Missed last week. Let's talk this week!
Dallas Cowgirls
QB – Prescott is having perhaps his best year. That being said he isn't the passer his rating says he is. While a competent QB he has made a fair amount. A QB who is good enough that you don't want to replace him but not good enough to win it for you. The worst spot to be in the NFL.
RB – Elliot has built his reputation behind amazing Offensive lines. Now that he no longer has one we are seeing what he is. A good but not game changing player. The most overrated part of his game is pass catching. Yes he will catch the easy passes and fall forward but he rarely takes them for big yards. Tony Pollard is a solid back up. The Pats won't face a bad runner on sunday, but they shouldn't face anyone who can kill them either.
WR – Dallas has really done well here. A good trade and a good draft pick in Gallup have made this a very good 1-2 punch on the outside. Cobb is having a nice year as well and is the unsung hero of the team. The Pats may well be facing the best core of WRs they have all year.
TE – Witten is still solid enough, but you can't forget about Blake Jerwin who is having a solid year. Neither are amazing but they offer a decent 1-2 punch combined.
OL – The Cowboys line is as follows Tyrone Smith, Conner Williams, Travis Fredrick, Zach Martin and La'el Collins. Right now Williams is injured and so Su'a-Filo will step into that spot. Collins is banged up but will play. Smith and Collins have done well as the tackles this year, as was expected. Two of the better players at their spots. Martin is still elite but Williams has been a big issue on this line. That will still be the case with Su'a-Filo. Fredrick has not looked right all year. I'm sure some of that has to due with how bad that other guard spot has been, but mostly it has to do with coming back from an injury. The middle of this line for the first time in a while is vulnerable.
On defense Dallas runs a 4-3
DE - Lawrence is still one of the top guys at his spot. Quinn has been disappointing and that has continued this year. His play has never justified his snaps. Since trading for Bennett he has moved right into this rotation which is pretty much a 3 man group. He fits better here than he did with us and has been a nice upgrade. While other players see snaps here on occasion these are the main 3.
DT – Maliek Collins plays a ton of snaps for a DT and will see the field a ton. While he isn't an elite DT he has been very solid at this spot. More of a run stopper than pass rusher, but he can pass rush some. Woods is the other starter but plays about half the snaps of Collins. He is pretty much only a run stopper and isn't that good. Since trading for Bennett these are the only 2 guys who has seen the field who are true DTs. The like to go lite on the DL.
LB – In this spot the main 2 starters are Jaylon Smith and Esch who see nearly all the snaps on D. Sean Lee plays a fair amount but not as many as the other two. He is the clear option when they want 3 guys on the field. No one else is worth mentioning. Smith is having another very good season. Esch who was very impressive as a rookie has apparently regressed. Lee is meh.
CB – The CBs are Byron Jones and Chidobe Awuzie. The same two starters as last year. The 3rd CB was Anthony Brown but he lost his spot to Jourdan Lewis (And Brown out for the year). It's mostly those 3 guys. Since entering the league Jones has been one of the better #1 CBs in the NFL. He has talent to spare and his technique is solid. Awuzie was a player I was super high on, so far he has been fine but is nothing more than a solid #2. Lewis has been solid since day 1 pretty much. Not great but solid. Overall this is a strong unit with no weak point.
S – This spot is very much in flux. Xavier Woods is one of the starters with the other one being the hurt Jeff Heath. He missed last game and as of now he still questionable as far as I know. If he can't go then the guy to step up will likely be Darian Thompson. They almost never play more than 2 safeties. Woods is a very solid safety. Heath has been the weak link in this unit for a while. Considering the solid players around him the fact he can't simply do his job without having to worry about anything else speaks volumes. If he can't go it only gets worse.
Overall
When the Pats are on offense: The weak spots to attack are SS and the middle of the D at LB. While their run D isn't horrible they go lite and need to be punished for it when they do. The pass rush isn't really that good even with the addition of Bennett, but it's respectable. They don't have many obvious weaknesses to attack but don't have many players who dictate how the Pats have to play. A typical James White/Edelman type of game. We might see more Watson too.
When the Pats are on defense: Regardless of what you hear in the media, the strength of Dallas is their pass game, not their run game. Yes they can run but if they are to score they do it on the back of their very good skill players and Prescott extending plays. The Patriots need to attack right up the middle of their OL. The C/G combo is vulnerable. This isn't a team we want to lean on our coverage for too long with. They have pass catchers who can compete with ours DBs. If the Pats need to cover for 4+ seconds there will be issues.
