The Dallas Cowboys are seemingly getting better with each passing game. The Cowboys are now 2-1 (2-0-1 ATS) and have won two in a row against Washington (27-23) and Chicago (31-17) after a narrow 20-19 loss in Week 1 to the Giants.
Rookies Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott haven’t taken too long to get a feel for NFL football. Prescott continued his impressive start to the season as he connected on nearly 80 percent of his passes for 248 yards against Chicago. He threw his first career passing touchdown to Dez Bryant, and also ran for 36 yards with a rushing TD.
Meanwhile, Elliott exploded for 140 yards on 30 carries against the Bears. Although, he didn’t punch in any of the Cowboys’ three rushing scores, to the chagrin of his fantasy owners.
Bryant’s status against the 49ers is uncertain after he sprained his knee against Chicago. But Prescott and Elliott look plenty capable of keeping this Cowboys offense afloat even without Dez.
The prolific Dallas ground game should relish the opportunity of facing a Niners front which has been unable to replicate Week 1’s great performance in run defense against the Rams. Over the past two weeks, San Francisco has allowed Fozzy Whittaker and Christine Michael to rush for 100+ yards on over 5 yards per carry.
The 49ers have lost by 19 points in each of their last two games, dropping them to 1-2 (SU and ATS) on the season. Granted, they were on the road against two NFC powerhouses in the Panthers and Seahawks, but their margin of defeat could’ve been much higher had Carolina and Seattle not let up in the fourth and allowed the Niners to score some consolation touchdowns.
Despite his best efforts, quarterback Blaine Gabbert is still a major liability. And even if he were good, he still doesn’t have any reliable receiving weapons. With no threat of a passing game, teams are just able to load up the box on Carlos Hyde, and dare Gabbert to beat them. Hyde had 103 rushing yards and two touchdowns against Seattle, but most of those numbers came with the game already well out of reach.
But while things may look bleak at the moment, don’t completely count the Niners out against the Cowboys. They were in this same situation – a home underdog facing a run-first team – in Week 1 against the Rams and came out with a win.
The Cowboys front isn’t great at defending the run nor is it capable of consistently rushing the passer, so Hyde and Gabbert should have a decent shot of operating with some success. Plus, the Niners defense can do to Dallas what it did so successfully against LA, which is load the box and force Prescott to beat them. The young Cowboys QB has been good thus far, but remember – he’s still a rookie playing on the road, which is never a sure thing.
Writer’s Prediction
Let’s not get too carried away by the Cowboys hype. Prescott and Elliott are bound to have some ups and downs as rookies normally do, and the Dallas defense still doesn’t inspire utmost confidence. Let’s take the Niners (+3) to pull off the upset, 24-21.
