It’s been a rollercoaster ride for the Dallas Cowboys this season. Unfortunately, their ride has always been on a nosedive just like in Week 14, when they were dealt with another loss by the Green Bay Packers. With seemingly bleak chances of making the playoffs, the Cowboys just hope to get as many wins as possible and pray that the stars align for them. It’s a different story for the New York Jets, who now find themselves very much in the AFC playoff picture thanks to a three-game win streak.
For more Week 15 game previews, you can also read our breakdown of Texans vs. Colts.
[sc:Football ]
New York Jets vs. Dallas Cowboys Preview and Prediction
Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington
When: Saturday, December 19, 8:25 PM ET
Line: New York Jets (-3) at Dallas Cowboys (+3); total: 42.0 – see all NFL lines
TV Broadcast: NFL
Betting on the New York Jets (8-5)
[sc:NFL240banner ]The Jets’ boosters are working just fine—extremely fine. After pounding a 30-8 win over Tennessee on Sunday, the Jets will look to extend their win streak to four games in Dallas.
New York’s defense was downright vicious against the Titans. The Jets limited Tennessee to only 292 total yards. They were especially effective against the run, as the Jets made Tennessee bleed for only 24 rushing yards. Marcus Mariota also felt the brunt of New York’s stout defense, as the rookie quarterback didn’t score a passing touchdown, was intercepted once, and got sacked five times for a loss of 47 yards.
So far this season, the Jets are eighth in scoring defense (19.7 points allowed per game) and fifth in total defense (323.8). That’s the kind of defense the Jets are looking to bring next Sunday to Dallas, where they are 1-1 SU and ATS in two games there since 1999.
On offense, New York expects to ride on running back Chris Ivory’s exploits anew. Ivory ran for 101 yards in the Titans game, which a refreshing sight for the Jets after seeing Ivory fail to reach 100 yards in the previous seven contests. The Jets are 10th in the league in rushing offense with 117.7 yards on the ground per game.
Ivory should serve as a solid complement for the Jets’ passing attack, which got a decent performance out of Ryan Fitzpatrick in Week 14. Fitzpatrick passed for 263 yards and three touchdowns without an interception on 21 of 36 completions against the Titans. Overall, the Jets are tossing the pigskin for 371.2 passing yards per game.
The Jets are 5-4-1 ATS in their last 10 road games dating back to last year.
By taking a 28-7 road loss at the hands of Green Bay on Sunday, the Cowboys didn’t just guarantee themselves a losing record this season. They also received a huge blow to their already dim chances of winning the NFC East.
Now dancing on the edge of elimination, the Cowboys can’t afford to lose any more games. They will have to come up with ways to move the chains on a consistent basis up against a streaking New York squad this Sunday.
Against the Packers, Dallas was only able to generate 270 total yards and had just two visits red zone visits. Matt Cassel had a rough night in the pocket, as he mustered just 114 passing yards with no touchdowns and an interception on 13 of 29 passing. There’ll be more on Cassel’s shoulders against the Jets, though, as New York’s top-rated run defense (78.9 rushing yards allowed per game) should force Dallas to sling the ball at a high rate.
That said, Darren McFadden should still get a healthy amount of workload following a 111 rushing-yard output in the loss to Green Bay.
Hopefully for Dallas, Dez Bryant will have a much nicer performance than the one he had in Lambeau Field, where he caught just four passes on nine targets for a measly 45 yards with a touchdown to salvage the otherwise underwhelming outing.
The under is 4-1 in Dallas’ last five games overall.
