Dallas Cowboys vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: Complete Week 10 Preview for Dallas
The Dallas Cowboys (6-3) will face off against the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-8) at 1 p.m. ET in London on Sunday in a game where the Cowboys will look to bounce back from consecutive losses.
Last week, the Cowboys fell 28-17 to the Arizona Cardinals, whose 7-1 record is the best in the NFL. The Cowboys were severely hamstrung by Tony Romo's absence, which allowed the Cardinals to key in on the Cowboys running game.
The Jaguars lost to the Cincinnati Bengals 33-23 in a game that was dominated by Cincinnati's running back, Jeremy Hill.
The Cowboys are looking to recover from their first losing streak of the season. The good news is that it looks like reinforcements are coming in the way of Romo, Ronald Leary and Doug Free, who should be making their return from their respective injuries.
The Cowboys need to limit the Jaguars' downfield passing attack and not allow their underrated defensive front to overwhelm them. The Cowboys have to establish their running game and get in rhythm in the short passing game to limit the Jaguars' attempts to get hits on Romo.
Read on for some news and notes, injury information and players to watch on Sunday.
Cowboys' Week 9 Recap
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Dallas came up short against the Cardinals in a game where the Cowboys were hurt by poor quarterback play. The Dallas offense wasn't very good for the majority of the game, while the defense played extremely well until late.
The Cowboys really missed Romo, as Brandon Weeden was mostly incompetent. He had a great deal of bad passes and didn't give his weapons much of a chance to make plays.
Dallas couldn't get the running game going for the most part as it had in prior games, and that required the team to rely on Weeden to get the offense going, which he couldn't do.
The defense played admirably for most of the game, but it was gashed late because of how the offense kept putting it in rough situations. The defense's lapses were caused by the ineptitude of the offense.
Dallas sorely needs Romo to return so the offense can become productive once again.
The Cowboys now look forward to their game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in London.
News and Notes
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Tony Romo Practices
The Cowboys offense was a mess last week without Romo, so it is an encouraging sign that he is practicing this week in preparation for the game against the Jaguars. His teammates are also relieved that he is back at practice. According to ESPNDallas.com's Todd Archer, Dez Bryant said:
"It’s like he never left. We had a great day of practice. It was real good. And we’re just going to move forward and see what happens Sunday.
It always helps whenever Tony is out there. He’s our guy. He’s our leader. Whenever he’s out there, it makes everybody feel that much more comfortable and he knows how to lead us in the right direction and that’s what he’s going to do Sunday.
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Bryant is coming off his worst game of the season; therefore, it's natural for him to be relieved that his normal quarterback will be back. The Cowboys offense is one of the best in the league with Romo in the lineup and below average when he is not.
If the Cowboys hope to make it to the playoffs, they need Romo under center.
Dez Bryant Joins Roc Nation
At the end of last week, Bryant switched agents from Eugene Parker to Jay Z's Roc Nation sports agency. While Roc Nation will mainly handle him, CAA Sports will head up the continued contract negotiations, per CowboysHQ.com's Mike Fisher.
Bryant is going to be a Cowboy for the foreseeable future no matter who his agent is. All this comes down to is for how long the Cowboys will extend him. Bryant is developing into a real leader for the team, and the Cowboys would be dumb to let him walk.
Cowboys in London
The Cowboys' road game against the Jaguars isn't a normal road game; it takes place across the pond in London. This brings up numerous challenges like getting acclimated to the weather, time difference and dealing with inevitable jet lag.
However, the Cowboys are looking at the positive side of things, per Archer:
"'It just brings the team closer together, knowing that we don’t know anybody else out here,' safety Barry Church said.
Back home, players call it a day late in the afternoon and spend time with their families or by themselves. Church said the defensive backs were scheduled to go to a dinner on Wednesday night. Dez Bryant was getting together with the receivers to celebrate his birthday earlier in the week. Jeremy Mincey said he hung around with 12 teammates on Tuesday night.
'It has been neat, and as the week goes on it will continue to be that way,' tight end Jason Witten said. 'This is our job, and I think a lot of the time, we handle it that way. When you are with each other, it is almost like training camp mode. You’re spending time eating lunch and going to dinner with each other. What an opportunity football has provided us to come to this venue on this stage with the fan base. For all of us, it will be a lot of fun as we look forward to the next two months when what we hope for, it’s a great time to reflect on that and focus, spend time together. A lot of special memories and bonds formed through camp and trips like this.'
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This game in London may have come at a perfect time for the Cowboys. They are on a two-game losing streak and need to regroup as they dive into the second half of the season. If this trip brings the players closer together, then it will bode well for the Cowboys' playoff chances.
