Dallas (2nd – NFC East) at Seattle (2nd – NFC West) at CenturyLink Field KICK OFF – 4:25 PM ET
One of the better NFL matchups this weekend will see the 4-1 Dallas Cowboys heading west to take on the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks (3-1) at CenturyLink field in Seattle on Sunday, October 12. The Cowboys have surprised a lot of the experts so far this season with their fine play and winning record and are tied for the top in the NFC. They’re going to be put to the test on Sunday though in Seattle as the Seahawks will be aiming to contain the Cowboys’ running game.
Let’s take a closer look at the Dallas Cowboys vs Seattle Seahawks matchup:
- Spread: Dallas (+8.0) at 10/11, Seattle (-8.0) at 10/11
- Over/Under: 46.5 points 10/11
- To Win: Dallas 31/10, Seattle 10/39
- Head to Head: Underdog has gone 6-2 ATS in their last eight meetings
- Match up Summary: The Cowboys are off to a great start at 4-1 after a 20-17 win over the Houston Texans while reigning Super Bowl champs Seattle sits at 3-1 following their 27-17 win against the Washington Redskins on Monday night. It’s hard to run against the Seattle defense, but quarterback Tony Romo is having a pretty good year so look for him to pass to receivers Terrance Williams and Dez Bryant. The Seattle secondary has given up at least two TDs and over 280 yards in each of their past three contests.
Dallas Cowboys:
- Overall Record: 4-1
- Record Against the Spread (won-lost-push): 3-2-0
- Home Record: 2-1
- Away Record: 2-0
- Over/Under Record: 2-3-0
Dallas tries to win games utilizing their offense rather than defense and so far this season it’s worked well for the team. In their first five contests we’ve seen the Cowboys rush for 160 yards per game due to the squad’s fine run blocking. Running back DeMarco Murray has led the way with five touchdowns and 670 of his team’s 800 yards on the ground, which is the high mark in the league in both categories. Murray failed to score last week in the Cowboys’ 20-17 overtime against the Houston Texans, but he had a career-best 31 carries and gained 136 yards in the process. Dallas didn’t cover the spread though and are now 3-1 ATS this campaign.
If Murray keeps up his pace he’ll set a new NFL record in rushing yards for a season, but head coach Jason Garrett doesn’t want to wear him out this early in the season. He might not carry the ball as much against Seattle since the hosts have one of the league’s top run defenses. If Dallas can’t carry the ball then they’ll be depending on quarterback Tony Romo have another good passing game. Romo had back surgery during the offseason and got off to a bit of a slow start. However, he’s connected on 69.2 per cent of his passes to rank second in the league. His QBR is also impressive as he’s ranked fifth at 80.4.
Receivers Dez Bryant and Terrance Williams are also having good seasons. Bryant has four touchdowns, 376 yards and 32 catches while Williams has 16 receptions, five touchdowns and 250 yards. This gives Romo a couple of good options when he’s looking to slice past opposing secondaries and Seattle’s secondary hasn’t been that good against the pass so far. On the downside for Dallas, they’re weak point is defense, especially against the rush as their opponents have gained an average of 5.2 yards against them each time they carry the ball. This ranks the Cowboys as second worst in the league in this area.
Seattle Seahawks:
- Overall Record: 3-1
- Record Against the Spread (won-lost-push): 3-1-0
- Home Record: 2-0
- Away Record: 1-1
- Over/Under Record: 2-2-0
Seattle will certainly try to stop Dallas’ running game as they’ve got a solid front seven when it comes to containing the rush. They’ve allowed the opposition just 2.6 yards against per carry in the new season. They held the Washington Redskins just 1.9 yards a carry last Monday night in their 27-17 victory over the Redskins. Seattle has a pretty decent running team themselves as they’re ranked the best in the league with 167 yards per game. They ran for 225 yards against Washington and quarterback Russell Wilson took the ball himself 11 times to reach a career-best 122 rushing yards. He also threw two touchdown passes for the fourth game in a row.
The Seahawks should be able to move the ball on Dallas, but need to tighten up defensively. Peyton Manning and Philip Rivers both had a pair of touchdowns and gained more than 280 yards against them as did Kirk Cousins. Seattle’s a tough place to win a football game for visiting clubs though as the Seahawks are on a 19-1 roll at home.