As we gear up for the Dallas Cowboys’ upcoming matchup versus the Detroit Lions in Arlington, many professional analysts and wanna-be analysts on Twitter have been throwing out their predictions for the game.
This is my favorite article to write every week because I don’t have to wear a suit and tie to make predictions about the game. Bold predictions are meant to be just that: BOLD. My predictions might seem far-fetched, but they are rooted in concrete stats, so you can’t say I’m just being a homer.
Most don’t have the confidence that the Cowboys can finally get their first win of the season in their own stadium. In their defense, the competition has not exactly been easy. A red-hot Saints team came in and ran all over the defense.
The following week, Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry, and the Ravens came in a did the same thing. While the Lions are entirely capable of rushing with the same success, I think the Cowboys might have an answer for that.
Dallas could have a unit break out of their normal performance and shock us all.
Lions Won’t Reach 100 Yards Rushing
This is bold because the Lions’ low rushing total this season is 116 yards in their last game versus the Seattle Seahawks. That total came on a day Detroit scored 42 points and Jared Goff threw for 292 yards.
The Cowboys are coming off of their best performance defending the rush in recent memory. I don’t feel comfortable hyping them up too much yet, but I will say that the defense finally meshed in run defense despite playing the fourth and fifth guys on the depth chart at defensive end.
Pittsburgh wasn’t exactly a rushing juggernaut like the Lions are, but the progress of the Cowboys’ defense is still promising. The group of guys that lined up last Sunday night found something in each other that they can build on.
With CB DaRon Bland slated to return to the lineup, DC Mike Zimmer will sell out to stop the run, forcing Goff to win the game only with his arm, and he will have a tough time throwing against the trio of Bland, Trevon Diggs, and Jourdan Lewis.
The trio gives Zimmer the luxury of run blitzing, and the Cowboys will hold the Lions’ mighty duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery under 100 yards for the game.
Defense Holds Goff to 50% Completions
This is bold because Jared Goff has never completed less than 54% of his passes in a single game since he became the Lions quarterback in 2021. It’s especially bold because he is coming off of a perfect 18/18 game in a victory over Seattle.
This is an example of one bold prediction feeding another. The reason Goff’s completion percentage is always so high is that he plays his best football using play-action passes after his run game has been established.
Detroit’s running backs are a force to be reckoned with, and defenses sell out to stop the run, allowing Goff to complete easy passes over their heads to the various weapons he has in the passing game.
The kicker here is that I can see the Cowboys jumping out to a lead and taking the play-action surprise out of the Lions’ offense. If they can accomplish that, Goff will be forced to just drop back and throw into a trio of play-making cornerbacks, and it won’t end well.
Goff will complete less than 50% of his passes for the first time in his Lions’ career after being forced to play catch up. I predict a stat line around 21/44 and 285 yards.
Dak Prescott Hits 400 Yards Passing
Both quarterbacks will air out the football this Sunday. Goff because of game flow, and Dak Prescott out of necessity. I know we saw a big improvement in the rushing attack versus Pittsburgh, but I won’t buy into it fully until they show some consistency.
Whatever adjustments were made last week, Lions’ DC Aaron Glenn likely already has a counter for it. Detroit’s front seven has key players on the defensive line like DE Aidan Hutchinson and DT DJ Reader.
Behind them is a trio of aggressive linebackers. Led by MLB Alex Anzalone and flanked by WLB Jack Campbell and SLB Malcolm Rodriguez, the Lions’ linebackers make life tough on opposing rushing attacks.
No worries. Dallas’ strength lies in moving the football via Prescott and the passing attack. Dak will put his Superman cape on again this week, and will eclipse the 400-yard mark through the air for the 11th time in his career, and the first time in 2024.
Prescott will spread the ball around to CeeDee Lamb, Jake Ferguson, Jalen Tolbert, and KaVontae Turpin, and at least a pair of those names will eclipse the 100-yard receiving mark.