Why the Dallas Cowboys Are Locks to Win the NFC East

Find out why the Dallas Cowboys will be your NFC East champions.

If you thought the Dallas Cowboys would follow their usual suit and crumble in December, guess again.

The Philadelphia Eagles and their fans found that out quickly on Sunday night, when Dallas went into Lincoln Financial Field and exited with a 38-27 victory over their NFC East division rivals, giving the Cowboys (10-4) a one game lead in the division over the Eagles (9-5).

From the opening kickoff of the game—when Josh Huff and Brad Smith of the Eagles neglected to grab the short, bouncing kick, resulting in an onside recovery for the Cowboys—Dallas set the tone that this game would be a lot different than Thanksgiving’s outcome.

You’ll remember that Thanksgiving’s matchup saw a non-mobile Tony Romo throw two interceptions and take four sacks while the Cowboys’ defense allowed 464 total yards of offense in a 33-10 loss for the ‘Boys. But back to Sunday night. Despite jumping out to a 21-0 lead and then squandering it away about two thirds of the way through the third quarter, Dallas played one of its best games in years on Sunday night.

The defense was active, holding the Eagles to just 53 offensive plays and 294 total yards (Philly’s offense averages 70 players per game and 387 yards a game), while intercepting Mark Sanchez twice and sacking him four times to go with two fumble recoveries.

The offense was efficient and productive, with Tony Romo throwing three touchdowns to zero interceptions, and DeMarco Murray reaching the end zone twice to go with 81 yards on the ground. All three of Romo’s TDs went to Dez Bryant, who ended the night with six receptions and 114 yards to go with the trifecta in the end zone.

Bryant is a big reason why I like the Cowboys to take the NFC East division crown.

At 6’2”, 220 lbs., he’s one of the biggest and most physical wideouts in the league, which is evident by the fact that his 13 TDs lead all NFL receivers.

But my stance here doesn’t solely rely on Bryant.

Romo is playing the best football of his career, and he’s finally got an offensive line that can protect him and allow him to make big plays down the field. That offensive line has also helped Murray become the league’s leading rusher—yet another reason why Dallas has the best shot to take the division: it has a power running game.

Murray has been a beast and nearly impossible to contain this season, averaging 4.8 yards per carry to go with 11 scores. Additionally, Murray has been excellent as a pass catcher, hauling in a career 54 receptions so far.

One thing to note is that Murray broke his hand against the Eagles and already underwent surgery to repair the fourth metacarpal in his left hand. Initial thoughts are that Murray will be okay to continue playing since he predominantly carries the ball with his right hand.

Even if Murray falters down the stretch, Dallas still has enough talent to finish in first place. Joseph Randle and Lance Dunbar are suitable backups, and the Cowboys are the only team in their division to own a plus mark in terms of turnover differential.

Examining their remaining schedule, Dallas will have to play extremely well in Week 16 to earn a win against the 10-4 Indianapolis Colts, but Andrew Luck and the Colts can be beat.

Luck has been a turnover machine of late, throwing four picks and fumbling twice in his last three games combined, and the Cowboys’ defense specializes in takeaways, ranking tied for fourth in the NFL, with 25 takeaways.

Dallas will wrap up its season with a Week 17 matchup against the Washington Redskins—a team that’s playing terrible football of late, dropping six straight.
If the Cowboys win out, then the division is theirs, and I think that’s exactly how this ends up playing out.

The Cowboys have the better quarterback, running game, and top-tier receiver to go with a defense that knows how to get the ball back.

Crown em’ now.

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