There was a time when the Patriots were unbeatable at home. This season, the team is 0-3 at home with both victories occuring on the road. Is a 4:25 home game against the Cowboys what the Patriots need to get back to 500 and their first win at Gillette, I think so.
Last week the Patriots went into Houston with what looked to be an easy game at hand. Of course, the defense decided to play their worst game of the season and let a rookie quarterback look pretty dang impressive against them. Was it coaching, or was it guys not keeping the play in front of them and then "selling out" for an interception that they missed on. Personally, I think it was the latter as the Patriots defense gave up their three biggest passing plays of the season, two of which were touchdowns (67 and 37 yards). I'm fully expecting the defense to have a bounce back game today.
QUARTERBACK RATING- The Dallas defense has not allowed a quarterback to have passer rating of 100 yet this season. The one common quarterback the teams have both faced is Tom Brady. Dallas held him to 97 while the Patriots held him to 70.8. Since the Bucs won both closely fought games, the point could be moot, but is it?
DEFENSE- That little nugget of information about quarterback ratings may have you impressed with the Cowboys' defense this season, but looking at some other defensive statistics will not impress you much. Five games into the season, Dallas has given up the most passing yards of any team in the NFL (311 yards). When not at home, they have given up 346 yards in the air. The Cowboys have done a much better job stopping the run. That being said, I'm sure Josh McDaniels plans on trying to run the ball today.
AVOID 7- If Mac Jones wants to be the first player to get a 100 rating against the Cowboys and get the team back to 500, he'll want to avoid throwing the ball in the direction of Trevon Diggs. Diggs is having a pretty impressive start to his sophomore season with 6 interceptions in 5 games. While he was listed as questionable this week with a bad ankle, all signs are pointing to him playing today. Yes, Diggs is the brother of Stefon. Nick Saban had him switch from wide receiver to defensive back at Alabama.
QUARTERBACK RATING- The Dallas defense has not allowed a quarterback to have passer rating of 100 yet this season. The one common quarterback the teams have both faced is Tom Brady. Dallas held him to 97 while the Patriots held him to 70.8. Since the Bucs won both closely fought games, the point could be moot, but is it?
DEFENSE- That little nugget of information about quarterback ratings may have you impressed with the Cowboys' defense this season, but looking at some other defensive statistics will not impress you much. Five games into the season, Dallas has given up the most passing yards of any team in the NFL (311 yards). When not at home, they have given up 346 yards in the air. The Cowboys have done a much better job stopping the run. That being said, I'm sure Josh McDaniels plans on trying to run the ball today.
AVOID 7- If Mac Jones wants to be the first player to get a 100 rating against the Cowboys and get the team back to 500, he'll want to avoid throwing the ball in the direction of Trevon Diggs. Diggs is having a pretty impressive start to his sophomore season with 6 interceptions in 5 games. While he was listed as questionable this week with a bad ankle, all signs are pointing to him playing today. Yes, Diggs is the brother of Stefon. Nick Saban had him switch from wide receiver to defensive back at Alabama.
SPECIAL TEAMS- The Patriots won last week in part to Houston having some screw-ups on special teams. Both New England and Dallas are pretty comparable with their special teams units when it comes to kicking and punting. The Cowboys' only loss came in a game that Greg Zuerlein missed two field goals and an extra point. With the final score being 31-29, those misses were huge.
DON'T BEAT YOURSELF- The Patriots have definitely beaten themselves a few times this year with some very untimely turnovers. The Cowboys have already been on the receiving end of some gift wins from their opponents, and don't need another one at our expense.
TURNOVERS- The Patriots managed to win last week while still losing the turnover battle. That was a bit of a fluke as it doesn't happen very often. If the Patriots are going to start winning some games, they'll need to stop turning the ball over and increasing their takeaways. Heading into the game the Patriots are at -3 while the Cowboys are already at +7.
FUN FACTS- Belichick is undefeated against two teams and faces both of them this year. He is 5-0 against the Cowboys and 6-0 against the Falcons.
DON'T BEAT YOURSELF- The Patriots have definitely beaten themselves a few times this year with some very untimely turnovers. The Cowboys have already been on the receiving end of some gift wins from their opponents, and don't need another one at our expense.
TURNOVERS- The Patriots managed to win last week while still losing the turnover battle. That was a bit of a fluke as it doesn't happen very often. If the Patriots are going to start winning some games, they'll need to stop turning the ball over and increasing their takeaways. Heading into the game the Patriots are at -3 while the Cowboys are already at +7.
FUN FACTS- Belichick is undefeated against two teams and faces both of them this year. He is 5-0 against the Cowboys and 6-0 against the Falcons.
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