The New England Patriots are tied for the best record in the NFL at 9-1 this season and they seem to be well on their way to locking down yet another first-round bye in the AFC playoffs, and yet, people are worried about them, mainly due to their offense.
The Patriots have not exactly been lighting it up offensively in recent weeks, as the aerial attack has just been so-so and the ground game has been almost non-existent.
The problem is that New England will be facing one of the best defenses in the league this Sunday when it takes on the Dallas Cowboys, and the Cowboys also boast the No. 1-ranked offense.
So, scoring 17 points like they did against the Philadelphia Eagles this past weekend probably won't get the job done.
But there is one area where the Patriots can hurt the Cowboys: with their run game.
As talented as Dallas' seventh-ranked defense is, it ranks just just 15th in defending the run, meaning that Sony Michel might finally be in for a big game.
To put it bluntly, Michel has not been good this season.
The second-year running back has rushed for 515 yards and six touchdowns while averaging a meager 3.3 yards per carry. He has logged four yards per attempt just once since Week 5 (which came in Week 9 when he carried the ball four times for 18 yards), and he has yet to record to a 100-yard outing this year.
With New England's passing offense laboring a bit, now is the time for Michel to step up against a defense that has only been average in guarding against the run in 2019.
Obviously, Michel isn't Saquon Barkley or Christian McCaffrey, so expecting him to bust out for 120 yards is probably asking too much, but, at the very least, he needs to be efficient and make the most out of his touches.
Last week, for example, Michel carried the ball 10 times for just 33 yards. Against an Eagles team that was missing its top two wide receivers and was never going to score much against the Pats' stingy defense, that's okay, but the Cowboys can fill it up.
Plus, Dallas is at home, and unlike the Patriots, the Cowboys are in desperate need of a win.
Michel will almost certainly get more touches than he has gotten the past couple of weeks. That is, of course, unless Tom Brady turns back the clock with a big-time performance, which is definitely possible, but not likely in a regular-season game.
Remember: last year, Michel was a crucial piece of the Patriots' offense, totaling 931 yards and six scores while averaging 4.5 yards per attempt. He was also a monster in the playoffs, scoring six rushing touchdowns.
Clearly, the talent is there, so it would not be surprising if he did come through with an X-factor type of outing against Dallas.
One thing that has been obvious over the last several weeks is that New England needs some sort of an offensive boost, whether that comes from rookie wide receiver N'Keal Harry (who just came off injured reserve) or a guy like Michel, who played such a pivotal role in the Pats' success a year ago.
We'll see if Michel can deliver on Sunday.
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