Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images Who wins tonight… Baltimore or Tampa Bay? Los Angeles or Arizona? The Baltimore Ravens play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Los Angeles Chargers take on the Arizona Cardinals on Monday Night Football. FanDuel has the Ravens as 3.5-point favorites over the Bucs, while the Chargers are 1.5-point favorites over the Cardinals. Final score predictions: Ravens 28 – Bucs – 17, Chargers 20 – Cardinals 19. Check out FanDuel for all of your NFL betting needs. This is an open thread for game chat.

Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images What do you think are the biggest questions surrounding the Cowboys right now? The Dallas Cowboys spent the week looking internally and getting ready for the season ahead. For fans, they spent the bye week asking questions and voicing concern on where the team is heading. So let’s ask the very passionate and very knowledgeable BTB readers their opinions on some of those of subjects and get your vote. The Cowboys face issues in the trenches but which side is underperforming the most, the offensive line or defensive line? The Cowboys rank sixth-worst in total pressures allowed and dead last in total rush yards per game. This is a wildly concerning statistic, but it’s made worse when on defense the line has allowed the second-most rushing touchdowns and seventh-most rush yards, while getting the seventh-fewest sacks, and worst of all they are allowing a 74% touchdown rate in the redzone which ranks third-worst. How confident are you in Jerry Jones and the front office to get the team back on track this year? In the offseason the team lost key pieces on both offense and defense, but due to the front office’s philosophy to seldom operate in the early free agent market they missed on the chance to replace those players. Add to the fact Jerry Jones has made worrying comments on 105.3 The Fan, there are a number of fans concerned on whether Jerry is the guy to guide the team through these turbulent times. Will Mike McCarthy be head coach next season? There are two sides to the Mike McCarthy story in Dallas. On one side is the fact he has guided the Cowboys to 12-5 in three consecutive seasons and into the playoffs. But the other side of his story is the fact he has never got the team past the Divisional Round. Then add this year’s problems and there is only more doubt when it comes to McCarthy and whether he is the man for the job. Of course, this year isn’t over yet and there’s still plenty of football to be played. What’s wrong with the Cowboys defense? Last season under Dan Quinn this Cowboys defense was very effective. The run defense had some issues allowing 112 rush yards per game, but that was enough to finish mid-table. The pass defense, however, was top-five and fished with the fifth-fewest yards and allowed the sixth-lowest passer rating. This season both the run and pass defense statistics look bad and the team ranks in the bottom-ten in most major categories. The defense has had to deal injuries, but what is the determining factor? Is Dak Prescott playing enough to warrant his contract extension? Prescott inked a four-year deal with the Dallas Cowboys worth $240 million. The contract includes a $80 million signing bonus and a lot of guarantees. So far this season, Dak has thrown the third-most passing yards, seventh-most passing touchdowns, and has had to deal with an offensive line that has offered him little protection. Questions on the connection between him and CeeDee Lamb have come into play this year and during the Lions game Dak made some pretty wild throws. He also leads the league with seven interceptions and his passer rating of 82.9 ranks ninth-lowest in the league. What is true though is the fact he led a fantastic drive against Pittsburgh and things would have looked a lot worse is some of this seasons losses.

