Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott missed both games against the
Eagles in 2024 due to injury, but he’s set to make his return
to the lineup here in the NFL regular season opener on Thursday
night. The Cowboys were held to just 13 total points in their
two games against the Eagles in 2024, but Prescott was quite productive
against this defense when he played against them in 2023. He threw
for 645 yards and five touchdowns without an interception in those
games and he was even productive in the one game he played against
them back in 2022. Those numbers don’t exactly translate to the
situation the Cowboys are in now, of course, but while their revamped
offensive line is young and unproven, there’s hope to be had with
the addition of wide receiver George Pickens this offseason.
With Micah Parsons sidelined, the Cowboys’ defense is in
disarray, giving the Eagles a strong chance to put up points.
That game script could push Dallas into a heavier passing attack
than the coaching staff would normally like. There’s always
some risk that Dak Prescott struggles with turnovers in this spot,
but the upside of 40+ pass attempts makes him a solid QB1 play
in Week 1.
While his time in Pittsburgh came to an end with some controversy,
George Pickens has some serious potential now that he’s in a much
higher-octane offense in Dallas. Pickens has the opportunity to
play alongside multi-time Pro Bowl wide receiver CeeDee Lamb while
catching passes from another multi-time Pro Bowl quarterback Dak
Prescott.
Pickens is the type of big-bodied field-stretching wide receiver
that the Cowboys have been missing in their offense. He immediately
steps into a starting role out wide and should see a significant
target share with the Cowboys only having Lamb as an established
pass-catcher in the offense.
It may take some time before Pickens and Prescott create a connection,
which is why he’s in the “On the Fence” category,
but there’s some potential for a boom game here in his first
game with his new team.
Fade: Cowboys Running Backs
Whether you’re reading information from the team beat writers,
fantasy analysts, or the Cowboys’ staff themselves, you’ve probably
heard a variety of opinions on the Dallas backfield. For Week
1, it appears that Javonte
Williams will get the start and the bulk of the backfield
touches, so he’s probably the best option if you’re absolutely
in need and have to start one of them, but the most likely scenario
here is that we’re going to see some sort of committee with Williams
splitting snaps with fellow offseason acquisition Miles
Sanders and rookie Jaydon
Blue. We may even see return specialist KeVontae Turpin line
up in the backfield for a few plays, which only further muddies
the situation.
The Cowboys have the offensive firepower to put points on the
board, but there’s a real chance that this game becomes
a blowout, which would almost certainly lead to a pass-heavy game
script and further limit this backfield.
There’s too much uncertainty and risk to trust any Dallas
RB at the moment. This is a “stay away” situation
until we get a better idea of what the coaching staff is thinking.
The defending Super Bowl champions are one of the strongest offensive
plays on the board this week, and wide receiver Devonta Smith
is no exception. Smith went off the last time the Eagles hosted
the Cowboys, catching six of the seven passes for 120 yards and
two scores.
While Smith doesn’t have the upside of A.J. Brown, he’s
still a reliable WR2 with the potential for WR1 weeks. The biggest
concern in this game is probably that the Eagles could get out
to a hot start and end up relying on their running game rather
than airing it out. Still, even if the Eagles are up by multiple
scores, there’s a good chance that Smith was involved, which
should allow him to provide enough fantasy production for managers
to be happy at the end of the game.
Dallas Goedert’s days of being a reliable TE1 for fantasy
are probably in the past, but that doesn’t mean that he
can’t still have useful games from time to time. Historically,
Goedert has struggled to produce usable fantasy games when he’s
been matched up against the Cowboys, but this game could be different.
The Cowboys are now without superstar pass-rusher Micah Parsons,
who left for Green Bay, leaving a huge hole on their defense.
Like most tight ends, Goedert has often been asked to assist,
or at least chip in pass protection when facing players like Parsons,
so his pass-catching upside has been limited a bit in those contests.
This will be the first time that Goedert has faced the Cowboys
without Parsons since the pass-rusher was drafted, so look for
Goedert to have more route-running opportunities than usual. Time
will tell if that translates into better fantasy production, but
it’s at least enough for him to be considered as a streaming
option here in Week 1.
Fade: N/A
Get your Eagles into your lineup in what is expected to be one
of the highest-scoring games of the week. This could even turn
into a blowout in Philadelphia’s favor, which would give
plenty of Eagles players a chance to get into the end zone.
