Week 14 in the NFL is set to kick off in style on Thursday night, as two of the league’s most high-powered offenses in the Cowboys and the Lions will square off at Detroit’s Ford Field.
Dallas enters Thursday’s contest riding an impressive three-game win streak that includes last week’s 31–28 victory over the Chiefs on Thanksgiving. Quarterback Dak Prescott is playing elite-level football, while the Cowboys' defense—now bolstered by its multitude of trade deadline additions—has held up its end of the bargain of late as well.
The Lions, meanwhile, have traded wins and losses since their defeat at Kansas City in mid-October, and are just 7–5 on the year—trailing both the Bears and the Packers in the ultra-competitive NFC North division.
Both of these teams are desperate for a win as they look to gain ground in the NFC wild card standings. And with that, here are three bold predictions for Lions vs. Cowboys.
Jameson Williams will score a touchdown on a 50-plus-yard reception
Jameson Williams will likely be the focal point of the Lions’ passing attack on Thursday night as Amon-Ra St. Brown (ankle) is questionable to play. Against a Cowboys secondary that’s no stranger to giving up big plays, I’m expecting Williams to break free for a huge receiving touchdown.
Williams has unparalleled speed and the ability to turn a short gain into something much bigger. If he can shed a tackle after a catch, it’ll be hard for anyone in Dallas’s secondary to catch up to him. This season, Williams has caught a pass for 40-plus yards in four different games. He’s also had one catch for 64 yards. I’m expecting him to make at least one explosive catch on Thursday and take a 50-plus-yard touchdown to the house.
Dak Prescott will have 300-plus yards and throw for 3 touchdowns
Dak Prescott has returned to MVP form, which is bad news for the Lions. This game has the makings of a shootout, and with the Cowboys’ passing attack looking phenomenal of late, they’re going to be frequently taking to the air in order to move the ball downfield.
CeeDee Lamb bounced back after a shoddy couple of weeks with a big game against the Chiefs on Thanksgiving. Prescott won’t hesitate to test the Lions' defense downfield on deep balls to Lamb and George Pickens, and I think he’ll have tremendous success in doing so.
The Lions will be without Terrion Arnold, who is out for the season, meaning their secondary will be depleted. That’s music to the ears of Cowboys fans, as Pickens and Lamb should see favorable matchups throughout the game. Over the last three weeks, the Lions have surrendered an average of 251 passing yards per game, which is fifth-worst in the NFL. I’m expecting their struggles to continue and that Prescott will throw for 300-plus yards and record three passing touchdowns.
Both teams will score 40+ points in an all-time TNF shootout
As mentioned above, Thursday night’s bout in Detroit pins two of the league’s top offenses against one another.
Both the Lions and Cowboys are among the top three teams in points per game (DAL: 29.3, DET: 29.2) and total yards per game (DAL: 393.1, DET: 376.3), while Dallas also leads the league in total passing yards with 3,255.
Defensively, meanwhile, while the Cowboys have tightened things up in recent weeks, they’re still allowing the second-most points per game (28.5) and the fourth-most yards per game (376.2). Additionally, the Lions have had their own issues on that side of the ball of late, giving up 27 points to the Giants and 31 to the Packers in consecutive weeks.
Needless to say, this one has shootout written all over it, and I'm predicting it'll turn into an all-time classic. Call it, a 48–45 Cowboys win to keep their playoff hopes alive.
