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The Dallas Cowboys (6-3) and Minnesota Vikings (8-1) will clash in a battle between two soaring NFC clubs on Sunday. Dallas won two straight with QB Dak Prescott back in the mix but dropped last week's road game against the Green Bay Packers 31-28.
The Cowboys led 28-14 early in the fourth quarter before the duo of QB Aaron Rodgers and WR Christian Watson connected for two touchdowns to send the contest into a suspenseful overtime period.
Dallas won the coin toss but sputtered on a failed fourth-down conversion, leading to a Mason Crosby game-winning field goal. Cowboys HC Mike McCarthy faced his former team, which he led to a Super Bowl title in 2010, for the first time in his coaching career but couldn't pull of the victory.
Prescott had an up-and-down performance, finishing 27-of-46 for 265 yards with three touchdowns against two picks.
Cowboys vs. Vikings Betting Odds
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Meanwhile, the Vikings won arguably the most entertaining and exciting game of the year over the Buffalo Bills 33-30. Down four and with no timeouts, the Vikings went for it on fourth and 18 from their 27-yard line, converting on a miracle 32-yard completion to megastar WR Justin Jefferson.
However, Minnesota turned it over on downs at the Buffalo 1-yard line before being bailed out by an unfathomable endzone fumble by Bills QB Josh Allen, resulting in a defensive touchdown. Kirk Cousins led a six-minute drive to start overtime, leading to a Vikings field goal. The Bills' drive ensued, but Josh Allen threw a game-sealing pick, his second of the afternoon, to give Minnesota the win.
Tale of the Tape
The Mike McCarthy experiment is in year three in Dallas. After the Cowboys led the NFL in points and yards in 2021, the NFC East club has taken a step back this season with franchise QB Dak Prescott missing time earlier in the year. Prescott has played in four games this season, throwing six touchdowns against four interceptions.
Outside of completion percentage, touchdown percentage, and yards per attempt, backup Cooper Rush has outpaced his teammate in win percentage, interception percentage, and yards per completion. At the same time, the two are neck-and-neck in the quarterback rating. Apart from WR CeeDee Lamb, the passing game has been sporadic, while the ground attack has been exceptional. The duo of Ezekiel Elliot and Tony Pollard have the Cowboys top ten in the NFL in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns through ten weeks.
The Dallas defense has a much improved secondary this season. Opposing quarterbacks have tossed 11 touchdowns against seven picks while averaging only 182 yards per game. The front seven started the year fine but have been gashed for 447 rushing yards over the past two games. They allow 4.7 yards per rushing attempt, the fifth-worst average in the NFL.
The Minnesota Vikings are in their first year with former Los Angeles Rams OC Kevin O'Connell at the helm. The last time Minnesota was 8-1 was in 2009 when the now canceled, and thief Brett Farve led them to the NFC Championship. The Vikings are seventh in the NFL in passing yards and tenth in passing touchdowns. Quarterback Kirk Cousins is having a down year compared to his 33 touchdowns and seven interception season last year, but he has still found a way to feature star Justin Jefferson. The former LSU standout averages 117 receiving yards per game, while collaring 69 receptions on the year.
The passing game should continue to improve, with Pro Bowl TE T.J. Hockenson becoming more comfortable in the offense after being acquired via the trade deadline two weeks ago. Three-time Pro Bowler Dalvin Cook leads the run game. He has six rushing touchdowns and averaged five yards per attempt.
The defense has surrendered the 29th most yards to opposing offenses but remains opportunistic with a near-league-leading 15.4 turnover percentage. The Vikings rely on aging veterans like safety Harrison Smith and cornerback Patrick Peterson to make game-changing plays like Peterson did against the Bills last week.
Cowboys vs. Vikings Betting Prediction
Minnesota should be more than happy with the results this season, but the underlining numbers suggest they are lucky to be 8-1. After an emotional win over Buffalo last week, they are also in a prime spot for a letdown game.
Meanwhile, Dallas should be kicking themselves after a tough loss in a game they dominated most of the time. The Cowboys should be out for blood against the Vikings this weekend.
Prediction: Cowboys ML (-120)
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