Playoff rematch features two struggling favorites; Dallas Cowboys vs. Minnesota Vikings preview
This crazy NFL season has left us with no shortage of shocks. The struggles of the abundantly talented Minnesota Vikings and Dallas Cowboys have left football fans dumbfounded and these two 2009 play-off teams in search of answers.
The Vikings are 1-3 and the magic from Brett Favre seems to be fading away, as the 41-year-old is starting to play like his age might suggest. The defence has still been solid, but not as dominant as last year. Adrian Peterson has taken the reins as the
Vikings’ main weapon on offence and they traded for Randy Moss to give Favre some help. When will it start translating into wins?
The Cowboys seem to be experts at shooting themselves in the foot. First the holding penalty on the last play of the opening game, then a loss at home, followed by a big win in Houston and finally losing at home to Tennessee despite outgaining the Titans
nearly 200 yards. At 1-3 and with Super Bowl hopes, the Cowboys need this win just as badly as the Vikings do.
Minnesota does play better at home and they’ll need the magic to happen and turn things around. They destroyed the Cowboys in last year’s divisional round at home, 34-3. Favre worked his magic, but he had three touchdowns thrown to a now-injured Sidney Rice.
The absence of Rice has proven to be detrimental to the Vikings’ offence. The Vikings have to make Peterson their feature player and they’ll need a more consistent effort from Moss, who showed some flashes of what he could do last Monday night against the
Jets.
The Cowboys will have to get pressure on an ailing Favre. Favre has not had time to throw the ball this year and is dealing with tendonitis in his right elbow. You have to wonder if the pain will eventually be too much for Favre to take. The Vikings may
even potentially turn to Tavaris Jackson if the pain in Favre’s elbow worsens.
Tony Romo has to cut down on turnovers, but to do that he needs time to throw. The Titans sacked Romo six times last week and the Cowboys’ offensive line has been their downfall with injuries and continuously missed blocks.
What the Cowboys need to do is balance their attack with Felix Jones eating up tough yards. That will take the pressure off Romo and will give him time to find Miles Austin, Jason Whitten and Roy Williams.
The Vikings have a vicious front four on defence, with the Williams brothers (Kevin and Pat) up the middle, and Jared Allen and Ray Edwards. This unit struck fear in opponents last year, shutting down the run and harassing quarterbacks. If they do that to
Romo, they’ll be on the driver’s seat, as Romo always makes his worst mistakes when he’s under pressure.
Before the season, we probably thought this match-up would feature two unbeaten teams. That’s far from the case at this point, as both teams’ play-off hopes are already in jeopardy in Week 6. It’s a game both teams need to win and neither can afford to lose.
It’s hard to imagine that either the Vikings or the Cowboys will be 1-4 after this weekend. What will happen then? Well, it’ll be something you won’t want to miss. Kick-off is Sunday at 4:00 pm from the Metrodome in Minneapolis.
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