The Dallas Cowboys play host to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 17 Sunday. It is a pivotal showdown between two teams moving in the opposite direction. The Cowboys are 11-4 and are currently the #2 seed in the NFC standings. They are one game behind the Green Bay Packers and would hold the tie-break were the Packers to lose another game and Dallas wins out. On the other side, the Cardinals are in a free fall, having lost three straight and four of their last six games. Arizona was the conference's top seed before the massive slide.

Despite the losing streak, the Cardinals still pose a very real threat to Dallas. They still have Kyler Murray at quarterback and good weapons in Christian Kirk, AJ Green, Zach Ertz and Chase Edmonds. Their defense is also formidable. Even though for most of the year, the Cardinals have been a run-funneling defense, the key to this game for Dallas is not Ezekiel Elliott. It's Amari Cooper.

Cooper lashed out a bit prior to last week's game. He pointed out that he needs to see the ball more, especially in the red zone. The Cowboys have really struggled in the red area for much of the season. Apparently his message was received.

Cooper had his best game since Week 8 vs. the Minnesota Vikings. He pulled down seven catches for 85 yards and a touchdown. That was all in the first half as the Cowboys basically rested their starters in the 2nd half in the blowout win over Washington. I don't think it was a coincidence the Cowboys offense also looked as good as they have in a long time.

It had appeared for a while now that Dak Prescott was forcing the ball to CeeDee Lamb down the field. Lamb is an extraordinary player. There is no doubt about that. But when you have as many weapons as Dallas does, you need to spread the ball around. Prescott connected with eight different receivers in the first half alone Sunday night.

The days of the Cowboys offense running through Ezekiel Elliott appear to be over. He is still a very good running back, but age and injuries seem to be catching up to him. Backup tailback Tony Pollard looks like the future in Dallas. Pollard has the prototypical size (6'0”, 209 lbs), agility and clearly has the speed.

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Lamb is probably the team's best talent at wide receiver. But Cooper is the engine that makes this team go. He goes over the middle and makes big catch after big catch. Cooper can take a hit and get right up. He is known for being a good locker room guy and great teammate. When he is incorporated into the offense, it unlocks everything else. With Lamb attracting so much attention, Cooper and fellow wideout Michael Gallup see single coverage all day. That's a matchup Dallas wins most of the time.