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports Who should the Dallas Cowboys trade for in your opinion? With the 2024 NFL trade deadline quickly approaching on November 5, we are starting to see more and more teams start to acquire talent hoping to find the missing piece that will help their chances of postseason success. Right or wrong, the Dallas Cowboys don’t look as if they will be active participants, whether buying or selling. In fact, Jerry Jones has already come out and said the Dallas Cowboys won’t be active prior to the November 5 trade deadline this year. Knowing what we know about Jerry Jones though, anything he says can be taken with a grain of salt. How many times in the past has the said one thing only to do the complete opposite? So, with all of that in mind we thought we’d take a closer look at the current trade market around the NFL to see where the Dallas Cowboys stand and whether or not they could be buyers or sellers? Buyers? Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images If the Dallas Cowboys are interested, there is talent out there that could be added via trade. The only problem with being buyers is Dallas doesn’t really have the 2025 draft capital needed to pull off any significant trade that would upgrade the roster without sacrificing potential future needs. As things stand right now they only have one draft pick in each of the first five rounds in the 2025 NFL Draft. They sent their seventh-rounder last year to Detroit as part of the first-round Tyler Guyton trade and sent a sixth-rounder to the Giants for DT Jordan Phillips. They are expected to get the max number of compensatory picks (4) next year, but those do little good right now. In order to add more talent to the roster via trade Dallas would have to give up one or two of their few remaining 2025 draft picks, further depleting next year’s draft capital. That makes them being buyers prior to the trade deadline seem unlikely unless it is a rare player for player trade like the Andrew Booth for Nahshon Wright one earlier this year. Sellers? Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports The Dallas Cowboys are currently sitting at 3-3 and still have a chance to turn things around to keep their playoff hopes alive. But, if they lose these next two back-to-back road games against the 49ers and Falcons and moved to 3-5 on the season, they could suddenly turn into sellers prior to the November 5 NFL trade deadline. Despite the way they’ve played this season, the Cowboys have a talented roster. There are several players other teams could view as significant upgrades or the missing piece to their championship run. If Dallas’ season does continue to circle the drain after these next two games they would be wise to listen to any and all calls about trades for their players. DeMarcus Lawrence, Brandin Cooks, and Zack Martin are three such players teams around the league could potentially be interested in prior to the trade deadline. None of the three likely has a future with the Cowboys beyond this year and Jerry Jones and Company would be wise to sell them off to the highest bidder for more 2025 draft capital. The Verdict Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports It’s difficult to determine right now which way the Dallas Cowboys should go prior to the November 5 NFL trade deadline. Given their current draft capital situation it seems unlikely they will be buyers. On the flipside though, if their season continues to get worse over the next couple weeks it’s very reasonable to believe they start trading some of their players that other teams could be interested in. So with that in mind, we are going to predict Dallas will more likely be a seller than a buyer this year. Cowboys players who could be traded: DE DeMarcus Lawrence RG Zack Martin WR Brandin Cooks QB Trey Lance S/CB Israel Mukuamu S Donovan Wilson S Malik Hooker

Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images Cowboys open as underdogs to the 49ers The Dallas Cowboys are now past their official bye and begin preparations for their Week 8 matchup versus the San Francisco 49ers. The 49ers have been the Cowboys nemesis lately, knocking them out of the playoffs and crushing them in a regular-season game last year. Not exactly the opponent Dallas wants to see coming out of their bye while trying to right their season. Surprisingly, the 49ers are also struggling this year. They have been missing Christian McCaffrey with injury, and now may have lost Brandon Aiyuk for the year with an ACL tear. The 49ers have been going through an injury crisis similar to the Cowboys. Both teams are sporting sub-par records for teams expected to contend in the NFC before the season began. Dallas is 3-3 and San Francisco is 3-4. The Cowboys will be on the road for this game which is actually where they play better this season. The oddsmakers at FanDuel have installed the 49er as 5.5-point favorites in the game. Do you have any confidence that the Cowboys can cover that? Would you put money on Dallas?

