Cowboys’ offense shines in fantasy football, defense not so much

Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb put on a show in fantasy football leagues this week.

Prescott ranked eighth-highest among offensive players for the week. Lamb had the 15th-highest total.

Prescott posted an impressive 39 points as he continues his torrid pace of the last seven games.

Prescott is averaging 39 points a week during this run.

Dak Prescott steps out of bounds before lunging for the endzone on a 2 point attempt in a game vs the Philadelphia Eagles on 11/5/2023

The Cowboys’ quarterback has used that run to charge all the way up to third among NFL quarterbacks with 370.65 points.

He trails only Josh Allen (398.35) and Jalen Hurts (397.85).

Lamb posted 33.5 points this week.

The Cowboys receiver has only failed to post double-digit scores in two of his 12 games. He has seven straight double-digit scoring games.

Lamb leapt over A.J. Brown and Keenan Allen and into second place among NFL receivers with 293.55 points. He trails only Miami’s Tyreek Hill (360.05).

Tony Pollard had his third-straight double-digit game with 20 points as the Cowboys’ running game is making a comeback.

Pollard has 182.9 points for the season. He is 13th among NFL running backs in fantasy scoring.

Tight End Jake Ferguson had a strong 18.5 point game on Thursday night. It was his first visit to double digits in fantasy in three weeks.

Ferguson moved the 10th among tight ends with 114.25 points, passing Dalton Schultz (113.5) in the process.

Brandon Aubrey rounded out the top five among Cowboys for the week with a 16-point effort.

Aubrey made all four field goals and all four extra points. He is now second among NFL kickers with 125 points.

Cleveland’s Dustin Hopkins is the top kicker with 130 points.

Brandin Cooks continues to replace Michael Gallup (0 points) with a 15.5 point effort against Seattle. Since a season high 15.75 total in Week 10 Gallup is averaging just 2.4 points per week.

No other player on the Cowboys’ offense scored higher than four points on Thursday night.

Defense Nearly A No-Show In Fantasy Scoring

The Cowboys defense had its lowest scoring week of the season. The unit totaled just 2.50 points despite a DaRon Bland interception and a Johnathan Hankins sack.

Giving up 35 points and over 400 yards hurts the bottom line.

It also prevented the unit from putting significant distance between itself and the Ravens’ defense for the top unit in the league.

Dallas had a 12-point advantage coming into the week with the Ravens on a bye. With five games remaining, they only hold a 14.5 point lead.

My FFL Teams

There’s one week left in the regular season in most fantasy football leagues. Among my three teams, Scribe’s Penman (9-7) sealed a playoff spot with a win this week.

Riding a four-game win streak, a final victory seals the division and a first round bye in the playoffs.

Losses by three teams would give the Penmen the league’s best record for the second straight year.

As for the Grim Reapers (4-8), they have a two-game winning streak and have shaken up the playoff brackets with both wins.

They have no avenue to qualify for one of the six playoff berths. The Pigskin Fiction (2-14) have secured the No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft.

The bad news is that at worst I’ll finish with a 16-32 overall record with my three teams this year.

The good news is I keep my playoff appearance streak alive. That .333 win percentage is not my all-time worst for a season.

We’ll not discuss the year I went .259.

If you’re battling for a playoff berth, or a divisional title, or kicking off the first round of your playoffs this week I wish you good fortune.

The Ridley Effect

So far this year, whenever I start Calvin Ridley he has a dud game. When I bench him, he goes off.

Calvin Ridley

Now, I would offer you all the opportunity to check with me on Thursdays to see if I’m starting him or not before you make that call.

But with Trevor Lawrence likely out I’m not starting Ridley. I may not keep him next year either if that trend holds up.