The Dallas Cowboys lost to the Seattle Seahawks early in the 2018 regular season, but this won’t be the same Cowboys offense in the NFL Playoffs.
After winning the NFC East, the Dallas Cowboys enter the 2019 NFL Playoffs as the No. 4 seed in the conference. Subsequently, they’ll host the top NFC Wild Card team, the Seattle Seahawks, in Saturday’s nightcap. As will surely be noted many times leading up to the postseason matchup, though, this is a rematch of a Week 3 contest between these two teams.
Thanks largely to a 17-point second quarter and two critical Earl Thomas interceptions, the Seahawks were victorious in that regular season matchup, winning 24-13. Of course, Thomas suffered a season-ending injury and won’t be a factor in this game. What’s more, the Dallas defense was a bit lackluster in that game, especially with their pass rush, which could also change.
However, the biggest change for the Cowboys coming into the Wild Card Round matchup with Seattle is their offense. Amari Cooper, though he has been a relative non-factor in the final three regular season games, has changed things for this Dallas offense.
More from NFL Spin Zone
- Dallas Cowboys made the trade everyone else should have made
- Pittsburgh Steelers rookie sleeper everyone should be talking about
- Anthony Richardson putting jaw-dropping talent on display immediately
- Denver Broncos’ stud wide receiver might be out for a while
- Washington Commanders: Three takeaways from win over Ravens
It’s worth noting that Ezekiel Elliott was an absolute beast against the Seahawks in the first meeting. The Cowboys star running back carried the ball 16 times for 127 yards on the day. However, with the Cowboys falling in a first-half hole, the run game was forced to take a backseat and, as a whole, Prescott struggled.
Prescott finished that game going just 19-of-34 for 168 yards, one touchdown and the aforementioned two interceptions. Perhaps his biggest shortcomings came when targeting Elliott in the passing game. Zeke had just three receptions for 11 yards while being targeted eight times.
We’ve all seen the kind of impact Cooper can have when he’s heavily involved in the passing attack, making game-changing plays and taking over games. However, his impact is still felt even when he’s not reeling off massive numbers and touchdowns.
In regards to Elliott in the passing game, Cooper’s threat in the middle of the field on slants demands attention from linebackers, which thus opens up space for Zeke on the outside in the passing game. In the first seven games of the season without Cooper, Elliott had just one game with more than 30 yards receiving. Since Cooper’s arrival, though, Elliott had been over 30 yards receiving in six of the eight games he’s been active.
The space opened by the mere threat of Cooper isn’t limited to just Elliott, though. Michael Gallup, Cole Beasley and even the like of Blake Jarwin have seen their effectiveness increase with a viable No. 1 receiver being on the field. As such, Prescott has been far better and more consistently effective.
Put simply, the Cowboys offense is no longer one-dimensional, which drastically changes the dynamic of a rematch with Seattle. With Cooper in the fold, this offense is capable of recovering from a two-score deficit, but also of not even getting into that hole in the first place by being more effective and balanced from the opening kickoff.
The Cowboys are far from being a perfect team. However, they aren’t the same team that lost to the Seahawks in Week 3. And anyone looking to that as a recipe for this game is looking in the wrong place.