Carolina Panthers vs. Dallas Cowboys: Full Dallas Game Preview

The Cowboys face a massive challenge as they attempt to become the first team to climb out of a 2-7 hole and make the playoffs. Seven losses in a row dug the hole, and the first rung on the ladder out was a 24-14 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week 11.

The next and possibly most challenging rung on that ladder comes quickly, as the team’s annual short preparation week and nationally televised Thanksgiving contest with the undefeated Carolina Panthers has arrived.

Here’s what to watch for between helpings of turkey.

Location: AT&T Stadium

Time: 4:30 EST

TV: CBS

Week 11 Results and Recap

Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press

Another stellar effort from the Dallas defense, combined with an offense that was invigorated with the return of the franchise quarterback, led to a Week 11 victory for the Cowboys as they overtook the Miami Dolphins at Sun Life Stadium last Sunday.

The Cowboys defense did something they had failed to do over the first nine games of the season, when Rolando McClain intercepted a Ryan Tannehill pass and returned it 12 yards for a touchdown to make the score 7-0.

Tony Romo added a 31 yard touchdown toss to Terrance Williams with just over a minute left in the first half, and the Cowboys took a 14-7 lead into halftime.

The Dolphins were able to tie the game up in the third quarter, but the offense was able to outscore the Dolphins 10-0 in the fourth quarter to come away with a much-needed 24-14 win.

NFC East Standings

New York Giants (5-5)

Philadelphia Eagles (4-6)

Washington Redskins (4-6)

Dallas Cowboys (3-7)

News and Notes

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Altering Romo’s Routine

In 2014, the Cowboys’ worst showing as a team came on Thanksgiving as the Philadelphia Eagles came to town and gave them a 33-10 whooping.

Due to the short week, Tony Romo had to alter the way he prepared for that game. Most notably, he didn’t take the pain-killing shot he had taken leading up to every game throughout the season.

According to DallasCowboys.com, Romo seems to have learned from the experience of that loss and has made some more changes to his preparation in the short week to put himself in a better position to win on Sunday.

Latest Injury News

Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press

Darren McFadden

Darren McFadden appeared on the Cowboys injury report during midweek, and according to DallasCowboys.com, his groin injury means he'll be limited in practice on Monday and Tuesday.

Limiting him could very well be precautionary—or a matter of helping his body recover more quickly on the short week after a heavy workload against Miami.

McFadden played in Miami despite his appearance on the injury list, and it is probably safe to assume he will play again on Thursday, but it seemed evident on a couple of his runs that he didn’t have the extra gear to accelerate past defenders in space.

Considering McFadden’s injury history, this is definitely something to watch going forward. 

Dez Bryant

It has become something of a routine for Dez Bryant to miss practice on Wednesday, and with the shortened week of practice, that day would be Monday.

According to DallasCowboys.com, Bryant did sit out on Monday before returning to practice on Tuesday.

Dez has shown signs of his typical explosiveness the last few weeks despite the foot fracture that caused him to miss five games and the knee injury suffered against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 8.

The routine of missing the week's first practice and ramping up his preparations as the week goes on has put him in position to succeed, giving the team little reason to seek change.

Dez is likely to draw coverage from Carolina’s best cornerback Josh Norman this week. He will need to be as close to full strength as possible to win that matchup on enough occasions to help Dallas move the ball against a stout Carolina defense.       

Defensive Backs

Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne, both starting cornerbacks, appeared on the injury report for the second week in a row, as did starting safety Barry Church and rotational safety Jeff Heath. Rookie Byron Jones was also named on the report after suffering an ankle injury on the second-to-last play of the Miami game.

These injuries mean one thing: The Cowboys are short on healthy bodies in the secondary on defense. After missing the game against Miami in Week 11, it seems unlikely that Morris Claiborne would be able to play only a few days later, but the other four were able to play in Miami and participated in either Monday or Tuesday’s practice—even if on a limited basis.

The biggest impact of the injury situation in the secondary is that with Claiborne likely out for the second week in a row, Byron Jones will once again be forced to play cornerback rather than safety.

X-Factors and Matchups to Watch

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Matchup To Watch: Panthers’ Defensive Line vs Cowboys’ Offensive Line

Each defensive line is used to dominating the line of scrimmage for their teams. This matchup will be a battle all day long and will have a great deal to do with determining the winner of the game.

Dallas’ interior trio of Zack Martin, Travis Frederick and La’el Collins will have their hands full dealing with players like Kawann Short and Star Lotulelei in the run and pass games, and Tyron Smith and Doug Free will have to deal with guys like Kony Ealy and Charles Johnson on the edges.  

X-Factor of the Week: Tony Romo

There really can’t be another answer for this spot. Tony Romo impacts a game in so many ways outside of throwing passes.

Whether it’s changing to the perfect play at the line of scrimmage, giving the coaching staff confidence to take an extra risk on special teams or defense, or forcing the opponent to play more aggressively to keep up with the production they know will come from the quarterback position for Dallas, having Romo in the game makes the Cowboys a much more dangerous team.

If Romo comes out dialed in and gets in a rhythm early in the game, he could be very difficult to stop this week or any week in the future. 

Prediction

Lynne Sladky/Associated Press

This is probably one of those games that has a score of something like 7-6 after three quarters, as the two defenses battle it out.

Because of that, I’m placing faith in Tony Romo, who is arguably the best fourth-quarter quarterback in the history of the NFL to pull out the win for the Cowboys as they take the next step on what could be the most improbable of playoff runs.

Prediction: Cowboys 17, Panthers 13