Cowboys Pregame

[VikingLord]

I refuse to approach a game like Eyore and chalk it up as a loss before it starts.

I don't think anyone is chalking it up as a loss. At least for me, my prediction is more related to the trend line, and not just for Cousins, but for the entire team.

I hope they win, of course, but their track record in these types of games the last two seasons isn't good.

[VikeFanInEagleLand]

I think at this point, I will classify this as a BIG GAME for Cousins. Coming off the loss to KC, it wouldn't be good at all to lose two in a row to what most people would say are quality teams.(though I'm really not a true believer in Dallas) Regardless, I think Cousins can put to rest some of the "Big Game/National TV Game" criticism by beating America's Team in Prime Time.

Despite what their record says, Dallas is a better team than KC, especially with Mahomes out. It's not even close, actually.

I'm guessing that you're basing that on numbers. I've seen both teams a decent amount this year and I disagree. I think KC has the much better team.

[CharVike]

I'm not a Cousins apologist, by any means.

But my sincere hope is that Kirk Cousins balls out and wins this game -- and is the PRIMARY REASON we win this game.

I'm so tired of the narrative that the guy can't play in big games. I'm not blaming you guys. I'm just tired of the narrative. Cousins has to change the narrative. It's up to him.

However, rather than decide it's entirely impossible, I'm going to side on rooting for him to do it. Call me a wide-eyed optimist, but I just can't deal with this "chalk it up as a loss" attitude. I DO NOT expect a Dallas win. The Vikings are my team, and they're at least a playoff contender. I expect a Vikings win. Every game.

You don't have to be a Cousins apologist to hope he goes balls out and is the primary reason we win. I hope for that every game against a playoff team.

Unfortunately, he is 1-5 against Dallas since taking over as a full time starter and everything points to this being one of his bad games.

Your correct he should lose this game. The Cowboys are favored for some strange reason. When you're the road dog you need to play lights out. No TOs and not a bunch of stupid penalties or other dumb #### plays. Like a shanked punt. And we need to use our bread and butter. Bang Cook and Matti down there throats. Don't give that up. Eventually they will break because Cook is a dam good back. And on D stuff the LOS and tell them you will not run on us tonite. Make that QB beat us. He's like Cousins not good enough to carry them. Then it's ours. Of course it won't work that way. But that's what I want to see. With that our OC will go for the deep ball 1st play and Cousins will get sacked and fumble because we have 1 WR who will be triple covered. Only joking with that one.

[VikingLord]

Despite what their record says, Dallas is a better team than KC, especially with Mahomes out. It's not even close, actually.

I'm guessing that you're basing that on numbers. I've seen both teams a decent amount this year and I disagree. I think KC has the much better team.

Yeah, it's based on stats. The Cowboys have the best offense in the NFL this year, although KC is slightly better passing the ball than they are. In terms of being able to run it, though, the Cowboys are much better than KC. So they are a more balanced offense overall, and therefore, harder to defend as the run threat posed by Elliot is more credible.

Defensively, KC is the bottom half of the NFL and one of the worst overall at defending the run. The Cowboys, conversely, are ranked ahead of the Vikings overall.

Maybe you're basing your opinion on strength of opponents. I don't have those numbers, so it's entirely possible that KC has faced better overall competition thus far.

But let's put it this way: the Cowboys have 3 losses, two of which were by 2 points, and both of those were on the road (at the Saints and at the Jets). In their sole home loss (to the Packers), they piled up 563 yards of total offense. They had 3 turnovers in that game which is really what allowed the Packers to win it, but they more or less romped on the Packer defense.

Maybe when fully healthy KC is as good overall as Dallas. The KC the Vikings faced was far from healthy and they still couldn't get the job done.

[VikingLord]

The Cowboys are favored for some strange reason.

I think they're favored for very good reason. They're at home and statistically they're better than the Vikings on both offense and defense.

The Vikings need to play like this is a playoff game. They need to execute on both sides of the ball and in every phase and be aggressive to have a chance to win. They're talented enough to do it, but raw talent has not been the reason for their struggles this year (or last year, for that matter).

