in space on a key third down? You bet.
It was all too easy for an Eagles passing game that has had to grind throughout the season. Per Next Gen Stats, Carson Wentz finished the game with an expected completion percentage of 71.2.
Seventy. One. Point. Two. Only two starting quarterbacks finished with a higher number.
As bad as the coverage calls were, this goalline call on third down was one of the worst I’ve seen all season…
Step 2: Do whatever it takes to hire Lincoln Riley
Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
And I mean whatever it takes.
Riley says he’s content at Oklahoma, and I believe him. It’s one of the best jobs in college football. But we’re talking about the Cowboys. I don’t know how much bigger it gets for a football coach from Texas. If Jerry busts out the checkbook — and we know he’s willing to do that — I don’t see how Riley could turn this opportunity down.
Dallas has a franchise quarterback, a good set of skill players and one of the league’s better offensive lines. Riley is not going to walk into a better situation. If he plans on making the jump to the NFL, this is the time to do it.
Also, and this is important, working for Jones doesn’t seem to be as daunting as it once was! Hell, Jones has kept Garrett around for a decade of mediocre football. so job security isn’t an issue. And Jerry and Stephen Jones have done a good job of building this roster and replenishing it with homegrown talent. Long gone are the days of Jerry spending money just to spend it.
I don’t think Riley will need much convincing, but maybe Jones will. Last week, when asked about Riley and Baylor coach Matt Rhule, Jones mentioned how hard the transition from college to the pros has been for most coaches.
Jerry Jones was very complimentary of Lincoln Riley and Matt Rhule on @1053thefan this morning. But then he pointed out “college coaches have the lowest percentage rate of success” taking over as NFL head coaches, adding that the Cowboys went 1-15 in Jimmy Johnson’s first season.
As good as the Cowboys offense has been this season, there’s still plenty of room for improvement. Garrett’s old school thinking has held the offense back for years. Riley’s scheme will propel it into the future.
Step 3: Re-sign Dak Prescott
Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
This one is easy. By every advanced metric out there, Prescott has been one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks in 2019. And all of those arguments people use to discount his success — the offensive line, Zeke Elliott, etc. — they’re all nonsense.
It’s not just the numbers, either! The tape also backs this up. Prescott has improved as a passer every year. There isn’t anything he can’t do.
The Cowboys have plenty of cap space and there’s no such thing as overpaying a great quarterback. There’s no need to play the franchise tag game here. Give Dak his money and move on.
Step 4: Re-sign Amari Cooper
Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
This one is less of a no-brainer, but the Cowboys need to do whatever it takes to keep Cooper around. You can’t have enough good wide receivers, and Cooper is clearly a good receiver. Does he have a problem with drops? Yes. Does he take plays off? Also yes. But it’s hard to play offense without a true No. 1 receiver, as the Cowboys learned last season before swinging the trade with the Raiders. Cooper gives them a true No. 1 receiver. Not many teams have that.
Getting a long-term deal done would be the best move from a financial perspective, but if Dallas has to tag Cooper to keep him in town, they have more than enough cap space to do it. You don’t get better by getting rid of talented players at important positions.
Step 5: Cut Tyrone Crawford
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Crawford is a useful player when healthy, but it’s been a while since he’s looked like a player worth nearly $10 million a season, and that’s what he’ll make in 2020. His dead cap number drops to $1.1 million next year, so Dallas can free up $8 million in cap space by letting him go. Get that money.
While they’re at it, the Cowboys can decline their club option on reserve tackle Cameron Fleming and clear an additional $4.5 million in cap room. With those two moves, Dallas would have about $98 million in cap space heading into the offseason.
That’s more than enough to make this next move possible — even after signing Dak and Cooper…
Step 6: Re-sign Byron Jones
Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
So maybe Jones’ contract season didn’t go as well as he (or the Cowboys) would have hoped; but, in the long run, that may have been best for the team. Jones is a good player at an important position and his asking price won’t be as crazy as we expected before the season. As long as Jones isn’t asking for the moon, Dallas would be smart to pay him.
Step 7: Don’t overreact to 2019’s disappointing results
Quinn Harris-USA TODAY Sports
I usually wouldn’t advocate for a .500 team to spend a ton of money to keep its core together, but this is no ordinary .500 team. The Cowboys were terribly unlucky and a swing in luck, along with a new coaching staff, should be more than enough to get the team back in the playoffs.
