The Dallas Cowboys will travel to U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday night to take on the Minnesota Vikings in a prime-time NFC matchup. The Cowboys are leading the NFC East with a 5-1 record and are coming off a 35-29 overtime road win before their bye. Dak Prescott finished going 36-of-51 for 445 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. The Vikings are second in the NFC North with a 3-3 record and are coming off a 34-28 overtime road win against the Carolina Panthers before their bye week. Kirk Cousins went 33-of-48 for 373 yards with three touchdowns.
Returning to Form
The Dallas Cowboys are best when running back. Ezekiel Elliott is running the football well and opening up the playbook. He has been doing just that as he has 102 rushing attempts for 521 yards (5.1 yards per carrying) with five touchdowns on the ground and 16 catches for 105 yards (6.6 yards per reception) with a receiving touchdown. In his last game against the Patriots, Zeke ran for 69 yards on 17 attempts (4.1 yards per rush) and seven catches for 50 yards (7.1 yards per reception). If he can find the end zone, it will be a solid chance of a win here.
This season, the Dallas Cowboys have been a decent defensive team as they are allowing 24.3 points per game. In their previous game against the New England Patriots, they gave up 29 points on 335 total yards of offense (215 passing, 120 rushings). They did a good job limiting third-down attempts as they forced New England to go 3-of-9 on third down. They have to improve the pass defense as they finished 9.3 passing yards per attempt. If they can continue improving as they get healthier, it will be a good chance of another win.
Presidential Output
The Minnesota Vikings have a great wide receiver in Justin Jefferson. He has 41 receptions for 542 yards (13.2 yards per catch) with three touchdowns. In the last game against the Carolina Panthers, Jefferson finished with eight receptions on 14 targets for 80 yards (10 yards per catch) without a trip to the end zone. It will be interesting to see how he fares against one of the top cornerbacks in the league.
The Minnesota Vikings have been a good defensive team as they are giving up 22.8 points per game. In their previous game against the Carolina Panthers, they allowed 28 points on 306 total yards of offense (188 passing, 118 rushings). They were superb at limiting third-down conversions as Carolina went 2-of-12 on third down and converted both fourth-down attempts. They need to defend the run better as they allowed the McCaffrey-less Panthers to run for 5.1 yards per rush. If they can stop the run, they will be a solid team here.
Who to Bet
This line has been drastically moving, and the health of Dak Prescott will be the difference-maker. Dallas is a perfect 6-0 against the spread, and Dak Prescott sounds like he will be playing here. The Cowboys have someone to defend Justin Jefferson and could focus on Dalvin Cook. Kirk Cousins has historically struggled in prime-time games in his career. The Cowboys have covered in each of the last four games as an underdog so go with Dallas to cover on the road.