The Dallas Cowboys are riding high after beating their division rivals.
After defeating the New York Giants, 49-17, in Week 10, Dallas is currently 6-3. The win over the Giants actually capped off an easy season sweep of their NFC East brethren, defeating them by a combined total of 89-17.
Although they’re currently tied with the Seattle Seahawks for the first wild card spot in the NFC, Dallas actually ranks second in the NFL in average margin of victory, defeating their opponents by a margin of 11.6 points per game. The only team ahead of them is the San Francisco 49ers, who have defeated their opponents by an average margin of 12.1 points per game.
Cornerback Trevon Diggs — who is currently out for the season due to a torn ACL — issued a bold five-word message to the rest of the NFL after Dallas easily dispatched their division rivals.
While the Cowboys’ blowout win over the Giants was impressive, it’s worth noting they were massive favorites over the 2-8 Giants. New York was starting third-string quarterback Tommy Devito and were 17.5-point underdogs entering the game.
The Cowboys haven’t defeated a single team with a winning record this season, with their six wins coming against teams with a combined record of 15-32. As K.D. Drummond of Cowboys Wire notes, Dallas has yet to beat a good-to-great team.
“Dallas has now had the largest margin of victory in a given week across the NFL a whopping four times (Week’s 1, 4, 8 and 10), proving their worth,” writes Drummond. “But they haven’t defeated a good-to-great team yet, so questions still remain about exactly what this team is. Blowing out the opposition is crucial, but not as important as actually beating other good teams.
Needless to say, the c were riding high following their victory, which included notable statistical feats by both Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb.
In Prescott’s case, he posted the highest quarterback rating in a single game this season, according to Seth Walder of ESPN analytics.
“Dak Prescott recorded a QBR of 97.2 today,” wrote Walder on Sunday, November 12. “That’s the highest QBR game of the season.”
Furthermore, Prescott also posted his third consecutive game with at least 300 passing yards and three touchdowns. Only three other quarterbacks have had longer streaks since the 1970 merger, according to Tony Holzman-Escareno of NFL Research.
“Dak Prescott has 3 straight games with 300+ pass yards & 3+ pass TD,” writes Holzman-Escareno. “Only 3 players have had a longer streak in a single season since the 1970 merger: • Steve Young – 5 (1998) • Patrick Mahomes – 4 (2018) • Peyton Manning – 4 (2012).”
Meanwhile, Lamb posted 11 receptions for 151 receiving yards, one receiving touchdown and one rushing touchdown in the win. He leads the NFL in three major receiving categories since Week 6 despite being on a bye in Week 7, according to Pro Football Focus.
“CeeDee Lamb since Week 6: 41 catches (T-1st), 617 receiving yards (1st), 4 total TDs, 22 receptions gaining 15+ yards (1st).”
While the Cowboys are understandably riding high following their win over the Giants, they’ll need to defeat a good team before we can crown them as Super Bowl favorites. They’ll receive their next test when they visit the Seattle Seahawks in Week 13.
