A Look at the Dallas Cowboys' Remaining Schedule

It is tough at this point in the season, after only four weeks, to tell how good the Dallas Cowboys are, despite the fact that they have blown out all of their opponents. The teams they have beaten, the Giants, Dolphins, Bears, and Rams, that were supposed to be contenders suddenly appear to be also-rans, as Chicago and St. Louis especially have looked vastly over-rated. The Giants have rebounded from the shellacking that Dallas gave them in the opener to win two in a row, but Miami may be the worst club in the NFL this year, in danger of winning maybe just a couple of games. Here is a look at the remainder of the Dallas Cowboys schedule for 2007 and a prognosis of their chances.

The Cowboys play at Buffalo on Monday Night Football on October 8th, a trap game if there ever was one. Buffalo desperately needs another victory to keep any playoff hopes alive and Dallas has been so dominant thus far that head coach Wade Phillips needs to keep the squad from looking past this contest. Buffalo played reasonably well against the Jets last week, but the difference between the Jets' firepower and that of Dallas is like night and day. Dallas should overcome some early emotion by the Bills and get another win here.

A huge test for Dallas, an obvious barometer of where they are, will come the following week at home against the Patriots. If both are undefeated, it will be as highly anticipated a regular season match-up as there has been in some time, perhaps on the level of Patriots-Colts. Tony Romo against Tom Brady, Terrell Owens versus Randy Moss, and the two defenses vying for the spotlight will be the easy storylines for the media to hype. Things could get interesting if Dallas wins this contest, as the rest of the Cowboys' schedule from there is not too imposing. Dallas is one of the few NFL teams with the offense to match New England's, and this will be a high-scoring affair that the home team takes late.

Week Seven sees the run-oriented Vikings come to Dallas, with no end in sight to their quarterback woes. The Vikes will be easy pickings for the Cowboys, who have their bye week in Week Eight. The Cowboys then visit the up and down Eagles in Week Nine for a Sunday night tilt on NBC, with more than likely the Eagles playoff future on the line by that time, if they even have one. Then Dallas heads to the Meadowlands for a Week Ten affair with the Giants, a Sunday afternoon game that should be interesting. These division games can always go either way, but by that point I expect Dallas to be on a roll. I think they will handle the Eagles, and then pull a close one out against the Giants.

Three home games in a row then loom, with the Redskins on November 18th, followed by their annual Thanksgiving Day game, this one with the Jets on the 22nd. The Cowboys won't get the usual long break between the Turkey Day game and their next one, as they play at home versus the Packers the subsequent Thursday in a game televised on the NFL Network. The Redskins and Cowboys are usually close no matter what the records, but this one won't be, while the Jets pedestrian offense will prove no match for the Cowboys, unless the four day gap between games has an effect on their performance. The Packers, who are off to a 4-0 start, may or may not be the real deal, but their defense is very good early on and when you throw Brett Favre in the mix, the results will be in doubt. I look for an upset by the Packers here to burst the undefeated bubble.

The home stretch includes three road games, the first at the Lions on Sunday, December 9th. Detroit has no answers defensively if Dallas has been able to stay healthy, but their offense will pose many problems and another loss will be the outcome. Then the Cowboys will return to Dallas to battle the Eagles once more, and after dispatching Philly they go to Carolina for a Saturday game three days before Christmas. Carolina is in a flux right now, but this game could be much more important to them than the Cowboys, making an upset very possible. The final game of the regular seasons sees Dallas at Washington in a game that more than likely will not have playoff implications, meaning many regulars will sit, unless somehow an undefeated season is still on the line.