Team Giants

Giants - Dallas Game 14 preview

Giants (11-2) vs Dallas (8-5).
The Cowboys had everything going their way last Sunday in chilly Pittsburgh. They knew the Giants had already lost their game and they were on their way to closing the win-loss gap that stood between them and the division leader. The Cowboys took their 13-3 lead halfway into the fourth quarter where it quickly evaporated, and they went on to lose 20-13 when Tony Romo's third interception of the game was returned for a touchdown with 1:40 left to play.
As we said, earlier on the Giants had lost only their second game of the season to the Eagles 20-14. Donovan McNabb was just too elusive for the Giants defense and he kept the chains moving (12 of 18 on 3rd down plays). Meanwhile the Giants offense had nothing going for them. It was Justin Tuck blocking a fieldgoal attempt and Kevin Dockery returning it 71 yards for a touchdown that gave the Giants their first score and cut the Eagles lead to 10-7 at the end of the first half. Later with the game well in hand, the Eagles basically awarded the Giants a so-what touchdown to run out the clock and win 20-14. A few hours later the Cowboys awarded the division title to the Giants when they lost their game to Pittsburgh.

The state of the Cowboys.
In the fourth quarter last weekend they were thinking they would be the come from behind team of destiny this year, but they blew a ten point lead and instead of Tony Romo leading his team to a victory after Pittsburgh tied things up 13-13 with 2 minutes left, he tossed the ball toward Jason Witten and it was intercepted and run back for a go ahead touchdown. That meant one more shot, now just to tie things up, but Romo had to go 82 yards and he didn't get past their 28 when his fourth-down throw to Witten fell to the ground. Both Romo and Witten took the blame for either the receiver slipping or for a miscommunication Terrell Owens was blaming whoever he has to that throws aren't going his way and that there's some kind of conspiracy between the quarterback and tight end to close him and a few others out.

Dallas Offense.
That loss to Pittsburgh really hurt and things are heating up between the offensive playmakers. Receivers Roy Williams, Patrick Crayton and Terrell Owens are on Jason Garrett about the way balls are being aired out by Tony Romo. It's true that over the last two games they've shared just 14 catches while tight end Jason Witten has pulled in 15 on his own, but maybe a close-by tight end looks like a whole lot better target when you have the Pittsburgh defense breathing down your neck. People were happy with Romo winning three straight since his return from a fractured pinkie finger, but this latest loss comes in December. Romo is 4-8 as a starter with 12 touchdowns and 17 interceptions in December and January. Running back Marion Barber didn't play last week because of a dislocated right pinkie toe and his toughness was questioned by owner Jerry Jones, who later said he didn't mean his comments to be taken that way. Barber might still be out. His backup, rookie Tashard Choice, had a great game in Pittsburgh with 88 rushing yards and five catches for 78 yards.

Dallas Defense.
Ranked eighth in the NFL, they were playing a good game last week against a really good team. Even Terrell Owens said the defense played well enough to win, but the offense collectively lost it (while mentioning that he was probably open on the game-turning interception). The Giants did well against the Cowboys last time on the ground, gaining 200 yards on 34 carries, but Dallas has given less than 100 yards rushing in each of the past four games, and Brandon Jacobs won't be playing in this one. In the last three games the Giants rushed for 87 yards against Arizona, 108 yards against Washington and 88 yards against Philadelphia as opposing teams try to stop the run and dare Eli Manning to beat them without someone like Plaxico Burress on the field. The receivers let Eli Manning down last week for sure and he'll have to watch out this game for Cowboys DeMarcus Ware who has 16 sacks this season, which is the second most in the league.

The state of the Giants.
The Giants didn't have much to be thankful for last Sunday up until about the time that Tony Romo threw a go-ahead interception to Pittsburgh cornerback Deshea Townsend. The Giants became NFC East champions for the first time since 2005. That's right, it's easy to forget that they weren't division champions last year. That distinction belonged to the Cowboys who didn't get to enjoy the fruits of their 13-3 record for more than one postseason game, a 21-17 loss to the Giants in Dallas. The Giants have to get back on track after their loss to the Eagles last Sunday, and as Eli Manning put it, "No party hats," referring to becoming the division champs at the end of the day. A win over the Cowboys, to lock up a postseason bye while playing without Brandon Jacobs and Plaxico Burress (who won't be back), would be a cause for celebration.

NFC East.
The Giants play on Sunday night in Dallas. Earlier at 1PM, the (7-6) Washington Redskins play on the road against the (1-11-1) Cincinnati Bengals. The (7-5-1) Philadelphia Eagles, who are one-half game behind Dallas, play at home on Monday night against (4-9) Cleveland. The Giants are favored to win their game by about 2 points. The Redskins and Eagles are both favored by about 9.

Check out.
The Team Giants Store, and see some of the really unique items we put together.
There are some items you certainly haven't seen elsewhere, and each sale helps out our site.

Notes.
Cowboys Texas Stadium, home to the Cowboys since 1971, is closing after this season.
The new stadium is in Arlington, Texas.

Cowboys Tony Romo’s 96.9 passer rating is third in the NFL.

Cowboys Terrell Owens has caught at least one pass in 180 consecutive regular season games.

Cowboys are 18-32 in regular-season games played in December or January since their last playoff victory way back in 1996.

Cowboys lost to the Steelers last week and teams are 4-8 this season in their next game after playing hard hitting Pittsburgh.

Giants Eli Manning will start his 69th consecutive game, tying the franchise record for quarterbacks set by Fran Tarkenton from 1967-71.

Giants won the earlier season matchup with the Cowboys playing without quarterback Tony Romo, who was sidelined with a broken pinkie..

Giants have won just 11 of 35 regular season games in Dallas, including that NFC Divisional Playoff game 11 months ago.

Next Game
Dec. 21 Carolina at Giants at 8:15PM. (NFL Rescheduled from 1:00PM)
Giants Tickets  -  Buy or Sell      550+ Tickets / Parking Passes! (as of 12/13 - 11:00AM)

Click on the Team Giants logo to be informed of all Giants game previews, reviews and off season football news.