In a special edition of Monday Night Football, the Lions visit the Cowboys on Saturday Night. The Lions haven’t had a very tough schedule this season and this game is the hardest of their season in their buildup to the playoffs. They finally claimed their 1st division title since 1993 and they’re in the thick of the top seed race in the NFC. For the Cowboys, they return home to their fortress after dropping 2 straight to the Bills and Dolphins on the road. Dallas is unbeaten at home this season and they’ll be looking to keep that streak going against Detroit.
First off, congrats to the Lions for clinching the NFC North for the 1st time since 1993. It’s been an amazing season for them and whether you love ‘em or hate ‘em, you should admire how far they’ve come. They finished 3-13-1 two seasons ago, they were 9-8 last season, and now they’re 13-4 with full confidence. The turnaround has been incredible and they’ve established themselves as one of the NFC’s giants. Their offense stats are mind blowing with their skilled group including Amon-Ra St. Brown, David Montgomery, Jared Goff, and Jahmyr Gibbs. They rank 3rd in total yards a game, 5th in passing yards a game, they’re 3rd in rushing yards a game, and they’re 6th in receiving yards a game (ESPN Offense Stats). Those are some good numbers and they put up a lot of points each game. The Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs is a rookie and he has become a bigger part of this offense over the season. It was mostly Montgomery at first but Gibbs is getting more usage and in my opinion, he is the better back. They’re splitting carries now and both are extremely productive. This duo will be dangerous in the playoffs and they have it in them to take over the game and finish it. The offense should have no problems and I feel they’ll put up points easily. The Lions defense faces their biggest test of the season and it’s a challenge to stop Dak’s offense. They have to defend the pass well because Dallas is pass-heavy and they don’t run too much. This could be a playoff opponent for the Lions in the near future and beating the Cowboys on the road could boost them even more.
The Cowboys have dropped 2 straight but luckily for them, they’re back at AT&T Stadium. In these 2 games, their only good player was CeeDee Lamb and everyone else struggled. This team needs to use their other players more and not be so reliant on Lamb. They have a good group of players on their offense like Cook, Gallup, Ferguson, and Pollard so I don’t understand why Lamb is used so much. They’ll have to put up points against Detroit and everything can’t from Lamb. The defense needs to watch Detroit’s pace and control their offense. If Micah Parsons’ group can limit the touchdowns, I give Dallas a good chance to win this game. It’s their last home game of the regular season and I’m sure the Cowboys fans want to see them go out of Texas with a bang.
My prediction for this game is that the Cowboys will win 34-31. It’ll be a high scoring game but I feel that Dallas has more heart in this game. They’re on a little bit of a losing skid and they’ll have more drive to win. Their points have been limited in the last 2 games but this is the game that revives them from those two games previously. It’s a prime time game and that loud crowd in Arlington will create some mistakes from Detroit. You can watch this game at 8:15 PM EST on ABC and ESPN on 12/30/23.
Some of the best teams in the league face off on Saturday Night and it’s a game filled with stars. Will Dan Campbell’s team keep pace in the 1st seed race and end the Cowboys run at home or will the Cowboys erase their last 2 games and put up a strong performance?
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