By no means should there have been any doubt that Dallas would get the win against the Carolina Panthers. They did get the win. A 33-10 final score. Congratulations to Dallas, as they're now 7-3 and have yet to beat a team with a winning record. Stephen A. Smith is unimpressed with Dallas' win against Carolina, and honestly, he shouldn't be the only one.
Carolina came in with a 1-8 record, a rookie quarterback with ZERO offensive line, and a head coach that honestly shouldn't even be there. There was no reason for Dallas to lose. The 7-3 record says something, but winning against losing teams has no long-term impact. In other words, when the competition gets in Dallas' way, the world sees a completely different team. Case in point, their 42-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. That's the Cowboys' M.O. in a nutshell; they're not built for the bright lights. That's not Super Bowl Contender. That's not even a Super Bowl pretender, because that's too much of an understatement.
This Thursday, it's Thanksgiving, and Dallas has a game. The Washington Commanders are coming to town. The same Commanders team that suffered an embarrassing loss at home to the same New York Giants team that Dallas easily beat recently. Washington committed six turnovers, which New York turned into 24 points. Are the Commanders that bad, or was it a bad day in the office? Regardless, Dallas better be ready. Sam Howell can give Dallas a run for their money, and not because of his first career start in the final week of last season, which was against Dallas, and Washington won. But because Washington, more often than not, finds a way to challenge Dallas, especially on Thanksgiving. But granted, Dak Prescott is 5-0 against the Commanders at home.
First things first, the Dallas defense needs to sack Howell as many times as possible and force turnovers. Howell currently leads the league in passing yards (3,038). Washington's offense is respectable, but the same can't be said about the defense. The Commanders' defense is fourth-worst in the league in total offense, as they allow an average of 373 yards per game. Their passing defense is third-worse in the league, while the running defense is below average at best, as they allow an average of 114 rushing yards per game. Dallas needs to excel on offense and defense so they can win and enjoy their Thanksgiving. As long as Washington is not afforded any opportunities, Dallas takes and maintains control on Thursday.
After Thanksgiving, Dallas faces a brutal test. Post-Thanksgiving, the Seattle Seahawks will visit Dallas, followed by Philadelphia, and then back-to-back road games against Buffalo and Miami. That's where we'll see if the real Dallas Cowboys will stand up.
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