The Dallas Cowboys will face their first NFC East foe of the year when they take on the New York Giants in a Week 7 clash at AT&T Stadium. A win here would allow the Cowboys to remain at least tied for the NFL's best record with just one loss on the year.
Giants vs. Cowboys 2014: Fierce NFC East rivalry renewed
The Giants and Cowboys have no love lost for each other as they renew their rivalry this week in Big D.
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Last week, the Cowboys beat the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks in Seattle, 30-23. Dallas has been one of the pleasant surprises of 2014, and the team will look to keep that up with a win at home this week.
Meanwhile, the Giants are middling around the .500 line at 3-3 this year. Their three wins are against the likes of Atlanta, Washington and Houston, teams that have combined to go 6-12 overall this year. New York’s three losses were ugly affairs against Detroit, Arizona and Philadelphia.
Speaking of the Eagles, they spanked the Giants on Sunday Night Football last week, 27-0. That games also saw New York lose No. 1 wide receiver Victor Cruz to a season-ending patella tendon tear.
Digits
Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray leads the NFL with 785 rushing yards, and he went over 100 yards for the sixth consecutive game against the Seahawks, tying Jim Brown for the all-time record. He'll look to break the record this week id he can reach the 100-yard mark against the Giants' 17th-ranked run defense.
Giants QB Eli Manning has been his usual up-and-down self this year. If good Eli shows up vs. Dallas, the Giants will have a shot of winning. If bad Eli comes to play, New York has no chance of pulling off the upset.
In order to help Manning, New York needs to get the ground game going early and often. In three losses, the giants are averaging 157 rushing yards. In three losses however, New York is gaining a mere 73.3 yards per game on the ground. With New York having just lost its top pass-catcher in Cruz, the running game needs to come up big this week for the Giants to win and climb back above the .500 mark.
Who to watch
Odell Beckham Jr. -- The rookie receiver out of LSU will have to take on a bigger role this year with the season-ending injury to Cruz. After missing the first four games with a hamstring injury, Beckham has caught six balls for 72 yards and one score over his first two NFL games. He’ll need to produce at a much higher rate against Dallas if the Giants offense can overcome the loss of Cruz and pull off the huge road upset.
Tony Romo -- The Giants pass defense has left a lot to be desired this season, allowing an average of 261 yards per game through the air this year. The focus of the Dallas offense has been the running game and Murray. However, this could be the week a team finally focuses more on selling out to stop Murray and forcing Romo to do most of the damage.
After a slow start to the year, Romo is averaging 279 passing yards over the past three games, all of which were wins. He’s also thrown for seven scores and just one interception over that span. Romo will be the key to Dallas’ offense outscoring New York to earn their fifth win this year.
How to Watch
Where: AT&T Stadium
When: 4:25 p.m. ET
TV: FOX
Online Streaming: Verizon NFL Mobile
Series: Dallas leads, 59-43-2
Last meeting: Dallas, 24-21 (2013, in New Jersey)
The venue
AT&T Stadium is one of the most famous stadiums in the world. Built back in 2009, it seats a league-high 105,000 when including standing room. The stadium is also famous for its video board, which is suspended above the field and ranges 60 yards from one 20-yard line to the other. The Cowboys have had some minor issues with keeping the stadium full of home fans and not fans of the opposing team, so that will be something to watch when the game begins.
Odds
Dallas is a 7-point favorite at home with an over/under of 47.5, according to OddsShark.com.
Preliminary judgment
The experts at ESPN have the Cowboys winning by an almost unanimous 12-1 margin. The CBS Sports crew has Dallas on top convincingly with a 6-2 mark. Yahoo! Sports' three-man panel went with the Cowboys, 2-0. SB Nation's team rounds out the picks and gives Dallas the sweep, 7-0.
Further Reading
For everything Cowboys, check out Blogging the Boys.
For more on the Giants, head over to Big Blue View.
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