Diamond in the Rough

Despite what Micah Parsons says on his podcast or in a post-game interview, the Cowboys have kind of already chiseled out their fate in stone. They were able to secure wins over a faltering Washington team, and against an abysmal Giants team on Thanksgiving. Might I add that they won both games by one score. Dak Prescott is out for the remainder of the year with a torn hamstring, Zack Martin’s season may be over due to a bum ankle, and Demarcus Lawrence is still yet to return. While Cooper Rush is not a bad back-up by any stretch of the word, I don’t believe he’s the missing piece needed to take them into a deep playoff run. They are facing a struggling Bengals team however, who are being led by Joe Burrow who’s having an MVP season. I mean, he leads the league in yards (3,337) and TDs (30.) And the Bengals are 4-8. What a shame. I don’t think beating the Giants by one touchdown at home was the giant eraser for the Cowboys either, as outside of that game, they are yet to win at home. Coupled with their poor defense, Joe Burrow is probably looking to take the top off AT&T Stadium, as Tee Higgins was back last week, and you can’t forget about Ja’marr Chase. This game is one of those toss ups, two mediocre teams looking for wins, the outcome is a hard one to nail down. I’m going with Cincinnati, as they’ve had close games recently with the Steelers, Chargers, and Ravens, and are too good offensively for a team that underperforms at home.

POSTGAME:

Joe Burrow. That is all. He should be at the top or near the top of the MVP standings. He was 33/44 with 369 yards and 3 TDs. And they won the game! The Bengals, who are a long way out from playoff contention, finally notched another win after three close losses. The end of their schedule has some very winnable games, so I expect them to keep firing on all cylinders offensively, and hopefully, tighten up on defense. As for the Cowboys, they are not back like Micah Parsons suggested. They still are stuck with Cooper Rush, there are clear on the field and off the field issues between players and the front office, and they just can’t seem to find a stride at home, (outside of the Giants.) How can you block a punt, and not get the ball? I don’t know, but they did. This would then lead to the Bengals going up seven and closing out the game on defense. I’m not sure what the Cowboys are going to do this season, let alone next season. They always have talent; they just can’t put it together. That’s a huge problem.