Based on point differential, the Cowboys should have been a 10-win team. They’ve gone 1-6 in one-possession games. And with a minus-1 turnover differential, they aren’t getting any lucky breaks there. Regression — the good kind of regression! — should be coming in 2020.
There are still holes on the roster that need to be addressed. Dallas needs upgrades at safety, defensive tackle and tight end, but the’re mostly set at the most important positions on the roster. And they have the means to find those upgrades while adding depth and locking down the core of the roster.
Barring a complete disaster of an offseason, the Cowboys should be a good football team in 2020. But it all starts with the coaching staff. If Jerry Jones gets that right, the rest of the pieces should fall into place.
The New York Giants defeated the Washington Redskins, 41-35, in Week 16 and here’s some of what we learned from that win.
On Sunday, the New York Giants got their fourth win of the season when they defeated the Washington Redskins in overtime.
It was the Giants’ game to lose from the beginning, scoring on their first drive and never slowing down. The Redskins would keep it close and send the game to overtime, but the Giants emerged victorious behind a solid offensive effort.
Here’s what we learned from the Giants victory on the road:
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Saquon Barkley is back to 100%
The Giants’ use of Saquon Barkley hasn’t been the same this year as it was last year, and it shows in their record. Sure, he missed a few games with an injury and maybe wasn’t 100% when he returned.
Against the Redskins on Sunday, though, Barkley proved that he is absolutely back to 100%. He recorded a career-high 189 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries, an average of nearly 8.6 yards per carry. He also set the team’s all-time record for yards from scrimmage.
Saquon is back to form, and it’s a beautiful thing.
Though he left in the third quarter with a high-ankle sprain, Haskins put on a show in the first half of Sunday’s game.
One of the biggest disappointments from Sunday’s 41-35 OT loss to the New York Giants was that the Washington Redskins had to see a good thing stopped short.
Rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins was currently putting together by far the best performance he’d had all season, and it had all the makings of being the best game of his young career. In the first half, Haskins went 12-for-15 for 133 yards and two touchdowns, all of which started by the rookie completing his first 11 passes of the game.
Unfortunately, we know what happened next. On the first play of the second half, Haskins was sacked, and he went down with an ankle injury. Though he later walked back onto the sideline after being carted to the locker room, his day would be done, and backup QB Case Keenum was left to try and win the game.
Despite only playing for just over two quarters, Haskins was still the highest-graded player on the Redskins, according to Pro Football Focus.
Despite leaving the game injured, QB Dwayne Haskins was still the #Redskins highest graded player (minimum 25 snaps) with an overall grade of 84.1. #HTTRpic.twitter.com/1lFpfHvSVm
He finished with a PFF grade of 84.1 and QBR of 143.2, which is by far the highest of his career.
According to a report from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, an MRI confirmed that Haskins suffered a high-ankle sprain, and his status for Week 17’s finale against the Dallas Cowboys is up in the air. It seems like a smart decision to sit the rookie and get him ready for 2020, which after Sunday is starting to look pretty bright.
Buffalo Bills, New York Jets Week 17 money line, spreads, odds and over/ under.
The Bills have nothing to play for against the New York Jets in Week 17. The Jets are playing for the ol’ pride factor. Buffalo already has the No. 5 seed in the AFC playoffs locked up.
Despite that, oddsmakers still give the Bills the edge in this one.
According to BetMGM, the Bills have opened as 1.5-point favorites against the Jets in their season finale.
As the home team, the Bills will typically see a three-point boost for playing this one at New Era Field. After their Week 16 loss to the Patriots, Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott said he hadn’t decided yet if the Bills would be playing their starters or not.
Regardless, it would be insane for the Bills to do so for an entire game which is meaningless. So expect it to be Jets starters against Bills backups. This factor also makes the Bills being favorites even more intriguing.
The Bills and Jets last met on opening day. In that one, the Jets were three-point favorites in a game the Bills won outright.
Once again, the Bills have the lowest over/ under in the NFL heading into a week. That’ set at 36.5. The money line sits Bills (-120) and Jets (+100) as well.