Dallas is the best team the Vikings have faced so far this year. I know they lost to the Packers and the Jets, but they are an explosive team with as much on the line in this game as the Vikings. Anyone discounting them is in for a rude awakening IMHO.

[Pondering Her Percy]

I'm not a Cousins apologist, by any means.

But my sincere hope is that Kirk Cousins balls out and wins this game -- and is the PRIMARY REASON we win this game.

I'm so tired of the narrative that the guy can't play in big games. I'm not blaming you guys. I'm just tired of the narrative. Cousins has to change the narrative. It's up to him.

However, rather than decide it's entirely impossible, I'm going to side on rooting for him to do it. Call me a wide-eyed optimist, but I just can't deal with this "chalk it up as a loss" attitude. I DO NOT expect a Dallas win. The Vikings are my team, and they're at least a playoff contender. I expect a Vikings win. Every game.

You don't have to be a Cousins apologist to hope he goes balls out and is the primary reason we win. I hope for that every game against a playoff team.

Unfortunately, he is 1-5 against Dallas since taking over as a full time starter and everything points to this being one of his bad games.

Who cares what he did 2+ years ago against Dallas with a crap team? It points to nothing and means nothing. It matters what he does now with this team.

[Dames]

I think they're favored for very good reason. They're at home and statistically they're better than the Vikings on both offense and defense.

The Vikings need to play like this is a playoff game. They need to execute on both sides of the ball and in every phase and be aggressive to have a chance to win. They're talented enough to do it, but raw talent has not been the reason for their struggles this year (or last year, for that matter).

Dallas is the best team the Vikings have faced so far this year. I know they lost to the Packers and the Jets, but they are an explosive team with as much on the line in this game as the Vikings. Anyone discounting them is in for a rude awakening IMHO.

I can see why they are favored, since they are at home. I'm not discounting them for sure.

To me though, the things you are giving them credit for are the same reasons you are discounting the Vikings. Technically they may have better stats, but the margins are very close.

These are 2 extremely similar teams. They both have beaten poor opponents fairly soundly for the most part. They both lose to good opponents by narrow margins.
Dallas has one glaring loss to a bad team. I suppose one could technically count the Bears game as our glaring loss... but the Bears are better than the Jets.
GB beat them much worse then the final score. They were up by 21 going into the 4th and Dallas fell short in the comeback against the prevent. That's similar to the Vikings-GB game, but at least we shut them down early in 2nd. That's something I guess. (FYI, Aaron Jones completely destroyed the Dallas D that day, so that's encouraging for Cook maybe.)
Both teams laid the wood to Philly.

The Vikings have had a slightly tougher SoS, but it's so minimal to be honest. It's not a factor. (Minn is 10th hardest, Dallas it tied for 14th, but it's a matter of 2 wins difference.)

All in all... it's a bit amazing how similar these teams are.

So, essentially it comes down to home-field advantage doesn't it? The fact that GB took them to task in Dallas helps me feel better about our chances. I think it's very unlikely we do the same, but I'm not sure why you think Dallas has such a big edge over us. I personally feel it's a coin flip, and I think the Vikings will be ready after the stuff that went down in KC.

[VikeFanInEagleLand]

I'm guessing that you're basing that on numbers. I've seen both teams a decent amount this year and I disagree. I think KC has the much better team.

Yeah, it's based on stats. The Cowboys have the best offense in the NFL this year, although KC is slightly better passing the ball than they are. In terms of being able to run it, though, the Cowboys are much better than KC. So they are a more balanced offense overall, and therefore, harder to defend as the run threat posed by Elliot is more credible.

Defensively, KC is the bottom half of the NFL and one of the worst overall at defending the run. The Cowboys, conversely, are ranked ahead of the Vikings overall.

Maybe you're basing your opinion on strength of opponents. I don't have those numbers, so it's entirely possible that KC has faced better overall competition thus far.

But let's put it this way: the Cowboys have 3 losses, two of which were by 2 points, and both of those were on the road (at the Saints and at the Jets). In their sole home loss (to the Packers), they piled up 563 yards of total offense. They had 3 turnovers in that game which is really what allowed the Packers to win it, but they more or less romped on the Packer defense.

