Cowboys stay alive, Ravens get hot and 49ers taking off

SANTA CLARA, CA - NOVEMBER 26: Jimmy Garoppolo No. 10 of the San Francisco 49ers drops back to pass against the Seattle Seahawks late in their NFL football game at Levi's Stadium on November 26, 2017 in Santa Clara, California. The Seahawks won the game 24-13. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

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What happened in Week 13 that could shape the weekend ahead? Former NFL scout Matt Williamson breaks it all down.

Week 13 pitted many of the premium teams in the NFC against one another, but we also saw some very close and competitive games in matchups that didn’t get the utmost attention leading into the week. Below are three major takeaways from this week’s action.

Getting the win on Thursday Night was huge for Dallas. But maybe as importantly, was that the Cowboys controlled the football game in the trenches. Against a banged up Redskins team playing on the road; Dallas controlled both sides of the ball. The numbers didn’t show it, but Kirk Cousins played a great game. But even without Sean Lee, Dallas made life difficult on Cousins, running room was scarce and the Cowboys made big plays on this side of the ball. The Cowboys defense is night and day with and without Lee, just as their offense is with and without Ezekiel Elliott. They overcame the loss of Lee on this night.

With Elliott still suspended, the Cowboys still were able to control the line of scrimmage. Their vaunted offensive line hasn’t played up to their reputation in 2017, but that certainly wasn’t the case against Washington. Alfred Morris had big running lanes and he capitalized on those opportunities against his former team on a national stage. Dak Prescott played much better in this game and now has an extra long week to nurse his injured throwing hand.

Of course, Dallas is in the very difficult NFC, but they have two very winnable games upcoming in New York against the Giants and on the road in Oakland. Then Elliott returns with fresh legs for the Cowboys final two games of the regular season. Dallas isn’t dead yet and they are back to playing their style of winning football.