Remember when the Dallas Cowboys were 2-0 and were supposed to run away and hide from the rest of the NFC East as long as Brandon Weeden could keep the ship moving in the right direction? The ship has officially starting running off course. Dallas is now 2-2 after two tough losses in a row, and now, it has to take on perhaps the best team in the NFL off of its bye week, the New England Patriots.
WHEN THE NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS HAVE THE BALL
Tom Brady has basically done whatever he has wanted over the course of these first couple games. When New England gets in the red zone, it's all over. Rob Gronkowski is going to be in the end zone if that's what the Pats elect to try, and there's nothing that the undersized Dallas linebackers are going to be able to do to defend such plays.
Goal to go situations for the Patriots aren't about putting points on the board. It's all about who is going to be scoring for fantasy football purposes. The six points are seemingly a given.
Theoretically, the Dallas defense should be getting helped by its offense, one which is slowing games down and limiting possessions. Instead, the Cowboys have allowed 26 and 39 points in their last two games since Weeden has been forced into action, and huge plays to running backs have been the difference.
C.J. Spiller's 80-yard touchdown to end overtime against the Saints was the icing on the cake, but tailbacks have totaled 244 yards and four touchdowns on the ground and 207 yards and a touchdown as receivers these last two weeks combined. Dion Lewis could be in for a field day.
WHEN THE DALLAS COWBOYS HAVE THE BALL
Lance Dunbar is the newest Cowboy on the mend, as he has a knee injury which is very likely a torn ACL which will end his season. With Dez Bryant and Tony Romo still out, this offense really has some problems. There's just no stretching out the field, and that should have the Patriots chomping at the bit to get after Weeden.
Cole Beasley and Jason Witten just don't cut it as primary receivers for an offense which badly needs to get at least a little bit vertical to give Darren McFadden and Joseph Randle a fighting chance to succeed on the ground.
The Pats are going to do what the Saints did all game against Dallas, except they'll do it better. Expect to see at least eight men in the box at all times, daring Weeden to throw the ball to subpar receivers. The end result probably won't be so pretty. At the first sign of trouble for the Dallas offense, fade away for sure. That could be the sign of another runaway for New England.
TREND TO TRACK
Few coaches are as good off of a bye week as Bill Belichick, and he has the records to prove it. Since 2003, Belichick has had 20 examples of games off of a bye week (remember, there are byes available before the Super Bowl and after Week 17 for No. 1 and No. 2 seeds). He is 10-9-1 ATS to show for his work in those games.
That might not be all that impressive of a mark, but live bettors should be aware of the fact that when New England covers these games, it tends to cover by huge margins. The Pats have an average margin of victory of 11.7 points per game, greater by almost a touchdown than any other team in the NFL off of their bye week since 2003, and they are beating the spread by an average of 5.0 points per game, second best to just Green Bay.
The NFL odds for this Sunday contest were first released by BookMaker, and the New England Patriots were positioned as -8 point favorites with a total of 50. Now you can wager in-game while the action unfolds with BookMaker's live betting option.
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The game between the New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys is set for Sunday, October 11, 2015, at 4:25 p.m. ET at AT&T Stadium. The matchup will be televised live on CBS.
