Jerry Jones often deals in hyperbole, but this time, he’s right.
After beating the Detroit Lions in Week 11, the Dallas Cowboys sit atop of the NFC East standings at 6-4. Meanwhile the rival Philadelphia Eagles lost to the New England Patriots to provide Dallas a one-game cushion, for now. The next challenge is a trip to Foxborough, Massachusetts to take on the Super Bowl champs and consensus best team in the league. Jones called it a “measuring stick” game on his weekly radio appearance on 105.3 The Fan.
For most of this season, we’ve seen the 2019 version of the Cowboys win when they’re supposed to. Dallas is 6-1 against teams with a .500 or below record, yet when they’ve played a good team, the Cowboys are 0-3.
The Cowboys have had chances to come away with wins in each of the three losses, but they haven’t been able to walk out victorious.
Winning the division is great, but if the team has aspirations of being taken seriously, there is no better time to prove they belong than by competing with the Patriots.
This game won’t just gauge how good the Cowboys are as team, but it will pit the league’s top offense under a microscope against the NFL’s best defense. The Patriots lead the league in yards against (249.9), points given up per game (10.8), have created the most turnovers (28) and are second in pass defense (152.6).
Dallas’ offense is tops in the league (and the only team averaging over 400 ypg) at 444.6 yards a game, is first in passing yards per game (312.7) and is fourth in points a game at 28.6. If the offense is as good as good as they appear to be, they’ll have to prove it on the road against the league’s top defensive unit.
This is an opportunity for offensive coordinator Kellen Moore to show his offense is capable of moving the ball and scoring against a good defense. In the Cowboys’ four losses, they have failed to score over 24 points.
It’s also a game for QB Dak Prescott to show that he’s a legit candidate for league MVP.
Prescott torched the Lions to the tune of 444 yards and has thrown for six scores and 841 yards in his last two outings. Those totals are over half of what the Patriots have allowed through the air all season. Yet, there are some still questioning just how good Prescott is because he hasn’t thrived against good teams.
If the Cowboys’ signal caller plays well, there can be no denying Prescott is one of the game’s best.
This is one of the toughest games remaining on the teams’ schedule. The Patriots provide ample challenges for the Cowboys and their top-flight offense.
There might be more important contests left, but this match-up can bring legitimacy to a team trying to be taken seriously. It’s a huge opportunity for the Cowboys to show they can do more than just beat bad teams.
Measuring stick, indeed.
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