Position battleground (offense): Cowboys vs Commanders head-to-head breakdown
Although we saw a great victory over the Detroit Lions last week, it lacked inspiration. The run game was uninteresting, and the play-calling was awkward. The good news is that with the Philadelphia Eagles’ loss to the Arizona Cardinals, the NFC East title is still up for grabs. The Washington Commanders stand in the Dallas Cowboys’ way of winning the division, but there is still one more thing to do.
When these two teams last played, the Cowboys defeated the Commanders 45 points ago on Thanksgiving. Dallas would claim the second seed in the playoffs and win the NFC East if they win this game. Thus, how do the two offenses compare? Let’s find out by competing according to position.
QUARTERBACK
Dak Prescott
vs.
Sam Howell
One issue from last week’s game was play-calling. This really didn’t help Dak and the offense for a large portion of the game and that also affected the ground game which seriously failed to assist Prescott. This week Dak faces a Washington defense that is allowing the sixth-highest completion rate and third-worst sack rate in the last three weeks. Expect plenty of Dak throwing to his wideouts this week against a secondary that has allowed the third-most passing yards this year.
Sam Howell leads the NFL in interceptions at 19. In fact, his interception total is nearly as much as his touchdown total. Howell’s other issues include his sack total. He’s now been sacked 61 times this season, which ranks most in the NFL. This has all piled up on Howell this season and in the last three games has a completion percentage of just 52%. This bodes badly for Howell in his final game of the year facing a Cowboys defense that has allowed the third-lowest completion rate in the same time, as well as the fourth-fewest passing touchdowns.
Conclusion:
Dak is still the league’s passing touchdown leader. He only has eight interceptions and his passer rating of 104.2 is second-highest in the NFL. Sam Howell has a passer rating of 79.5, that’s 29th in the league. He’s thrown three touchdowns and 10 interceptions in the last six games.
Win: Cowboys
RUNNING BACK
Tony Pollard/Rico Dowdle
vs.
Brian Robinson Jr./Antonio Gibson
If Mike McCarthy quits calling inside runs for Pollard, then everybody will be happy. To keep defenses balanced, you will undoubtedly need to call one or two times for Pollard to hit the A gaps, but we all know how pointless that play will be. Last week, Pollard attempted seven runs to the A and B gaps.
With the exception of that one attempt at running inside, he averaged just 3.6 yards per carry and only managed to establish one first down. He had one run of five yards. His two spectacular plays occurred when he broke away and raced outside. And Pollard’s story has been like this the entire season.
The dropped pass over the middle was a huge disappointment. It felt like it was a game where he couldn’t run or make a reception which had plenty of fans rolling their eyes. We saw Deuce Vaughn try and reclaim his position. He had one run that went backward, and another that went for three yards.
If you think teams pass so easily on Washington so that in turn skews the rushing stats, well you would be wrong. The team ranks seventh-worst at stopping run, allowing opponents to rush for an average of 127 yards per game. If there is a game for Pollard to set himself with a positive mindset going into the playoffs this should be the game. Keep an eye on Rico Dowdle on the practice report.
Brian Robinson struggled during his last meeting with Dallas. He failed to score and averaged only 3.5 yards per carry. The Cowboys defense has lately played more effective against the run so Robinson’s hill looks even steeper this week. In the last five weeks, Robinson has failed to get in the endzone, and this season he has yet to rush over 100-yards in a game. As for his backup Antonio Gibson, he’s only rushed for 257 yards this season and scored just once.
Conclusion:
The Cowboys running back situation is a strange one. You watch the games and see the struggles but also watch them continually trying to establish the run. For everyone’s complaints, Pollard ranks 10th in rush yards in the league and has scored the fourth-most rushing touchdowns, so there is something there to work on. What Pollard has lacked this year is explosive plays. He’s made 20 rushes where he’s gone for 10 yards or more, that ranks 20th in the league. As for Robinson, his 708 rush yards ranks 30th among running backs.
Win: Cowboys
WIDE RECEIVERS
CeeDee Lamb/Brandin Cooks/Michael Gallup
vs.
