Predictions Summary Projections by Position Projection Team Boxes

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Prediction: PHI 27, DAL 34 (Line: DAL by 3)

This one is for all the marbles. At least for now. This is the first meeting of these 8-3 teams and the Cowboys are only 3-3 at home while the Eagles are 2-3 on the road. The Eagles won 24-22 in Dallas in the season finale last year. This time it favors the homefield Cowboys playing in the afternoon game on Thanksgiving.

Hard to complain about Mark Sanchez when the Eagles are 3-1 under him and scored over 30 points in each win. But those wins also came against teams with losing records and the Panthers and Titans were also home games. Against winning records, the Eagles are only 1-3 and the win over the Colts was back in week two. Playing in Green Bay in week 11, the Eagles lost by 33 points. Their fate rests in their own hands but the rest of the schedule is the Cowboys twice, Seahawks and then road games to face the Skins and Giants.

QUARTERBACK : Four games in as a starter and Mark Sanchez scored twice in all but one game and posted over 300 yards in the last three. He has thrown double interceptions in every game besides when the Panthers visited. Sanchez will get the yardage when needed and his best game was the loss to the Packers when he passed for 346 yards.

RUNNING BACK : LeSean McCoy comes off his best game of the year when he gained 130 yards and a score on 21 carries versus the Titans. He’s been a near lock for 80+ yards for the last seven games but only scored twice in that time. He also has almost no role as a receiver. Darren Sproles is too unproductive to merit a fantasy start but he has scored five times this year including last week but only once did he manage to score in a road game. The blocking still isn’t what it was last year but at least McCoy is turning in decent stats again.

WIDE RECEIVER : Jeremy Maclin fell off his hot pace once Sanchez came aboard and he scored just once in the last three weeks when he posted 93 yards and a score in Green Bay. He was held to 38 and 59 yards in the game before and after respectively. Jordan Matthews suddenly came to life with Sanchez on board and posted for touchdowns in his first three games with him. Matthews failed to score last week but still managed 77 yards on six catches. No other wideouts matter here and only Riley Cooper has a score. Matthews and Maclin account for 15 of the 16 touchdowns by a wide receiver.

TIGHT END : Zach Ertz injured his oblique but will still play and he already shares with Brent Celek who remains on the field more than Ertz. Celek is the primary blocker and as such is usually playing while Ertz is more of a passing down tight end. None of them have much fantasy value and last week it was the #3 tight end James Casey catching the touchdown on his only catch in the game.

MATCH TO THE DEFENSE: The Cowboys secondary is about average and has allowed half the opponents to throw for two or three touchdowns. They are the worst against tight ends but good versus wide receivers where the Eagles prefer to throw. They have allowed just three touchdowns to wideouts over the six home games and only one 100 yard game. This has the markings of a shootout. Sanchez, McCoy, Maclin and Matthews should all start this week and a tight end is likely to score but it could be any one of three.

The Cowboys are about to discover if all this new good luck and great playing is going to finally get rid of the December Crash that traditionally happens. The rest of the schedule is not too bad other than facing a visiting Colts in week 16 and a trip to Philly in two weeks could be right when the Cowboys usually fold their tent every year. But injuries are down and mostly healed and the magic year is in reach so long as they win this game.

QUARTERBACK : Tony Romo is back at home after throwing seven touchdowns over two weeks on the road. He’s scored in every game and usually two or three times. His play has been nearly error free with just three interceptions over the last nine games. His stats depress only when DeMarco Murray is too successful running the ball.

RUNNING BACK : DeMarco Murray is still on a ridiculous pace that currently would end with 352 carries for 1808 yards which would break Emmitt Smith’s team record. Murray failed to run for over 100 yards once all year but has not scored since week seven. But he is a lock for his yardage.

WIDE RECEIVER : Terrance Williams broke a finger tip last week and will be wearing a splint but his production has fallen of to where he failed to reach 20 yards in any of the last three games. He had scored six times by week seven but has since disappeared. Dez Bryant has become the touchdown sponge lately and currently totals ten touchdowns including two each for the last two games. He’s on a pace to finish 91-1280-20. Cole Beasley had his first score of the year last week but had been stuck at since catch games almost the entire season. Bryant is all that matters here.

TIGHT END : While Jason Witten has been light on yardage all year, he did score in four of the last six games and ends up with 30+ yards in every game. He tends to show up more in games like this one where more passing is pretty much guaranteed.

MATCH TO THE DEFENSE: Gotta love the #32 ranked against quarterbacks. The Eagles have allowed no fewer than two passing scores in every road game and have given up a total of six games with 300+ passing yards. The rushing defense is also below average and should prove little bother to Murray. Thanksgiving day and you have to be thankful you own Romo, Murray, Bryant or Witten this week.

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