The NFL Week 12 slate is chock-full of incredible matchups. It all begins on Thursday as Josh Allen leads the Buffalo Bills' offense on the road to face arguably the league's best defense in the Houston Texans. But on Sunday, America's Team takes center stage in Dallas, as the Cowboys host the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles.
The Cowboys are coming off a dominant performance against the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday night. But their season may be on the line this week.
The NFC is deep. Dallas already has five losses, with games against the Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions coming up. So, they must defend home turf against their division rival and get back to .500.
Meanwhile, the Eagles just keep on winning.
It doesn't matter if AJ Brown is upset with his role, the offense looks lifeless, or teammates are frustrated with Jalen Hurts; Philadelphia continues to find a way. They have won four straight and sit at 8-2, tied atop the conference with the Los Angeles Rams.
The stakes are high for both teams. So, let's get into our Eagles-Cowboys bold predictions for Week 12.
Javonte Williams struggles to get going
There were not the highest of expectations during the offseason when the Cowboys signed Javonte Williams in free agency. But he has done nothing but prove the haters wrong, to the tune of 161 carries for 809 yards and eight rushing touchdowns.
Two of those eight scores came on Opening Night against these very Eagles.
But Philadelphia's defense in Week 1 and Week 12 are two very different animals.
Over the last two weeks, the Eagles have held the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions to 16 points combined. They kept the dynamic duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery to 66 rushing yards. Neither Jordan Love nor Jared Goff could not get anything going through the air.
The trade for Jaelan Phillips already made Eagles general manager Howie Roseman look like a genuis, again.
If Philly has any chance of slowing down the red-hot Cowboys' offense, it starts with Williams. I fully expect him to be held in check, finishing with no more than 60 yards.
Jalen Hurts sends a reminder
Reports surfaced earlier in the week that anonymous players are frustrated with Hurts.
I get it. His numbers are not eye-popping. He is averaging less than 200 passing yards per game this season. But the man has 16 passing touchdowns to one interception. Yeah, a 16-to-1 TD-to-Interception ratio.
We have seen the Super Bowl MVP step up when the moment requires it. After two poor performances to open the season, he played out of his mind in the 4th quarter to beat the Rams.
A few weeks later, pressure was mounting yet again. So, he went back out and balled out against the Minnesota Vikings.
The talent is there. We all know it.
The athletes are there around him. We all have seen it.
And this game means a lot to Philly. They currently hold home-field advantage in the NFC. But any slip-up could force them to hit the road in the playoffs at some point. The Eagles quarterback will face a Cowboys defense that, albeit improved, is still not a good unit.
Look for Hurts to use his arm and legs to surpass 300 yards and score at least three touchdowns.
Dak Prescott continues to dominate division, Cowboys upset the Eagles
This is one of the most difficult games to pick in Week 12.
The Eagles have found different ways to win nearly every week. Their defense has been dominant of late. The Cowboys' offense looked unstoppable a few days ago. It makes for what should make a close, tightly contested football game.
I was on the fence about who I thought would win. Until I learned of the stat that Dak Prescott is 21-2 at home vs. the NFC East. His last loss came back in 2017.
Keep in mind that the NFC East has had a different division winner every year since 2004.
In what will be a thrilling finish, I look for the Cowboys to upset the Eagles.