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According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Washington QB Dwayne Haskins suffered a high-ankle sprain in Sunday’s loss to the Giants, which held him out of the second half of the game Rapoport says that Haskins has a desire to play in the final game of the season against the Cowboys on the road, but it is yet to be determined whether he can or not After being carted to the locker room, Haskins walked back to the sideline in the third quarter and reportedly was lobbying to go back into the game
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Washington QB Dwayne Haskins suffered a high-ankle sprain in Sunday’s loss to the Giants, which held him out of the second half of the game Rapoport says that Haskins has a desire to play in the final game of the season against the Cowboys on the road, but it is yet to be determined whether he can or not After being carted to the locker room, Haskins walked back to the sideline in the third quarter and reportedly was lobbying to go back into the game
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Washington QB Dwayne Haskins suffered a high-ankle sprain in Sunday’s loss to the Giants, which held him out of the second half of the game Rapoport says that Haskins has a desire to play in the final game of the season against the Cowboys on the road, but it is yet to be determined whether he can or not After being carted to the locker room, Haskins walked back to the sideline in the third quarter and reportedly was lobbying to go back into the game
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Washington QB Dwayne Haskins suffered a high-ankle sprain in Sunday’s loss to the Giants, which held him out of the second half of the game Rapoport says that Haskins has a desire to play in the final game of the season against the Cowboys on the road, but it is yet to be determined whether he can or not After being carted to the locker room, Haskins walked back to the sideline in the third quarter and reportedly was lobbying to go back into the game
Zach Ertz dealing with rib injury suffered in win over Cowboys
[jwplayer 4QME40mk-ThvAeFxT]
The Philadelphia Eagles may have a decision to make in regard to resting tight end Zach Ertz against the Giants while risking playing a must-win game without the NFC’s top tight end.
Eagles’ head coach Doug Pederson met with the media on Monday morning, and confirmed that Ertz is dealing with a rib injury that has been “affected”.
Doug said Zach Ertz has a "rib that has been affected."
Said he's getting more tests. Will have more information later in the week.
Ertz is the Eagles’ best skill player currently and he’ll likely spend the week determining his pain threshold as the team weighs the pros and cons of playing him with a likely home playoff game looming two weeks from now.
Clint Capela played 40 and 39 minutes in consecutive games last week, and now he’s on the Houston injury report with a bruised heel.
Starting center Clint Capela was added to the Houston Rockets’ injury list before Monday’s game at Sacramento with a bruised right heel.
He’s listed as probable to play, which indicates that the team doesn’t view the injury as significant. However, it could be a reminder of the importance of keeping Capela’s minutes in check.
Capela played 40 minutes and 39 minutes in consecutive outings last week, in large part because the Rockets fell behind by 25 points and 17 points, respectively, in the first half of those games against the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers.
The Rockets (20-9) rallied to win both games, but had to lean even more heavily on top players such as Capela due to the reduced margin of error.
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For the 2019-20 season to date, the 6-foot-10 Capela is averaging 14.0 points (65.8% FG), 14.6 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks in 33.5 minutes per game. Thus, last week’s minutes totals were quite a bit above his norm.
That 14.6 rebounding total ranks second in the NBA to Detroit’s Andre Drummond (16.4) on a per-game basis.
Backup options that head coach Mike D’Antoni could potentially turn to in hopes of limiting Capela’s minutes include veteran Tyson Chandler and second-year forward Gary Clark, who hit 3-of-5 three-pointers off the bench Saturday in 19 minutes at Phoenix.
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Center Clint Capela added to the Rockets injury list, but as probable to play against the Kings on Monday with a bruised right heel.
Doolittle is averaging 16.7 points per game for the season and 18.3 points per game over the Sooners’ last three games. Accompanied by an 8.9 rebound per game average on the season and 10 boards per game over his last three, Doolittle has been a bright spot in Oklahoma’s early-season struggles.
Doolittle was named most improved player in the Big 12 following the 2018-19 season and so far, it appears he has continued to build off of his award-winning junior season. Hitting double-digit points in all but one of his games played (Stanford, 4 points), Doolittle has been a huge factor in the Sooners offense.
Leading not only Oklahoma but the entire conference in scoring average in the month of December has validated Doolittle’s growth as a player. Averaging 9.1 points his freshman year, 2.9 in an injury-riddled sophomore campaign and 11.3 last year, Doolittle has exploded offensively, quickly becoming a guy opponents are forced to respect no matter where he is on the floor.
Oklahoma’s next game is Monday, Dec. 30 as they host Texas Rio Grande Valley at 6:00p.m. CT.
