Cowboys Nation is giddy with anticipation as we are now just two days away from the start of the Dallas Cowboys 2023 season playoff run.
As the #2 seed, Dallas hosts the 7th seed Green Bay Packers at AT&T Stadium for a chance to move on to the Divisional round.
Barring a loss that would obviously eliminate Dallas from the tournament, the Cowboys are guaranteed at least two home playoff games.
Those two can turn into three if the football gods send a team of mercenaries to eliminate the top-seed San Francisco 49ers.
Standing in the Cowboys’ way is a Packers team who snuck into the playoffs by winning their last three games to finish with a 9-8 record.
In the first full season without Aaron Rodgers leading the offense, Jordan Love has exceeded expectations.
His 32 touchdown passes are second only to Dak Prescott, and he has managed this with a stable of young and unproven pass catchers.
A big part of the playoff push has been a healthy Aaron Jones.
The Texas native has reverted to form, powering a Packers’ rushing attack over the final three weeks.
That said, let’s get down to business with the first playoff edition of bold predictions.
Keep in mind that these are BOLD predictions, meant to seem far-fetched, but still in the realm of possibility.
Cowboys’ Defense Will Stifle Aaron Jones
As I just mentioned above, Packers’ RB Aaron Jones has been on a tear since returning fully healthy from injury.
Over the final three weeks of the season, Jones has led the offensive attack.
After averaging just 37 yards rushing in his previous eight games, Jones rattled off 127, 120, and 111 yards in the final three games.
The Dallas rush defense also turned things around in the final three games after being absolutely gutted by James Cook and the Bills to the tune of 266 yards.
Despite the loss of Johnathan Hankins to an ankle injury, Dallas rallied against two of the top rushing offenses to end the season.
Miami (135.8 YPG) and Detroit (135.9 YPG) managed just 91 and 125 yards rushing, respectively against the Cowboys.
Now Hankins is back to bolster the defensive line, and my bold prediction is that Aaron Jones will be held under 40 yards rushing for the game.
Jake Ferguson Will Have a Career Game
Second-year TE Jake Ferguson has become a fan favorite this season because of his tough style of play and attitude toward defenders after the play.
He has made some big catches this season and has become somewhat of a security blanket for Prescott.
The signature play between the two is Ferguson streaking up the seam waiting for Prescott to thread the needle over the linebacker and in front of the safety.
Enter the Packers, who struggle to defend the middle of the field.
Linebackers Quay Walker and D’Vondre Campbell are much better at run-stopping and blitzing the quarterback than they are converting tight ends and running backs.
That leaves a positive matchup for Prescott and Ferguson to exploit.
My bold prediction is that Jake Ferguson will notch the first 100-yard receiving game of his career, shattering his career high by reaching 150 yards.
Dak Prescott Will Complete 85% Of His Passes
Ok, maybe this one isn’t so bold because Prescott set an NFL record by completing over 80% of his passes in four different games.
However, this is the playoffs, and if Prescott is so bad at football in January as the masses claim, then this is near impossible, isn’t it?
What makes this prediction bold is the fact that only once this season did he eclipse the 85% mark, just last week in Washington with 86.1%.
The playoffs are a different animal, but the Packers are prone to a Cover 3 scheme with a single high safety to take away big plays.
Unfortunately (for them), the Packers’ decision to prevent the big play leaves them susceptible to the short and medium passing game.
Despite being near the top of the league in deep throws, the roots of the West Coast offense are short to intermediate passes.
Prescott has a 128.0 QB Rating targeting the intermediate level of the field, and he will take those throws all day if the Packers allow it.
Look for Prescott to dice up the Packers’ defense with these short and intermediate throws to a Cowboys’ victory.