2010 NFL Preseason: Cowboys at Chargers Preview and Pick

The San Diego Chargers will play host to the Dallas Cowboys at Qualcomm Stadium on Saturday night. It is still early in the preseason, but this very well could be a preview of Super Bowl XLV.

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The Chargers looked great in the preseason opener against the Bears with a solid performance on both sides of the ball.

On offense, quarterback Phillip Rivers looked great in his limited playing time, and rookie running back Ryan Matthews lived up to the hype, gaining 50 yards on nine carries. On defense, the Bolts stymied the new Mike Martz Bears offensive attack holding them to just 10 points. This does not mean that all is well in Chargers camp.

Wide receiver Vincent Jackson and tackle Marcus McNeill are still entangled in contract disputes and have not attended camp. Shawne Merriman, who recently ended a holdout and reported to camp, promptly injured his Achilles and will not see playing time against the Cowboys. The Chargers are not the only one with problems. The Cowboys have a few issues as well.

The Cowboys' offense has been anemic. The vaunted and much heralded attack has been lackluster in the preseason games leading up to this one. They have managed to score just one touchdown in two games and the offense has yet to get into the end zone. That is just the start of the problems for the Cowboys.

Dallas will be without two of its starting offensive linemen on Saturday. Guard Kyle Kosier and tackle Marc Colombo are recovering from knee injuries. Second-year tackle Robert Brewster will play for Colombo and back-up guard Montrae Holland will get the call for Kosier. The Cowboys will attempt to get the offense in gear.

Prediction and Pick:

The Cowboys are not panicking about the offensive situation yet, but like everything in Big D it gets serious media scrutiny. To counter that scrutiny, look for the offense to focus on putting up plenty of points early and often.

The Cowboys defense has been outstanding in the preseason and should contain the Chargers. The Cowboys are proud to see the debut of rookie linebacker Sean Lee, as he makes his first start in a Cowboy uniform.

The Chargers should focus on getting Matthews plenty of work and that will lead to more field goal chances than normal. They have had field goal kicking issues of late. David Buehler struggled the other day in practice and they had to realign his form. This could cause some missed scoring chances for the Chargers.

Play on the Dallas Cowboys +2

Final: Cowboys 24 Chargers 13