The Dallas Cowboys are fresh off of a close loss in Philadelphia that dropped their regular season record to 5-3.
Although a tough loss, the Cowboys did have the ball on the Eagles’ six yard line with less than 30 seconds left in the game.
However, a loss is a loss, and the only cure for that hangover is to rebound with a victory.
Hosting a New York Giants team starting their third string quarterback seems like the perfect recipe for that victory.
Dallas will welcome a 2-7 Giants squad that has been losers in four of their past five games, and currently field the 32nd ranked scoring offense in the NFL.
All the way back in Week 1, the Cowboys demolished the Giants in MetLife Stadium by the score of 40-0.
That Giants team was fully healthy, and played the game with their top quarterback, Daniel Jones, and his top receiving weapon, TE Darren Waller.
This time around, Giants’ third string QB Tommy DeVito will be making the first start of his NFL career.
Second string QB Tyrod Taylor was lost to injury early in last week’s loss versus the Raiders.
Vegas opened the betting line with the Cowboys as 16.5 point favorites, a massive line usually only seen in college football.
In a game expected to be that lopsided, bold predictions should be easy to come by, and that’s what I will be predicting today.
Cowboys Will Shut Out The Giants
As I mentioned above, the previous meeting between these two teams ended in the score of 40-0.
The Giants, now missing offensive starters QB Daniel Jones and TE Darren Waller, will once again fail to score a single point versus the Cowboys.
New York, perhaps affected by inclement weather, were not able to get anything going on offense the last time the two teams met.
I don’t envision that will get any better this time around, especially after the poor showing on offense by the DeVito led Giants last week.
The Raiders, reeling after the firing of HC Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler, were still too much for the Giants to handle.
In spot duty after Tyrod Taylor’s injury, DeVito threw two interceptions and took six sacks against a Raiders’ defense that was struggling to make those types of plays.
The Cowboys’ pass rush should cut through the Giants’ struggling offensive line like a hot knife through butter after facing arguably the best offensive line in football in Philadelphia last week.
Whether or not a team has ever shut out the same team twice in one season is a great trivia question.
I don’t believe it has ever happened, but if anyone out there knows the answer for sure, let me know on Twitter (X) under the handle @_STXMario.
Tony Pollard Will Rush For 150 Yards
This is bold because RB Tony Pollard’s season high in rushing for a single game is 122, which he ironically accumulated in the 28-16 loss versus the Cardinals.
Dak and the pass catchers will likely jump out to a good lead, and HC Mike McCarthy will salt the game away with a mixture of Pollard and backup RB Rico Dowdle.
Pollard, perhaps in the face of recent criticism, will be running with a chip on his shoulder on his way to 150+ yards on the ground.
The sixth year back out of Memphis, Tennessee should find some wide open running lanes after the Giants traded away Leonard Williams
He was their run stuffer in the middle of the defense, and although Dexter Lawrence is still there, he can’t slow the Dallas’ rushing attack on his own.
If Pollard can manage to break a long run for the first time this season, he may even near the 200 yard mark.
Saquon Barkley Will Be Held Under 50 Yards
Giants’ RB Saquon Barkley is a physical runner who is also a weapon out of the backfield.
Barkley’s lowest statistical output of the season remains the Week 1 loss versus the Cowboys, where he only managed 63 total yards on 15 touches.
With no Darren Waller, and no other receiving threats worth mentioning, Barkley will surely receive the full focus of Dan Quinn’s game plan.
That’s not good news for Barkley, and certainly doesn’t bode well for HC Brian Daboll’s offense, as they will need to generate offense elsewhere.
With the extra focus on him, Saquon will have a tough day all around, and finish with less than 50 total yards of offense.
That will mark his lowest total of the season, and will be a microcosm of the game itself.
One that the Cowboys will win handily.