Patriots/Cowboys: Odds, weather, TV/radio, matchups, and other info

The New England Patriots and the Dallas Cowboys go head-to-head this weekend. Here’s everything you need to know about this blockbuster game!

In what could easily be considered the game of the week, the New England Patriots (9-1) return to Foxborough to host the Dallas Cowboys (6-4) at Gillette Stadium. It’s the first home game for the Patriots since their Week 8 victory over the Cleveland Browns; that game was played on October 27 – nearly a full month ago.

As such, the team can probably expect a particularly rowdy and boisterous crowd this Sunday evening. Patriots fans always come loud and proud to support their squad during home games, but given the lengthy break between the Browns game and this game against the Cowboys, the crowd should be even more fired-up and excited to see their favorite players back in action again.

The importance of this game – and the immense fandom of New England’s opponent – should also help create a one-of-a-kind viewing experience, whether you’re taking in the game from the stands, from a restaurant or sportsbar, or from the comfort of your own home. The Dallas Cowboys are both the most valuable sports franchise and the most popular NFL team in the world, and the New England Patriots aren’t far behind in both metrics.

What’s more, both the Patriots and the Cowboys are playing great football this season.

The Cowboys boast the No. 4 scoring offense in the league in terms of points per game; they also average more than 444 yards of offense per game, easily the highest mark in the NFL. The Patriots are only 16th in the NFL in offensive yardage (360 yards per game), but they also just barely edge the Cowboys out for the No. 3 spot in scoring at 28.7 points per game. Granted, some of that number has been inflated thanks to the Patriots defense and special teams units scoring multiple touchdowns this year.

Speaking of defense, the Patriots have regained the top spot in yards allowed per game over the San Francisco 49ers and the Buffalo Bills. New England is the only team in the NFL that is averaging less than 250 yards allowed per game this season on defense. The Cowboys are actually fairly impressive in that category as well, ranking seventh in the NFL at 322 yards allowed per game.

Finally, in scoring defense, the Patriots remain in the pole position at 10.8 points per game; New England has maintained an iron grip on the No. 1 spot all year long. The Cowboys are tied with the Denver Broncos and the Tennessee Titans for seventh place in this category, checking in at 19.7 points allowed per game on defense.

Overall, the Cowboys are statistically the more balanced team this season in terms of offensive and defensive efficiency, but their record thus far just hasn’t reflected Dallas’ ambition to be a true Super Bowl contender. The Cowboys lost close games to the New Orleans Saints, Green Bay Packers, and Minnesota Vikings, but they also inexplicably lost a close game to the New York Jets as well.

The Patriots have played one of the NFL’s easiest schedules this season, but they’ve also dominated inferior opponents from wire-to-wire (Miami Dolphins, New York Jets twice, Washington Redskins). In games against some of the more talented teams in the league (Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles), New England has gone 3-1.

The game this Sunday between these two teams should be a valuable measuring stick for just how good both franchises really are in 2019.

The Cowboys have statistically been a great team, but their record doesn’t reflect it. The Patriots statistically have been extremely imbalanced with an exceptional defense but a mediocre offense, and yet their record doesn’t reflect that disparity either. Dallas hasn’t been able to win against some of the top competition in the league, and New England simply hasn’t played much of the top competition in the league to this point.

That should change soon though, as the Patriots continue a five-game series against teams that all currently lead or led their divisions when they faced New England (Baltimore, Philadelphia, Dallas, Houston, and Kansas City). The Pats received plenty of criticism this week because of their offense’s poor showing up in Philly, but the fact remains that the Eagles are a good football team, and New England still managed to come away with the win in a tough road environment.

If the Patriots can win another game this week against a top NFL team in the Cowboys, it should help quiet the dissenters in the media who point to New England’s low quality of competition this season as proof the Patriots aren’t that good. They’ll still need to impress against the Texans and the Chiefs in Weeks 13 and 14, respectively – not to mention in Week 16 when the Bills come to town for a rematch of their close Week 4 contest – but in the meantime, New England can’t afford to overlook a potent, powerful, well-balanced Dallas squad.

Here’s all the info you need to take in this weekend’s big game:

Date: Sunday, November 24, 2019
Kickoff time: 4:25 pm EST
Location: Foxborough, Massachusetts
Stadium: Gillette Stadium
TV channel: FOX
Radio: TuneIn
Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Betting odds: New England -6.5 (Over/Under: 45.5), courtesy of The Action Network
Weather updates: 38 degrees F; rain drizzle throughout the evening; 70% chance of precipitation

As good as the Dallas defense has been this season, the strength of this Cowboys team is the offense, led by legitimate MVP candidate Dak Prescott at quarterback. No QB in the NFL has more passing yards on the season than Prescott, and perhaps only Lamar Jackson and Russell Wilson have meant more to their teams this year than Prescott (maybe throw in Deshaun Watson as well).

The New England defense looked up to the task of containing Philadelphia’s top offensive playmakers last week in slowing down Carson Wentz, Zach Ertz, and Miles Sanders. They’ll need a similarly shutdown performance this Sunday against Dak Prescott, Amari Cooper, and Ezekiel Elliott if the Patriots want to win the game and improve to 10-1 on the season.