Week 13 Preview: Indianapolis Colts at Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys are home again this week as they welcome Jeff Saturday and the Indianapolis Colts to town for Sunday Night Football.

The Cowboys (8-3) are coming off back-to-back victories over the Vikings and then the Giants on Thanksgiving. The game on Thursday night allows the Cowboys players to get some extra rest.

On the other hand, the Colts (4-7-1) are traveling to AT&T Stadium on a short week after dropping Monday night’s matchup 24-17 to the Steelers.

Indy has lost six of their last seven games, and their only win came in the coaching debut of Saturday. They rank at the bottom in nearly every offensive category—an excellent sign for the Cowboys’ defense.

The Colts did play the Eagles tough and took them to the wire in week ten; although struggling on offense, they have lost by more than one score only twice this season, so games tend to stay close when battling them.

The Colts are bottom seven in the league in total yards and yards per contest, only averaging 318.8 per game. They have scored only 190 points this year, the third worst in football.

They have one player Dan Quinn, and the defense should be worried about: Johnathan Taylor. The offense is run through him.

As we all know by now, the weakness of the Cowboys’ top-level defense is stopping the run.

Yes, Michael Pittman Jr. can be a weapon on the outside, but the pass rush of the Cowboys will cause 37-year-old Matt Ryan some problems.

The Cowboys allow the fewest points per game this year at just 17.0. The secondary is doing its job by only allowing 177.7 passing yards per game, and that is also the best in football. The Colts need to run the ball if they want any fighting chance.

Usually, this is a game I would be worried about, but after watching the Colts struggle against the Steelers, this game might be over by the time the fourth quarter starts.

The Steelers had their way on the ground Monday night against them, totaling over 170 rushing yards.

Dallas has averaged 169.8 yards rushing in its last four games. Therefore, I see the Cowboys having a field day on the ground.

The Cowboys can lean on Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard and wear down a middle-of-the-pack defense. Now and again, they create some big plays with DeForest Buckner, Yannick Ngakoue, Kenny Moore, and Stephon Gilmore.

The last time these two teams met, it looked much different. Andrew Luck was their quarterback, and T.Y Hilton was their leading wide receiver. Times have changed.

The Cowboys need to stay balanced like they have the last two weeks. Kellen Moore is starting to get comfortable using three Tight End sets, and it’s working.

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Dallas needs to keep winning to make the Eagles feel the pressure. Philly is one loss away from making the matchup on Christmas Eve even more critical for the NFC East lead.

The Cowboys beat the Colts on Sunday Night Football, 31-17.