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Sunday Night Football Predictions Week 1: Cowboys vs. Giants

by Mike Allen - 8/25/2023

Sunday Night Football predictions Cowboys vs Giants Dak Prescott

Week 1 in the NFL is one of the most thrilling days of the year. Think about it. All major sports' opening days are exciting, but none are as anticipated as the first full day of NFL football.

Outside of Christmas, what else is there? I can't think of a bigger holiday on the American calendar.

What about the Super Bowl? Ask any NFL fanatic if they would rather the current month be September or February. I'm confident to speak for us all when I say we are much more excited for the beginning of the NFL season than the end of it.

After the first two rounds of games, everyone's attention shifts to the prime-time game between longtime NFC East rivals the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants. The G-Men ended the year in third place in the division at 9-7. That was one spot behind the Cowboys, who wrapped up the regular season with a 12-5 record.

Let's go ahead and take a look at the betting odds and make a pick for the Sunday Night Football game between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants.

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When: 8:20 PM Eastern on Sunday September 10th

Where: MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey

It's still technically summertime, but I went ahead and checked the weather for this game, and it looks about as perfect as possible with a temperature of 72 degrees and barely a breeze of 6 MPH.

MetLife Stadium should be rocking for this one against the hated Cowboys. New York fans saw their team win its first postseason game in last year's Wild Card Round since their victory at Super Bowl XLVI in February, 2012.

We are entering the sophomore season for Giants head coach Brian Daboll. He had one of the most successful debuts in franchise history last year. Brian took the team from 4-13 to a respectable 9-8 in a much improved NFC East.

The Dallas Cowboys come into Week 1 of the NFL regular season projected to win just 10 games. I believe in their star power, though. Dak Prescott has never been a difference-maker, but he doesn't have to be, as the QB is, once again, surrounded by some of the best talent in the league.

The bottom line for him is to protect the ball. The Cowboys have the talent to win a Super Bowl on both sides of the ball. Dak, don't pass it to the other team so much as you did last year. Throwing 15 interceptions in just 12 games played is not acceptable for a Super Bowl contender.

Dallas Cowboys         Moneyline: -166          Point Spread: -3.5 (-118)

New York Giants        Moneyline: +140         Point Spread: +3.5 (-102)

Point Total                           Over 46.5: -108           Under 46.5: -112

We just spoke about the key for the Cowboys. Dak has to protect the football.

The key for the New York Giants will be to stop the underrated ground attack of the Cowboys. The New York defense ranked 31st in the NFL last year in opponent's yards/rush.

While Dallas was 21st on offense in yards/rush with only 4.3 as a team, Tony Pollard racked up 1,007. He finished 2nd in the league with an average of 5.2 yards per carry, while the other running backs combined for an average of 3.8.

They trimmed the Ezekiel Elliott fat. So, I expect Dem' Boys to be a different team running the ball and thus through the air.

Dallas will run the ball up and down the field against New York. Once those safeties start to creep up, CeeDee Lamb is going over the top for a TD or two.

Pick: Dallas Cowboys (-3.5)

In Conclusion

The Giants ranked 22nd in yards/play and 24th in opponent's yards/play last season. Against a Top 10 offense and defense, New York will likely struggle.

Both Elliott and Prescott had the worst seasons of their previously stellar statistical careers in 2022, and the NFC East was a very competitive division. They still won 12 games.

New York squeaked into the playoffs but was consistently beaten in the trenches all year.

The Cowboys slightly underachieved last season, while the Giants significantly overachieved.

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