Vegas Baby! Vegas!!

Here we go again.  The Cowboys are 8-3 and on a roll, but here comes the dreaded month of December.  You might have heard in recent years the Cowboys lack of affinity for the Christmas month.  If Christmas is the time for giving, then the Cowboys have been quite generous to teams in the past.  This year lets hope Christmas will be the time for winning.

Heading into the Giants game, the big headline this week has involved Tony Romo and a Vegas Vacation.  He and Miles Austin decided to spend the weekend off in Sin City.  It doesn’t matter that the sole purpose of them going was for a charity event.  You can’t spell TMZ these days without thinking ESPN.

Whether it is the Tiger Woods (non) story or the Vegas trip for Romo, they continue to harp on the minimal fodder any athlete creates.  During the whole Tiger Woods story, ESPN was camped outside his house.  He hit a fire hydrant!  What is the story and why is ESPN concerned with the possibility of marital problems existing in his life.  It amazes me that stories like this gain any traction.  I think Susy Kolber is still waiting to get an interview with the fire hydrant.  Golf fans – Remember the greatest shot ever.

On to the real story — Sunday’s game between the Cowboys and the Giants.

Injuries

The Cowboys have been lucky on the injury front all year.  Columbo is still out indefinitely.  This will be the big test for his replacement, Doug Free.  We have circled this game as his first test and we will see how he holds up against the Giants very capable pass rush.  I understand the Giants have been hopeless on defense in recent weeks, but they still have players on the defensive line that create problems for the Cowboys

It looks like Ken Hamlin might make his return this week.  Let’s hope the Cowboys coaches have shown him film on his play this year.  He has been terrible for the Cowboys and really the only weak point on defense.  Alan Ball has been no savior, but he has been more active the past two weeks then Hamlin was all year.  I do not think the Cowboys will keep Hamlin on the bench, but maybe they should.

Cowboys rookie LB, Victor Butler, has a sprained knee.  He plays sparingly, but he has shown promise of being a solid pass rusher.  He will be limited in practice this week, but he is expected to play on Sunday.

Key Matchups

Romo vs. Giants Secondary:  Look for the Cowboys to attack the Giants through the air.  The Giants have been susceptible to the pass during their recent slide and we all know Jason Garrett’s affinity for the passing game.  Miles Austin and Jason Witten will be heavily involved in the game plan.  We saw evidence last week, when the Cowboys involve Austin early, the offense becomes much more explosive.  Also expect the Cowboys to spread the Giants defense by using multiple receiver sets.

Jay Ratliff vs. Sean O’Hara: Ratliff has been a beast all year for the Cowboys.  In the past O’Hara has done well against Ratliff.  These two have been battling for three years now and it is always fun to watch.  The Giants offensive line has not played up to their capabilities this year.  If they want to beat the Cowboys, then they have to keep the Cowboys fear-some pass rush contained.

Cowboys Corners vs. Giants Receivers: Eli Manning always tends to have his best games statistically against the Cowboys.  In their previous meeting, Steve Smith and Co. clearly won this battle.  I have underestimated the Giants receivers before the last meeting.  Now I am not so sure if the Cowboys defensive backs won’t struggle again.  The Cowboys do not like to have Terence Newman locked on to one receiver all game, but I would make an exception this week.  Although Mike Jenkins has far superior ball skills and playmaking ability, Newman is still the Cowboys best cover corner.  I would lock Newman on Manning’s favorite target, Steve Smith.

Analysis

The Cowboys – Giants games have been great for a number of years now.  It is fun when both teams are competitive, as they have in recent years.  With December now here, the time for the playoff push is now for both teams.  I think the Cowboys will be ready for this game.  Do not expect another clunker like we saw in Green Bay.  Much more to come this week on this big game.  Stay Tuned!

Tags: Dallas Cowboys, DeMarcus Ware, Eli Manning, Jason Garrett, Jason Witten, Jay Ratliff, Jerry Jones, Ken Hamlin, Marc Columbo, Mike Jenkins, Miles Austin, NFL, Steve Smith, Terence Newman, Tony Romo, Wade Phillips