7 Keys to Victory in Dallas Cowboys' Week 2 Matchup

As of 2016, nearly 59 percent of teams that start the season 2-0 will reach the playoffs, according to Joe Osborne of OddsShark. On Sunday, the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos will face off to try to grab early leads in their respective divisions.

The Broncos will be a tough opponent for the Cowboys for a variety of reasons. The biggest might be their home-field (and altitude) advantage. According to Warren Sharp of Sharp Football Analysis, the Broncos were 18-1 at home in the first two weeks of the season since 2000. After their win over the Los Angeles Chargers Monday, that record has moved to 19-1. A big reason why is that teams just aren't in good enough condition to play in Denver early in the season.

Aside from the altitude, Denver also has one of the best defenses in the NFL. The Broncos finished in the top five in both points and yards allowed in 2016. If the Cowboys want to beat Sunday's opponents for the first time in 22 years, they will need to find a way to score on this elite defense.

Read on for a list of the seven biggest keys to a Dallas victory on Sunday in Denver.

Block Von Miller

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The first key to victory for the Cowboys is simple: block Von Miller. However, that's much easier said than done. Miller was dominant in 2016, racking up 13.5 sacks and forcing three fumbles. He finished as the second-highest-rated 3-4 outside linebacker in the NFL1000 in 2016, as well as being the 14th-highest-rated overall player with Pro Football Focus.  

Luckily for Dallas, they might be the best-equipped team in the league in handling a ferocious rusher like Miller. The Cowboys' tackle combination of Tyron Smith and La'el Collins is one of the best in the NFL, and they have a mobile quarterback who can move around in the pocket if one of the two studs gets beat.

Miller is also much better at home than on the road (nine of his 13.5 sacks came at Sports Authority Field last season), so expect him to make his presence known at some point. While Miller gets all the attention, his teammate Shaquil Barrett is also a productive pass-rusher.

How the Cowboys handle these two talented rushers will likely determine who wins this Week 2 contest.

Feed Ezekiel Elliott

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If there is one weakness in the Broncos' elite defense, it's their run defense. In 2016, they allowed the fifth-most rushing yards in the league (2,085). Unfortunately for Denver, that just so happens to be the Cowboys' biggest strength. 

According to Pro Football Reference, the Cowboys are 6-0 when Ezekiel Elliott touches the ball 25 or more times. Dallas is also 11-1 when Elliott has 100 or more total yards from scrimmage. Neither of those stats should surprise you because anytime Dallas can feed Elliott in the second half, the team has a great chance to win the game.  

The Cowboys will likely run Elliott early and often against the Broncos, but they will need to convert on third downs in order to do so. Denver allowed a passer rating of just 58.7 on third down last year, according to Inside Edge. Dallas would like to get into 3rd-and-short situations as often as possible in order to avoid allowing Broncos edge-rushers to tee off against quarterback Dak Prescott.

If Dallas can run the ball as well as it did against the New York Giants on Sunday (129 yards on 31 carries), the team should have no problem winning this game. But if the Broncos can contain the Cowboys' rushing attack, they could be in for a battle.

Limit the Broncos' Rushing Attack

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While the Broncos will be doing everything in their power to stop Elliott, the Cowboys will be trying to do the same on the opposite side of the ball. 

In 2016, Dallas allowed the fewest rushing yards in the NFL. However, that doesn't necessarily mean the team can't be run on. According to Pro Football Reference, the Cowboys allowed 3.9 yards per carry, and that was good enough to finish 11th in the NFL. 

While the Dallas run defense is solid, its No.1 rushing defense was the result of leading in most of the games they played. According to Bob Sturm of the Dallas Morning News, the Cowboys trailed by seven or more points in the second half on just 42 total snaps. Translation: Teams were in catch-up mode against Dallas so often they didn't have time to run the ball. 

The Broncos don't have a great rushing attack, but it can be useful when C.J. Anderson is healthy. On Monday night, Denver rushed for 140 yards on 36 carries against the Los Angeles Chargers. If they are able to replicate that success in Week 2, Dallas could be in trouble, as that would keep their depleted defense on the field.

Look for the Broncos to use Anderson a ton early in the game, with Jamaal Charles sprinkled in on third downs. Dallas will need to control Denver's running game to force quarterback Trevor Siemian into long third-down situations. If they can manage to do that, the Broncos offense should be fairly easy to contain. 