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports Notable headlines surrounding America’s team. Brutal 5-game stretch will define the Cowboys’ season – Mario Herrera Jr, Inside The Star It isn’t a cakewalk. Week 8 at San Francisco 49ers The Dallas Cowboys were beaten down by the Detroit Lions in a game that was out of reach by the end of the first quarter. The final score of 47-9 was the worst defeat the Cowboys have experienced in AT&T Stadium, and they have a bye week to prepare for an equally tough matchup. Dallas’ current arch nemesis, the San Francisco 49ers, will welcome the Cowboys to Levi’s Stadium for a date on Sunday Night Football. I have to admit it feels like when the school bully challenged the new kid to fight behind the school. Except the Cowboys aren’t new, and the 49ers have beat them down a handful of times already. San Francisco enters the game with an equal 3-3 record as the Cowboys, and also dealing with many injuries. If there was a time for the Cowboys to take advantage and finally defeat Kyle Shanahan’s team, it’s never been a better time than now. Week 9 at Atlanta Falcons After a likely loss in San Francisco, the Cowboys get to visit the new-look Atlanta Falcons. QB Kirk Cousins is embracing his role in the locker room, and the Falcons are flying high with a 4-2 record and a three-game win streak. NFC Playoff picture after Lions best Vikings, Falcons fall to Seahawks in Week 7 – Cody Williams, FanSided There was movement while the Cowboys watched. Updated NFC Playoff picture: Lions take over No. 1 seed after beating Vikings NFC Standings 1 Detroit Lions 5-1 (NFC North Leader) 2 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 4-2 (NFC South Leader) 3 Washington Commanders 4-2 (NFC East Leader) 4 Seattle Seahawks 4-3 (NFC West Leader) 5 Minnesota Vikings 5-1 (Wild Card) 6 Green Bay Packers 4-2 (Wild Card) 7 Chicago Bears 4-2 (Wild Card) 8 Philadelphia Eagles 4-2 9 Atlanta Falcons 3-3 10 Dallas Cowboys 3-3 11 San Francisco 49ers 3-3 12 Arizona Cardinals 2-4 13 New Orleans Saints 2-5 14 New York Giants 2-5 15 Los Angeles Rams 1-4 16 Carolina Panthers 1-5 As mentioned, the Lions giving the Vikings loss number one on the year vaults Detroit not just into the top spot of the NFC North but to the top of the NFC Playoff picture as well. The Lions have looked like the best team in the league over the past few weeks and did nothing to change that by clawing out a win in Minnesota. Speaking of that NFC North, though, the division looks far and away like the strongest in the entire league. If the season ended today, all four teams in that division would get into the postseason as the Packers maintained their hot start, especially with Jordan Love getting his feet back under him, as they got past the Texans in Week 7 with a narrow win. The Bears, meanwhile, are on bye in Week 7 but their 4-2 record behind Caleb Williams still has them in the mix. Was letting this offensive lineman walk in free agency Cowboys’ biggest mistake of 2024?- Reid Hanson, Cowboys Wire Cowboys fans miss you, Tyron. How was he last for the Cowboys? His last season in Dallas was a bounce-back season for the 13-year veteran. Smith didn’t just play in 13 games for the Cowboys, but once again proved to be one of the best blindside pass protectors in the NFL. His run blocking, on the other hand, left something to be desired. Smith’s decline in the run blocking portion of the game looked significant in 2023 and the Cowboys likely saw it as a good time to part ways. How has he been in 2024? Smith has struggled mightily in 2024. Signed by the Jets to a one year, $6,500,000 guaranteed contract, Smith was brought in to man left tackle for Aaron Rodgers’ Jets. In that time he’s logged the 4th most pass blocking snaps in the NFL at OT. He’s given up the seventh-most pressures (16) and second-most sacks (5). His run-blocking has slightly improved, with Smith grading out at the 33rd best run blocking OT in the NFL. Given the difficult assignments he’s drawn and the number of times he’s been asked to play on an island, overall Smith grades out as the 27th OT in the NFL. Lions DB disrespects Cowboys offense by detailing painfully obvious gameplan- Mike Luciano, The Landry Hat It is not a fun scene in Dallas at the moment. In an appearance on Detroit teammate Amon-Ra St. Brown’s podcast, Lions defensive back Kerby Joseph said that Dan Campbell’s team went into the game with the sole focus of taking Lamb out of the game. The Lions knew the Cowboys couldn’t counterpunch. “Once we take him out [of] the game, we wasn’t really worried about anyone else,” Joseph said. The worst part about this for Cowboys fans is that Joseph and the Lions were completely correct in their assessment of Dallas. Even after losing Aidan Hutchinson with an injury, Detroit knew they had no answer. Lions DB Kerby Joseph rips Cowboys offense after 47-9 beatdown