The Cowboys (-7) are gearing up to welcome their NFC East counterpart Washington Redskins to AT&T Stadium. This Thursday Night Football matchup kicks off at 4:30 p.m. ET and FOX is scheduled to broadcast the action.
Thursday Night FootballBetting Preview: Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Redskins
In this Thursday NFC game, Dallas is getting picked as the favorite and the team’s currently giving up 7 points. The Redskins are also receiving +230 moneyline odds while the Cowboys are -280. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 40.5 points, and if one team can get out in front early, it’ll probably create a worthy in-game betting opportunity.
The early action has shifted to the Redskins. The line initially opened at -9 while the total was originally 41.
Each of these teams has been profitable this season as the Redskins have gained 1.1 units while the Cowboys are ahead 1.3 units.
The Redskins have gone 6-4 straight up (SU), including 2-0 SU against NFC East opponents. The Cowboys are 5-5 SU overall and 2-1 SU against divisional foes.
The Redskins lost to Houston 23-21 in a Week 11 game where their defense allowed the Texans to eat up the clock by running for 139 yards on 31 rush attempts. Lamar Miller had a productive day for the Texans in that one with 86 rushing yards on 20 attempts. On the offensive side, the Redskins completed 18-of-39 passes for 189 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Alex Smith went 12-for-27 for 135 yards and two interceptions while Colt McCoy completed six-of-12 for 54 yards and one touchdown. Adrian Peterson (just 51 rushing yards on 16 attempts, but two TDs) propelled the running attack while Jordan Reed (seven receptions, 71 yards, one TD) and Trey Quinn (four catches, 49 yards) handled the receiving duties in the defeat.
Dallas just earned a 22-19 win over Atlanta in Week 11. The team’s defensive secondary allowed the Falcons to air it out for 291 yards. Julio Jones had a productive showing in the loss for Atlanta, accounting for 118 yards on six catches. For Dallas, Dak Prescott completed 22-of-32 passes for 208 yards. Ezekiel Elliott (122 yards on 23 rush attempts, one TD) mounted the running attack as Elliott (seven receptions, 79 yards) and Cole Beasley (five catches, 51 yards) led the pass-catching corps in the win.
Breaking down the offensive play-calling, each team sports a similar run-pass ratio on the season. Washington’s run the ball on 45.1 percent of its offensive possessions while Dallas has a rush percentage of 46.9. The Redskins have rushed for 121.5 yards per game (including 156.0 per game against East opponents) and have nine touchdowns on the ground this year. The Cowboys are putting up 133.3 rushing yards per game (127.3 in conference) and have nine total rush TDs.
It seems like the Cowboys might own an edge when it comes to efficiency in the ground game. Their running backs has produced 4.9 yards per carry while the defense has allowed 3.7 YPC to opponents. The Redskins have tallied 4.4 yards per carry while allowing 4.3 YPC to opponents.
The Redskins offensive scheme has averaged 223.4 yards through the air overall (178.0 per game against conference opposition) and has 11 passing TDs so far. The Cowboys have recorded 213.8 pass yards per outing (234 in the NFC) and also have 11 total pass scores.
Defensively, Washington has allowed opponents to run for an average of 95.7 yards and pass for 278.8 yards per game. The Dallas defense has allowed 253.2 yards per game to opposing passers and 95.0 yards per game on the ground. The Redskins are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of just 6.22 to opposing QBs, while the Cowboys have allowed a 6.86 ANY/A.
Prescott has managed to complete 171-of-269 passes for 1,868 yards, 10 TDs and five INTs for Dallas. His adjusted net yards per pass attempt stands at 5.60 for the season and 6.08 across his past two outings. In the other huddle, Smith has amassed 2,002 passing yards on the year, and has completed 186-of-301 attempts with nine passing touchdowns and five interceptions. Smith has a 5.76 ANY/A for the year, although that number is 3.55 over the last two outings.
Washington Redskins vs. Dallas Cowboys Free Prediction
SU Winner: Cowboys, ATS Winner: Redskins, O/U: Over