As the Dallas Cowboys finish their 2022 regular season vs the Washington Commanders, here are some things to watch out for as this game unfolds on Sunday Afternoon:
What’s at Stake: A Cowboys win, coupled with an Eagles loss VS the Giants would give the Dallas Cowboys the second seed in the NFC as the NFC East Champion and a home game in the playoffs . If the 49ers also lose, the Cowboys will get the number one seed. An Eagles victory and/or a Cowboys loss would guarantee a road playoff game against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the Cowboys cannot finish lower than the 5th seed.
Of Note: QB Dak Prescott has a six-game interception streak for the first time in his career. Despite the starting quarterback turning the ball over so frequently, the Cowboys still managed a 5-1 record in those games. On the flip side, the 2016 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year does have more TD passes (14) than picks (10) during that stretch. While some of those interceptions have been the result of bad luck, Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys need to figure out a way to reduce those mistakes if they wish to make a serious playoff run. At the end of the day, Dak Prescott enters the week tied with Minnesota’s Kirk Cousins and the benched Derek Carr in Las Vegas for the NFL lead with 14 picks despite missing five games with a broken thumb. This disturbing trend that has to be addressed somehow.
Key Matchup: Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy against the out-of-town scoreboard. Dallas needs the Philadelphia Eagles to lose to the New York Giants — in addition to beating Washington — to win the division. Decisions could have to be made early based on how the other NFC East game is going. The chance to earn a bye week or a home playoff game is there but the Dallas Cowboys can ill afford to go into the playoffs with any additional injuries. McCarthy should try to keep an eye on what is happening in the Giants-Eagles game and potentially rest some of the starters if a divisional title is not realistically within reach.
Help is on the way: Running back Tony Pollard could return after missing a game with a thigh injury. Barring a huge game from two-time rushing champ Ezekiel Elliott, Pollard will be the first back not named Elliott to lead the Cowboys in rushing since Elliott was drafted fourth overall in 2016. Center Tyler Biadasz is likely out after spraining his right ankle against the Titans last Thursday, but the Cowboys are hopeful that he will be ready for the playoffs. The same is true for LB Leighton Vander Esch, who injured his neck three weeks ago against Jacksonville. Another player set to return for a playoff run is DT Johnathan Hankins. Meanwhile the Cowboys signed CB Xavier Rhodes to their practice squad to help out the depleted secondary.
Fun Facts: The Cowboys have won three in a row against Washington, their third streak at least that long since the start of 2016. That’s the same year that Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott had their standout rookie seasons together and the last time the Dallas Cowboys earned the No. 1 seed. Dallas is 10-3 against Washington since Prescott and Elliott were drafted. This is the 13th consecutive season Washington has finished the regular season against a divisional opponent. The Commanders need to win to avoid the franchise’s sixth consecutive losing season but they are officially eliminated from playoff contention. This could be Dan Snyder’s final game as owner with he and his wife Tanya looking to sell the team that he bought in 1999 and nearly ran the once storied franchise into the ground.
A few other fun facts to consider:
- Dallas is 10-1 against the NFC East the past two seasons.
- Dak Prescott needs only 1 TD pass to surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Troy Aikman for second on the club’s career list with 166. Tony Romo is the current franchise leader with 247.
- Tony Pollard needs 1 rushing TD to reach 10 on the season. That would make him and Ezekiel Elliott the first pair of NFL backs with at least 10 rushing TD’s apiece in a season since Carolina’s DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart in 2008.
- Ezekiel Elliott has currently scored at least one rushing TD in a career-best nine consecutive games.
- Ezekiel Elliott needs just 42 scrimmage yards to keep his streak alive of having at least 1000 in each of his first 7 seasons.
- Ezekiel Elliott needs 134 rushing yards to reach 1000 for the 5th time in his career. Tony Pollard only needs 12 more to reach that milestone. The Dallas Cowboys have never had 2 running backs rush for 1000 yards or more in the same season.
- Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb needs 10 catches to break Michael Irvin’s single-season club record of 111 from 1995.
- LB Micah Parsons leads the NFL with six multi-sack games but hasn’t had one since Week 12.
- Safety Donovan Wilson leads NFL defensive backs with five sacks. He is tied with Bill Bates (1984) for the single-season franchise record for sacks by a DB.
- Dallas leads the NFL with 32 takeaways after finishing last season with a league-best 34. The Cowboys can become the first team to lead the NFL in takeaways in consecutive seasons since the “Steel Curtain” Pittsburgh Steelers did it three years in a row from 1972-74. Dallas currently leads the NFL with 20 forced fumbles, the most for the franchise since the stat became official in 1994.
- The Dallas Cowboys offense is second in the league in scoring (4 pts behind the Kansas City Chiefs) and have an opportunity to be the first team to lead the league in offensive scoring in two consecutive seasons since the New Orleans Saints in 2008-09.
- The Dallas Cowboys can tie their franchise record for regular season wins with 13 with a victory over Washington.
Final Prediction: Look for the Cowboys to pressure the Washington Commanders rookie quarterback Sam Howell, making his first ever NFL start, and make life uncomfortable for him. That, and the fact the Dallas Cowboys still have something to play for, they should roll to an easy win.
Final Score : Dallas Cowboys 37 Washington Commanders 14
*Photo by Joe Glorioso https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/legalcode
**All Data and statistics obtained and verified through https://www.pro-football-reference.com/
