The Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins will meet up for the 119th time on Sunday. One of the games greatest rivalries, a game between the two is often hard to predict. Nonetheless, here are four bold predictions for the Cowboys in their first of two matchups in 2019.
4. Dallas unleashes Zeke
Not so bold, but necessary.
Week 1 was Ezekiel Elliott's faux preseason game, as he sat out training camp and preseason due to a contract dispute. The Cowboys didn't “feed Zeke” against New York, as he recorded 13 attempts and one reception, totaling 63 yards (53 rushing) and a rushing touchdown in the process.
Elliott shook off the rust Week 1. By the end of the game, the Cowboys bell-cow back had 33 yards after contact and three first downs to his name. It was enough for the Cowboys to likely enable trust in the back, as against Washington, don't expect them to keep him on a snap-count. Instead, they'll show the world why they paid him $90 million over six years.
3. Cowboys secondary struggles to keep pace with Terry McLaurin
Last week, the Cowboys defense allowed 470 yards. That should get better against the Redskins, as Rod Marinelli is a trusted defensive coordinator and certainly has his fair share of weapons to play with. However, they may struggle against Washington's rookie sensation from Week 1: receiver Terry McLaurin.
In his rookie debut, McLaurin torched Philadelphia's defense — emulating a player on the other sideline, DeSean Jackson. A speed merchant, the former Buckeye racked up five receptions for 125 yards and a touchdown.
The Cowboys defense struggled to contain speedy deep ball maestros Week 1 — as tight end Evan Engram recorded 11 receptions for 116 yards and a score — and that may stick considering the shakiness of their safety corps. The Redskins are looking for a No. 1 option, and so is quarterback Case Keenum. Expect McLaurin to continue to solidify that he's that guy against Dallas.
2. Washington covers the spread
The spread likes Dallas (-5.5 on FanDuel SportsBook). Expect Washington, at home, to cover that. Though the Cowboys are 6-2 at Washington in the Jason Garrett era, they hardly ever win those games by a wide margin. Five of those games were decided by four points or less, including their last matchup (20-17, Dallas).
Dallas vs. Washington is a rivalry game. Do you know what happens in rivalry games? You throw out most of what you know of how they look previously. While Dallas showed signs of a Super Bowl contender last Sunday and Washington didn't, it's hard to accurately predict a blowout when both of these teams know each other very well.
However, Dallas will win this game. It's going to be close, but their talent level is undeniable, while Washington's quarterback situation mixed with their lesser offensive line isn't oozing trust to win.
1. Dak isn't perfect, but he gets the job done
Dak Prescott was quite literally perfect against New York, posting a 158.3 passer rating. The Kellen Moore system cut through the Giants defense like a hot knife and butter, but the same result won't happen Week 2.
Whereas the Giants defense contains young cornerbacks and pass-rushers, Washington has experience in both position groups and game-ready youth talent.
The Redskins boast one of the NFL's most physically imposing front-sevens, with an edge-rush featuring Ryan Kerrigan, Ryan Anderson, and first-round rookie Montez Sweat. A cornerback group with Josh Norman and Quinton Dunbar should help contain Prescott to a good, but not great, game as he faces his first real pass defense of 2019.
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