Joseph, who picked off Prescott in this win, and the rest of his Lions teammates held Lamb to seven catches for 89 yards despite 14 targets and multiple big chunk plays in garbage time when the result was in hand. Outside of that, no one wearing a star on their helmet did much of anything. Former Cowboys receiver has explosive debut with new team in Week 7- Randy Gurzi, Sports Illustrated Another familiar face is producing on another team. Former Super Bowl-winning quarterback, and Hall of Famer, Troy Aikman laid into the team’s wideouts for their ”lazy” route running this season. He didn’t absolve Dak Prescott of all the team’s struggles but did say the pass-catchers aren’t doing enough to help him. That’s why there were calls for a reunion with

Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images There are a lot of problems with the Dallas Cowboys right now. The Dallas Cowboys are having problems. The defense gets the brunt of the criticism because overall their performance has been worse, but injuries have put them behind the eight ball. The offense, however, has few excuses. Most of their players are healthy, yet they are not living up to expectations. The issues are plentiful. The ground attack is a blinking red light for the offense’s underwhelming play. The Cowboys rank dead last in rushing yards this season. Advanced stats show that Rico Dowdle is ranked 18th for running backs in EPA/attempt while Ezekiel Elliott is ranked 41st. This paints the picture that the Cowboys have one average running back, but as a group are near the bottom in talent. The offensive line has been another area of concern. Entering Week 7, the Cowboys’ offensive line has a pass-block win rate of 57% (ranked 19th) and a run-block win rate of 71% (18th), which tells us they are slightly below average in both departments. The blame can continue with suspect play-calling or ineffective route-running and you would find some good and bad things in both those areas. The offense finds themselves in the worst quadrant for passing and rushing efficiency this season, but it might surprise you that the pass EPA is more below average than the run. rbsdm.com/stats How is it possible that an offense with Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb is having issues in the passing game? The Cowboys are third in the league in passing yards so the overall volume is high, but other factors like game script and abandoning the run affect those numbers. From an efficiency standpoint, the passing game hasn’t been good, and you may or may not be surprised to learn that Prescott’s performance has a lot to do with it. To focus on Prescott’s play, we wanted to look at some advanced stats that reflect his performance. Looking at expected points added, Prescott’s value has taken a huge hit this season. When we look at completion percentage over expected, we see a similar pattern. And when we compile these two metrics together, again it paints the same picture. These graphs tell us the following story… Prescott has been teetering around a top-10 quarterback for most of his career His play dipped some in 2018, but we can attribute that to an inadequate receiving group that featured seven games without Amari Cooper Dak performed extremely well last season Prescott is playing his worst football this year To get a better feel for Prescott’s performance compared to other quarterbacks around the league, we’ve put together a little season-to-season visual that shows how much this year sticks out. Here are the quarterback efficiency graphs for the last seven seasons. Dak Prescott has lived in the elite quadrant for most of his career. This is the first time he’s been in the bad quadrant. While it’s not all Dak’s fault, we should admit that his play is part of the problem. pic.twitter.com/GG2pDNYeZX — Dan Rogers (@DannyPhantom24) October 19, 2024 This does not paint a good picture of the team’s franchise quarterback. Feel free to slide down into the comment section and write, “They should’ve never paid him $60 million a year.” And if it gets one rec for every game Prescott has played in his career (120), we wouldn’t be surprised, however, this is not a “Dak is no good article.” It’s already been shown that he is good with the data points from last year. But this is an attempt to indicate that Prescott is not playing well this season and he’s a part of the offense’s failures. The solution is for him to just play better. It’s not looking ahead and replacing him with someone else, not because the financial implications of such a move are virtually impossible (which they are), but rather because he can and will play better than he has been. The Cowboys have to get other things fixed on offense as well, so this isn’t all on Dak, but he owns a part of the blame and if he doesn’t turn the corner soon, this team’s offensive struggles aren’t likely to change.