Win the Turnover Battle

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In 2016, the team that won the turnover battle in any given game won 78 percent of the time, according to Chase Stuart of Football Perspective. So it's not hard to say, especially between these two teams, that whoever wins the turnover battle Sunday will likely start their season off with a 2-0 record. 

The Cowboys pride themselves in having an efficient offense that doesn't turn the football over. In 2016, Dallas had just 15 turnovers on offense (two of which came from Mark Sanchez in a meaningless Week 17 contest against the Philadelphia Eagles). The Broncos, on the other hand, gave away the ball 10 more times than Dallas last season.

On the road, the Cowboys can't afford to step on their own feet against one of the better teams in the AFC. The Broncos don't have an elite offense, finishing in the bottom half of the league in points and yards in 2016, so they are forced to rely on takeaways on defense. In 2016, they had the joint-seventh-most takeaways in the NFL, with 27. Dallas finished tied for 19th, with just 20. 

If the Cowboys can continue to protect the ball as they have done under Prescott throughout his career, they should have no problem coming out of Denver 2-0. However, you can expect the Broncos to play aggressive defense as they try to flip the field position for their offense.

Force Quarterback Trevor Siemian to Throw the Ball Down the Field

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Siemian is not a special quarterback, but he is competent. He's not going to make a ton of impressive throws throughout a game, but he is accurate enough on the short to intermediate throws to put pressure on the Dallas defense. If the Cowboys want to corral the Broncos offense, they need to force Siemian off of the short throws and make him look elsewhere.

Last season, Siemian struggled to throw the ball down the field. In 2016, he completed just 14 of 48 passes when targeting a receiver who was 20 yards or more down the field, according to Pro Football Focus. The 25-year-old is at his best when throwing the ball within 15 yards of the line of scrimmage. His passer rating was significantly worse when throwing down the middle and right side of the field, according to Sharp Football Stats.

If the Cowboys can jam up the short to intermediate parts of the field and force Siemian to take shots down the field, the Broncos could be in for a rough outing on offense. Unfortunately for Dallas, that's typically different than how the team plays defense, as they employ a "bend but don't break" philosophy. If Dallas allows Siemian to dink and dunk his way down the field, he could be in for a nice day.

Dominate the Broncos' Offensive Line

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For the past few seasons, the Broncos have struggled to find five quality starters on their offensive line. On Monday night, their line finally looked like it was progressing, but then starter Ronald Leary left the game with a concussion and didn't return. Leary did not practice on Wednesday, according to the league's official practice report (h/t the Cowboys' Twitter account), which means his availability for Sunday's game is in doubt.

If Leary can't play against his former team, the Denver offense could struggle against a Dallas defensive line that accumulated three sacks on Sunday night. Possible replacements for Leary would include Allen Barbre and Billy Turner, both whom are NFL journeymen.

Tackles Garett Bolles and Menelik Watson are both inexperienced players who struggled against the Chargers (grades of 62.4 and 31.8, respectively, according to Pro Football Focus). Leary was by far their best offensive linemen, as he finished the game with a score of 80.5.

The Cowboys won't be able to supply the same type of pressure on the edges that the Chargers did, but defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli will find a way to get the quarterback some how. If the Broncos can protect Siemian long enough that he can get the ball to his talented receivers Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders, the Cowboys could be in trouble with their young secondary.

Win the Special Teams Battle

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In almost any game, the team that wins the special teams battle will be victorious. That was true on Monday night, when the Broncos blocked the Chargers' potential game-tying field goal from 44 yards out. Plays like that don't happen every week, but it is a reminder of the role special teams can play in close contests.

A big reason as to why the Cowboys were able to defeat the Giants on Sunday night was their incredible punt unit. Dallas punted four times in that game, and all four punts were downed on or inside the New York 10-yard line. With the Giants struggling to move the ball, pinning them that deep resulted in short drives that allowed Dallas to regain field position.

With the Cowboys having one of the best kicker-punter combinations in the league in Dan Bailey and Chris Jones, they should win this matchup more often than not. But Dallas will need to contain explosive return man Isaiah McKenzie in the punt game if it wants to win this phase of the game Sunday. Expect the Cowboys to kick away from McKenzie if possible.