NFL Predictions: Week 2 Picks and Hot Takes From Across the League
By Joe Wedra
Dallas Cowboys at Washington Redskins, 1:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, FOX
How about the first-week disappointments for these two NFC East squads? One couldn’t get out of bounds fast enough, while the other couldn’t leave their Monday night game fast enough.
The latter, Washington and their leader Kirk Cousins, must be better in this week two matchup. Ultimately, they have no other choice. Jay Gruden’s squad can’t afford to fall to 0-2 in a highly-contested NFC; tacking on a loss against a divisional opponent would be another punch straight to the gut.
To fight in this one, they must get the running game rolling early. Cousins can’t go out, throw another 43 passes, and expect to top a Dallas offense that has the potential to be nearly as good as Pittsburgh’s effort from Monday night. A short week already hurts Washington. If the game plan can’t find a way to get the ball into the hands of Matt Jones and Chris Thompson effectively, they’ll have a tough time finding a way to knock off Dallas.
Now, that’s not to say the Cowboys will be the undisputed favorites in this one. In fact, their struggles on offense somewhat mirror the difficulties that the Redskins face. Dak Prescott threw 20 incompletions in the loss to the Giants, while Zeke Elliott averaged just 2.6 yards per carry in his 20 rushes. As the Dallas offense line goes, so should the game’s final score.
Ultimately, the result of this one will depend on the Washington defense’s ability to flip the script and provide their home crowd with a hard-fought victory. Watch Josh Norman’s play, keeping an eye on whether or not he shadows Dez Bryant on the afternoon.
Redskins rely on Cousins’ fourth-quarter comeback beat Cowboys, 20-17.
Next: Bengals/Steelers