Maybe when fully healthy KC is as good overall as Dallas. The KC the Vikings faced was far from healthy and they still couldn't get the job done.

I'm basing my opinion on my eyes. And yes strength of opponents. Using the NFL Power Rankings (which I'm not a huge fan of but...), The Cowboys avg opponent strength Rating of 13.13, whereas the Chiefs is a 19.33. That's a decently big difference in the NFL.

[StumpHunter]

The Cowboys are favored for some strange reason.

I think they're favored for very good reason. They're at home and statistically they're better than the Vikings on both offense and defense.

The Vikings need to play like this is a playoff game. They need to execute on both sides of the ball and in every phase and be aggressive to have a chance to win. They're talented enough to do it, but raw talent has not been the reason for their struggles this year (or last year, for that matter).

Dallas is the best team the Vikings have faced so far this year. I know they lost to the Packers and the Jets, but they are an explosive team with as much on the line in this game as the Vikings. Anyone discounting them is in for a rude awakening IMHO.

Their stats are a bit bloated by who they have played.

The only two good defenses they have played have shut them down.

[Bowhunting Viking]

I just looked up a stat in the Viking fan who loves bowhunting stat book.
I have all the faith in the world of the stat keeper of this book
It says, and I quote, I HATE the Packers, Saints and Cowboys.
Screw the Next Gen stats and all the other stuff.
I trust this stuff.
So its SKOL Vikings first me

[VikingLord]

but I'm not sure why you think Dallas has such a big edge over us.

I wouldn't characterize it as a big edge. It's just a slight edge, but its definitely there.

[VikingLord]

Their stats are a bit bloated by who they have played.

The only two good defenses they have played have shut them down.

Could be, although I'm not sure which two defenses you're talking about. The Saints shut them down pretty well (in New Orleans), but it doesn't look like anyone else did. The Packers certainly didn't. The Jets didn't either.

If the Vikings defend like the Saints did, the Vikings have an excellent chance of winning.

[StumpHunter]

Their stats are a bit bloated by who they have played.

The only two good defenses they have played have shut them down.

Could be, although I'm not sure which two defenses you're talking about. The Saints shut them down pretty well (in New Orleans), but it doesn't look like anyone else did. The Packers certainly didn't. The Jets didn't either.

If the Vikings defend like the Saints did, the Vikings have an excellent chance of winning.

The Cowboys did not do anything on offense in that Packer game until the Packers took a 28 point lead with 3 minutes left in the 3rd quarter and went into full prevent mode.

[VikingLord]

Could be, although I'm not sure which two defenses you're talking about. The Saints shut them down pretty well (in New Orleans), but it doesn't look like anyone else did. The Packers certainly didn't. The Jets didn't either.

If the Vikings defend like the Saints did, the Vikings have an excellent chance of winning.

The Cowboys did not do anything on offense in that Packer game until the Packers took a 28 point lead with 3 minutes left in the 3rd quarter and went into full prevent mode.

I don't know if I agree with that. Scoring-wise, that is true, but if you look at their drives to that point, I'm not sure it is.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/playbyplay?gameId=401128029

The Packers did get way ahead, but Dallas shot themselves in the foot repeatedly early. 2 of their first 3 drives ended in INTs as they pressed into Packers territory, and another decent drive ended with a missed field goal. And then later in the game towards that garbage time the Packers picked them off again on a short field and got a field goal handed to them.

Yeah, sure, you could say it was garbage time, but Dallas was storming back. They avoid that late pick and who knows how the game would have turned out.

Anyway, I stand by what I'm saying about this upcoming game. The Cowboys will be the most complete offense the Vikings have faced all year, and Cousins is going to have to be on his game on offense against a defense that can defend both the pass and the run. If either the offense or defense has a long lapse or series of lapses as we've seen against the better competition they've faced this season, it's going to be a long night.

[Dames]

but I'm not sure why you think Dallas has such a big edge over us.

I wouldn't characterize it as a big edge. It's just a slight edge, but its definitely there.

Now who's hedging bets? Couldn't resist.