The Dallas Cowboys head into New England with very little chance to upset the powerful Patriots. A couple of years back, I would have been willing to bet the Cowboys could have kept up. But, with Miles Austin coming back from injury, Tony Romo facing all kinds of doubters and a running game almost crippled by an ineffective offensive line, I don't see them matching the offensive power of the Patriots.
I hope I am wrong, but I don't think I am. Here is what Dallas is facing in Week 6 of the NFL season.
I'm no Tom Brady fan. Sure, I admit he is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, hands down. I think he is an amazing and talented quarterback and can do just about anything he wants. I just don't like him. With that said, he has thrown for over 300 yards in every game this season except one. He has thrown for over 500 yards once as well. He has thrown 14 touchdowns on the season. He also has six interceptions, including four in one game. The difference is, since his name is not Tony Romo, he was quickly forgiven for the four picks that helped Buffalo beat the Patriots. He isn't perfect but he is good enough to beat the Dallas Cowboys.
Two years ago, Wes Welker went down with an injury in a game he should never have played in (the Pats already locked up their playoff spot that year). In 2010, he played a little slow, recovering from that injury, and people claimed he was finished. Those people look really stupid right now. Wes Welker is the best wide receiver in the NFL at this time. He has over 100 yards in every game this season except one and surpassed 200 yards once as well. He is on pace, after five games, to finish the season with 144 receptions for 2,368 yards. That would break the NFL record for receptions (Marvin Harrison, 143) and shatter the yardage mark (Jerry Rice, 1,848). Will he keep it up? Probably not, but he is still exciting as heck to watch.
New England Defense
With those two glaring New England positives, let's look at where Dallas can actually compete. The Patriots are dead last in the NFL in passing yards (326.6 ypg). Dallas gets Miles Austin back this week and, with Laurent Robinson giving them a fresh new target, Dez Bryant might be open for some big time plays. Plus, Jason Witten is better than many team's No. 2 receivers, so that gives Dallas lots of room to work through the air. With a non-existent running game, they should put some points on the board but will they keep up with Brady and Welker?
Dallas fans can only cross their fingers and hope for the best.
Author Shawn S. Lealos has followed the Dallas Cowboys since he was a child, his favorite players range from Roger Staubach and Tony Dorsett to the Triplets of the 90s. Through the great years of the '90s and the hard times of the '80s, Shawn never turned his back on America's Team.
Source: Dallas Cowboys website
Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.