Injury Report
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| Anthony Spencer (knee/foot) | DE | Probable |
| Tony Romo (back) | QB | Questionable |
| Bruce Carter (thigh/finger) | LB | Probable |
| Doug Free (foot) | OT | Questionable |
| Jack Crawford (calf) | DE | Questionable |
| Barry Church (shoulder) | FS | Probable |
| Jermey Parnell (chest) | OT | Probable |
| Ronald Leary (groin) | OG | Questionable |
| Rolando McClain (shoulder) | LB | Questionable |
| Tyrone Crawford (knee) | DE | Doubtful |
| James Hanna (hamstring) | TE | Probable |
| Nick Hayden (shoulder) | DT | Questionable |
| Anthony Hitchens (chest) | LB | Probable |
While it appears that Romo will play, it is not that clear if Rolando McClain will suit up against the Jaguars. That means the Cowboys could see a starting linebacker trio of Anthony Hitchens, Kyle Wilber and Bruce Carter, which is really scary. That would turn it from a solid unit to a very troubling one. While there doesn't seem to be many avenues where the Jaguars will have an advantage, anytime they can get matched up with a linebacker may be their opportunity.
Tyrone Crawford has been arguably the best defensive lineman for the Cowboys; therefore, he would be missed if he doesn't play. However, the Cowboys are lucky that they have Henry Melton, who has been awesome in the last few games, ready to step into the starting role.
All injury information comes from the Cowboys' official team website.
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X-Factor and Matchups to Watch
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Austin Pasztor vs. Henry Melton/Anthony Spencer
Normally, Austin Pasztor lines up at right tackle for the Jaguars; however, an injury to their starting right guard, Brandon Linder, may force the Jaguars to move him to guard, per News4Jax.com's Sam Kouvaris. If Pasztor remains at right tackle he will get a great deal of snaps against Anthony Spencer, and if he starts at right guard, he will be lined up against Henry Melton for much of the afternoon.
Either way, this is a matchup that the Cowboys have to take advantage of. Pasztor is the Jaguars' weak link on the offensive line as he has given up four sacks and nine pressures, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
Spencer has had six games to get reacclimated to playing football. While he has been very good against the run, it is time for Spencer to start producing as a pass-rusher, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to do so. If he plays well with his hands and is strong at the point of attack, there is no reason why he shouldn't have a great game.
Melton would be an even worse matchup for Pasztor than Spencer because of his initial quickness and hand usage. In the interior of the line, Melton does an extremely good job of attacking upfield and causing disruption in the backfield.
Whoever ends up playing against Pasztor needs to have a good game, because if he can't, then it doesn't bode well for the rest of the season.
Sen'Derrick Marks vs. Zack Martin/Ronald Leary
Sen'Derrick Marks is a force to be reckoned with at the 3-technique defensive tackle position, and he is the best player on the Jaguars roster. He plays with an inordinate amount of strength at the point of attack along with surprising quickness that he uses to accelerate past opposing blockers.
Since Marks plays on both sides of the line, Ronald Leary and Zack Martin will get a heavy dose of Marks throughout the game.
Martin has been the Cowboys' best offensive lineman this year, and there is no reason to believe that he wouldn't be able to handle Marks. Martin has lined up across players such as J.J. Watt, Aaron Donald, Michael Brockers and Jurrell Casey and has done just fine. He has great feet and power from his set.
While Martin would appear to match up well, the same cannot be said of Leary, who is coming back from a groin injury. If Leary's groin is 100 percent, Marks will do considerable damage throughout the game. The one positive is that Leary is one of the few guards who can match the strength of Marks at the point of attack. If Leary plays disciplined with his footwork, then he might do surprisingly well.
X-Factor of the Week: DeMarcus Lawrence
Anytime you line up against a rookie quarterback, your main priority should be to put as much pressure on that quarterback as possible. Rookie quarterbacks are not as well-equipped to deal with defenders around them as veterans, and it causes them to make a great deal of mistakes.
This is where DeMarcus Lawrence will play a vital role on Sunday. He needs to get a lot of pressure off the edge for the Cowboys. If he does, Blake Bortles will almost certainly make a couple of mistakes.
Lawrence isn't incredibly quick or strong as a rusher, but he wins with his hands. He has a wide variety of pass-rush moves he utilizes to get to the quarterback. If he can beat left tackle Luke Joeckel on a few plays, then it will lead to some great successes from the defense.
Prediction
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If the Cowboys are a team that expects to go to the playoffs and beyond, they should come in and take care of business against the Jags. They have the advantage in nearly every facet of the game; they have the better offense, defense and special teams.
Bortles leads the league in interceptions, and the Cowboys should be able to force him to make a couple more mistakes. Romo should be back, which means the offense should be closer to what it was in the first seven weeks and less as it appeared in the last two.
The Cowboys have to establish the run and get to the second level where the Jaguars are very suspect. The Jaguars linebackers are not that great with their run fits, and the Cowboys offensive line and running backs should be able to take full advantage.
The Cowboys have to stop the Jaguars' downfield passing game, as Allen Hurns and Allen Robinson can really hurt defense if they aren't defended correctly. The Cowboys have to be extremely disciplined in their secondary so that they don't get behind them.
This is a game in which the Cowboys receiving corps should have a bounce-back performance against the average Jacksonville secondary. The Jaguars don't have a player on the roster who should be able to stop Dez Bryant.
Overall, the Cowboys running game should be able to set a good tone for the offense as Romo plays an extremely efficient game. The Cowboys defense should be able to get a couple takeaways and not let the Jaguars' weapons hurt them too much.
Prediction: Cowboys 28, Jaguars 13
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