Terry McLaurin/Curtis Samuel/Jahan Dotson
CeeDee Lamb is making his play to be the best wide receiver in Cowboy history. That may sound like an insane question to ask but think about it. Michael Irvin is the fan favorite when it comes to the greatest 88 for Dallas, Dez Bryant also gets a high vote. Drew Pearson started it all. But Lamb has just become the franchise single-season record holder in receptions and receiving yards. Lamb is also 66-yards behind Tyreek Hill to be the NFL receiving yards leader for the season, a feat never accomplished by either Bryant or Irvin.
Last week against the Detroit Lions, Lamb was unstoppable and it’s very clear the Cowboys offense needs to be funneled through Lamb, then everything else filters down from there. The priority this offseason will be in keeping Lamb in the building by getting a contract done. Brandin Cooks keeps showing his importance to the offense.
He made some spectacular catches that kept drives alive. If he catches another touchdown this week it will be three consecutive games with a score which would really put him in a positive space mentally for the playoffs. Michael Gallup failed to even draw a target last week.
Terry McLaurin has taken a dip this year in production, mostly due to the failures on the Washington offense. In the last eight games, McLaurin has only scored two touchdowns and he’s only gone over 100-yards receiving once this season. He currently has 946 receiving yards, which is 28th among receivers, and his four touchdowns this year ranks 48th. Curtis Samuel is also down this year from his previous seasons.
He has 598 receiving yards this year and matches McLaurin in touchdowns. Since Week 7, Samuel has caught two touchdowns and has only gone over 100-yards receiving once, which was against Dallas. Also with four touchdowns this year is Jahan Dotson. He has three receptions for 43 yards in the last three games.
Conclusion:
This CeeDee Lamb led receiver corps will be rubbing their hands this week as they face a defense that has allowed the most receiving touchdowns this year. The Commander receivers face a Cowboys defense that has allowed the third-least passing touchdowns, a tough ask for a team that ranks 19th in passing touchdowns.
Win: Cowboys
TIGHT END
Jake Ferguson
vs.
Logan Thomas
Each week we see Ferguson go from strength to strength. His catches over the middle on seam routes are fun to watch. Dak knows he’s extremely reliable when he targets him. The Commanders defense isn’t bad at defending the tight end position, but opponents tend to target the wide receivers against them which makes the tight ends less targeted. Regardless, the Commanders has still allowed five touchdowns to tight ends this year so there’s a chance we see Ferguson rounding off a fine regular season with another score.
Logan Thomas has 63 receiving yards in his last four games. If you want to put these two tight ends against each other and find something Logan Thomas does better, that would be his pass blocking. Both players are good blockers but Thomas could you argue has been slightly better. As a receiver, he’s fumbled the ball twice this year and has scored less touchdowns and has less receiving yards than Ferguson.
Conclusion:
Jake Ferguson ranks eighth in receiving yards, third in touchdowns and seventh in first downs among tight ends. Thomas ranks 20th in receiving among tight ends.
Win: Cowboys
OFFENSIVE LINE
Dallas’ blocking has declined further the last two games. It struggled in pass protection against a team that has spent a season not able to generate much pressure, then it struggled again to take command in the run game. But here’s a get-right moment for this Dallas offensive line. The last time these two teams played the offensive line allowed zero sacks and helped keep Dak clean to throw four touchdowns.
It also helped that the team rushed for 100-yards and Pollard got a touchdown. Tyler Smith will more than likely be left out this week, but expect him back for the Wild Card Round as he should be at a level of recovery to be able to play. The team also added depth this week with the addition of an old familiar face, La’el Collins. He’s now on the practice squad.
The injuries this year have severely damaged the Commander’s offensive line. The team put center Ricky Stromberg on injured reserve at the beginning of December, and they recently placed Tyler Larsen on IR as well. Starting guard Andrew Wylie may lose time due to an elbow ailment after starting tackle Charles Leno was placed on injured reserve last week. Sam Cosmi on the team’s offensive line is still available to play as a result. Although he leads the team in pressures allowed, he hasn’t given up a sack since Week 6.
Win: Cowboys
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