Week one is in the books and your Dallas Cowboys secured a nice inner-division victory in the process, beating the New York Giants 19-3 Sunday Night in Dallas. Everyone likes to call this “overreaction week” in the NFL, and from these rankings, it sure seems more like an “undervalue week” when it comes to the Cowboys positioning. Due to Odell Beckham Jr being inactive, it seems that the media wasn’t falling in love with the defensive performance of the Cowboys, ultimately leaving them around where they began to star the season.
Dallas Sports Fanatic
4. Despite the “injured Beckham Jr.”, the Cowboys thoroughly dominated the G-men in all facets of the game. While Dak Prescott missed on some pretty easy throws that could have lead to more touchdowns than field goals, the Cowboys defense showed a pass rush, even with just a standard four man rush. Eli was forced to check down time and time again, and the Cowboys were able to control the clock throughout. Ezekiel Elliott began right where he left off last season, going over 100-yards and produced some key runs later in the game.
NFL.Com
Elliot Harrison
6. The Cowboys couldn’t have asked for a better outcome Sunday night, even moving past Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr. being a late scratch or Ezekiel Elliott’s availability. Dallas went one up on its stiffest rival, dominating most of the night. The much-maligned defense — particularly the pass rush — looked active all evening. Everyone came out of the game healthy. That includes linebacker Jaylon Smith, who started his first meaningful game in nearly two years — and made a few plays, to boot.
CBS Sports
Pete Prisco
6. Their defense looked better than expected against the Giants, but that could also be because the Giants’ offense isn’t very good. Having Ezekiel Elliott available is huge for this team.
ESPN
5. According to Elias Sports Bureau research, Dak Prescott‘s four interceptions are fewest in a quarterback’s first 17 starts since the AFL-NFL merger. Possible overreaction: Prescott’s ball control is crucial to the Cowboys’ success, and unless he starts throwing picks, they could be destined for a deep postseason run in 2017.
USA Today
6. Dallas caught the Giants without OBJ and exploited New York’s shaky O-line. But give young, beleaguered Cowboys D credit for starting strong.
Sporting News
Vinnie Iyer
4. Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott put sophomore slumps out of everyone’s mind with their best game to date against the Giants’ defense. But how ’bout that much-maligned Cowboys’ defense?
Yahoo Sports
Frank Schwab
6. The Ezekiel Elliott court decision, assuming it holds all season and allows Elliott to put off his six-game suspension, is obviously huge for the Cowboys. Dak Prescott got all the attention this off-season, but Elliott was the Cowboys’ MVP last season. It’s hard to not place them as NFC East favorites with what we know about Elliott’s situation and how they dominated the Giants on Sunday night.
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