The 2-5 Dallas Cowboys will take on the 2-4-1 Philadelphia Eagles in Week 8 in a battle between two NFC East rivals.
The Cowboys will be starting third-stringer Ben DiNucci at quarterback since starter Dak Prescott is out for the season and back up Andy Dalton suffered a brutal head hit in Week 7 against the Washington Football Team.
The Eagles, meanwhile, will look to win their second straight game at home. Philly defeated the New York Giants in Week 7 on Thursday Night Football. They are currently atop the NFC East standings.
With the Eagles-Cowboys game almost here, let's take a look at four bold predictions for the contest.
1. Ben DiNucci throws one touchdown and two interceptions
DiNucci is making his first career NFL start. He's only thrown three passes in the NFL, all of them coming in Week 7 against Washington. He went 2-of-3 for 39 yards after coming in for Dalton. The Cowboys, who are currently a walking disaster on both sides of the ball, lost to Washington by a final score of 25-3.
While the Eagles don't have that great of a defense, DiNucci is likely going to struggle in this contest. Look for Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz to bring pressure all night long on DiNucci and force the youngster into some bad throws and poor reads.
We have DiNucci throwing one touchdown and two interceptions against the Eagles. The Cowboys are a mess on offense without Prescott and the Eagles' defense is likely licking its chops in preparation for DiNucci coming to town.
2. Cowboys defense gives up more than 30 points to Eagles
The Cowboys have the worst defense in the NFL. They are giving up 34.7 points per game on the season and are about to face one of the better quarterbacks in the league in Eagles gunslinger Carson Wentz.
Although Wentz has thrown 10 interceptions on the season, he has a history of playing well against the Cowboys. In seven career games versus Dallas, Wentz has thrown 12 touchdowns and only two interceptions for 1,713 yards. This Cowboys defense is easily the worst defense Wentz will face this season, so look for the Eagles to score more than 30 points on Sunday Night Football against Dallas.
The Cowboys have given up more than 30 points five times this season. They could go down in the history books as one of the most putrid defenses in NFL history. Why Dallas head coach Mike McCarthy chose to hire Mike Nolan as his defensive coordinator is beyond us.
3. Ezekiel Elliott scores one rushing touchdown
Without Prescott in the lineup, Ezekiel Elliott hasn't been able to find many running lanes since opposing defenses have been putting eight guys in the box.
While we have Elliott struggling against the Eagles, look for Zeke to score at least one touchdown from the red zone. He has five touchdowns on the season and two in his career against the Eagles. The Cowboys gave Elliott a massive extension and they need him to start playing better so the money doesn't look too bad on the books.
Elliott is currently in the worst slump of his career, as he hasn't rushed for 100 yards this season. That drought is going to continue against the Eagles, but Elliott's fantasy owners will at least get some points from his touchdown run.
4. Cowboys lose to Eagles to fall to 2-6
The Cowboys have already given up on McCarthy. Players are not only talking behind his back to the media, but not one player stood up for Dalton after Washington's Jon Bostic wrecked him on a dirty hit. That just shows no one on the Cowboys has any heart or fight for their quarterback or head coach.
The Eagles and Cowboys always play each other well since they are divisional rivals. Philly barely defeated the lowly Giants in Week 7, so this game could be close from start to finish.
However, we have the Eagles blowing the breaks off the Cowboys and winning by multiple touchdowns. There's just no way DiNucci—who was awful in college at Pittsburgh—is going to have success in his first NFL start in a divisional game on the road.
The NFC East is by far the worst division in football. Since the Eagles have the best head coach and quarterback in the division, odds are they will win the NFC East. The team can take a big step toward that goal by blowing out the Cowboys, who are a dysfunctional organization from top to bottom right now.
It will never happen since his ego is too big, but Cowboys owner Jerry Jones really needs to think about giving up his GM duties and hiring someone else for that spot.
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