Cowboys hoping to slow down Tagovailoa, high-flying Miami offense when they visit Dolphins

Cowboys hoping to slow down Tagovailoa, high-flying Miami offense when they visit Dolphins

DALLAS (10-4) AT MIAMI (10-4)

Sunday, 4:25 p.m. EST, Fox

OPENING LINE: Dolphins by 1 1/2, according to FanDuel SportsBook.

AGAINST THE SPREAD: Cowboys 9-5; Dolphins 9-5.

SERIES RECORD: Series tied 7-7.

LAST MEETING: Dallas beat Miami 31-6 at Dallas on Nov. 22, 2019.

LAST WEEK: Dallas lost to Buffalo 31-10; Dolphins beat Jets 30-0.

COWBOYS OFFENSE: OVERALL (6), RUSH (12), PASS (6), SCORING (2).

COWBOYS DEFENSE: OVERALL (6), RUSH (19), PASS (4), SCORING (5).

DOLPHINS OFFENSE: OVERALL (1), RUSH (4), PASS (1), SCORING (1).

DOLPHINS DEFENSE: OVERALL (5), RUSH (4), PASS (10), SCORING (14).

TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Cowboys plus-9; Dolphins plus-2.

COWBOYS ATHLETE TO MONITOR: Dak Prescott is coming off a season-low 134 yards passing in

the Bills defeat as he goes into his third straight high-profile quarterback contest.

His seven-game streak of at least two touchdown passes, which was a career high,

came to an end without one.

The Cowboys’ ugly home/road divides also affect their quarterback. At AT&T Stadium,

he is passing for 304 yards a game on average, with 20 touchdowns, two interceptions,

a 74% completion percentage, and a 122.5 passer rating. 216 yards per game, eight touchdowns,

five interceptions, 63% of completions,

and an 84.2 passer rating are the stats when playing on the road.

DOLPHINS PLAYER TO WATCH: Without Tyreek Hill, wide receiver Jaylen Waddle played

one of his best games of the year against the Jets.

He had a season-high 142 yards on eight receptions, including a 60-yard touchdown catch.

The third-year receiver for the Dolphins has at least 50 yards in each of the

last five games and is averaging 13.6 yards per reception.

With 964 receiving yards under his belt,

he’s on track to become the first player in Dolphins history to record three seasons of 1,000 yards or more.

Dolphins passing offence vs. Cowboys secondary is a key matchup.

After completing 87.5% of his throws against the Jets,

who have one of the weakest secondary defences in the NFL,

Tua Tagovailoa is coming off of his most productive game of the year.

He will now face the Cowboys pass defence and DaRon Bland,

who leads the NFL in interceptions (8). In 2023,

the Dallas secondary is ranking second in the league with 150.9 net passing yards allowed per game when

playing on the road.

The Dolphins offence is the third-highest passing offence at home this season,

averaging 285.1 passing yards per game at Hard Rock Stadium.

PRIMARY INJURIES: All-Pro RG six times The Cowboys’ Zack Martin suffered a left quadriceps bruise early in

the game versus Buffalo and did not play again.

He gave off the impression that he might be accessible this week.

Due to a sprained ankle, DT Jonathan Hankins was unable to play against the Bills;

his availability will be uncertain throughout the week. The same is true for S. Malik Hooker,

who sustained an ankle injury that kept him out of the Buffalo game. For the second straight week,

Tyreek Hill’s (ankle) health will be in doubt. On Wednesday, the All-Pro receiver didn’t work out.

S After hurting both of his knees against the Jets in Week 12,

Jevon Holland stated last week that he was almost ready to play again.

After missing his third game in a row last week,

he’ll probably be dubious come Sunday.

RT Austin Jackson is recovering from an indirect injury sustained in the game last week.

CB After missing the game the previous week, Xavien Howard (hip) did not practise on Wednesday.

OL Liam Eichenberg was hampered in practice due to a calf issue, but he managed to participate.

NOTES ON THE SERIES: Miami won six of the first seven regular-season games.

Dallas has won four straight games and is at 6-1. When the teams met for the first time in Super Bowl 6,

the Cowboys prevailed 24-3 to win their first championship.

DATA AND STUFF: In what will be Mike McCarthy’s third consecutive postseason as coach,

the Cowboys have only once experienced back-to-back losses. Dallas is 7-0 at home and has a 3-4 road record;

however, one of the wins away from AT&T Stadium occurred against the Los Angeles Chargers (20-17),

one week after the Cowboys were humiliated 42-10 in San Francisco. ..

Dallas’s home/road splits are pronounced. When playing at home,

the Cowboys boast nearly the greatest offence in the NFL.

It’s middle of the pack or worse out on the road.

For Prescott to have at least 30 touchdown passes in his third season, he needs two more.

The only other Dallas quarterback to do so, Tony Romo, finished with four.

Cowboys RB In the third game of his rookie season in 2019,

Tony Pollard scored a touchdown and ran 103 yards for his first-ever 100-yard game versus Miami. ..

The first player in team history to have multiple seasons with 100 catches is wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.

After receiving 107 last season, he now has 103.

Lamb needs eight more catches to tie Michael Irvin’s franchise record from 1995,

the team’s most recent of five Super Bowl championships. With 1,306 yards received,

Lamb is third in the NFL and needs 54 more to reach a career high.

After scoring a touchdown on a carry against the Bills,

he now has an NFL-best six-game streak with at least one score.

This season, pass-rushing sensation Micah Parsons has racked up seven sacks in seven away games.

When the Dolphins play the Cowboys,

they will have another opportunity to demonstrate their mettle against a formidable opponent.

A club that had a winning record coming into the game has never been defeated by Miami.

It has lost to opponents that are better than.500 in all but one of its games.

With a victory, Miami can secure its second consecutive postseason berth.

On Sunday. Currently, the Dolphins and Kansas City are the only two NFL clubs with

winning records over the last four seasons.

Pittsburgh and Buffalo can join them if they secure a winning record.

After Ryan Tannehill and Dan Marino,

Tua Tagovailoa needs just 79 passing yards to become the third quarterback

in Dolphins history to pass for 4,000 yards in a season. …

RB Raheem Mostert needs 34 more yards of rushes to tie Jay Ajayi’s 2016 record as Miami’s 1,000-yard rusher.

With 1,000 yards in a season, Mostert would become the second-oldest player in NFL history. …

LB Bradley Chubb’s three sacks, two forced fumbles,

and fumble recovery earned him the title of AFC defensive player of the week.

In addition to leading the Dolphins in sacks (9 1/2), Chubb also leads the NFL in forced fumbles (6).

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