The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Rams wary of Dallas’ 1-2 offensive punch
Game against Seattle shows how tough it is to stop Prescott, Elliott.
THOUSAND OAKS, CALIF. — Before the Los Angeles Rams acquired them during the second half of the season, running back C.J. Anderson and edge rusher Dante Fowler played against the Dallas Cowboys.
Anderson rushed for 35 yards for the Carolina Panthers in a 16-8 season-opening victory.
“They’re fast,” Anderson said of the Cowboys defense, which finished the regular season ranked seventh in the NFL. “And they’re a lot better now.”
Fowler made one tackle in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ 40-7 loss at Dallas in Week 6. It was the Cowboys’ highest-scoring game of the season.
“They have a pretty good offense,” Fowler said, noting the quarterback Dak Prescott/running back Ezekiel Elliott combination. “You can’t sleep on them.”
Rams coach Sean McVay and his staff might query Anderson and Fowler as part of the preparation for Saturday’s divisional-round playoff game against the Cowboys at the Coliseum.
The game marks the revival of what was one of the NFL’s best postseason rivalries of the 1970s and ’80s. The Rams and Cowboys played eight times in the playoffs, splitting the wins and losses evenly.
Saturday’s winner advances to the NFC championship game to face either the New Orleans Saints or the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, who play Sunday at New Orleans.
The Rams lastplayed theCowboys in Week 4 of the 2017 season. Quarterback Jared Goff passed for 255 yards and two touchdowns, University of Georgia product Todd Gurley rushed for 121 yards and scored on a 53-yard pass play, and Greg Zuerlein kicked a team-record seven field goals
in a 35-30 victory at AT&T Stadium at Arlington, Texas.
“They’ve obviously got a lot of things that they’ve done differently,” McVay said of the Cowboys. “There’s some different personnel.”
Cowboys coach Jason Garrett, however, still has the same 1-2 punch on offense. Prescott and Elliott helped lead their team to a 24-22 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in a wild-card game last Saturday.
“You’re talking about two elite competitors that are at their best in those crunchtime moments,” McVay said. “Their production speaks for itself and you could see their teammates believe in them.”
Prescott passed for 22 touchdowns, with eight interceptions, and also rushed for six touchdowns as the Cowboys finished 10-6 and won the NFC East.
Against the Seahawks, Prescott completed 22 of 33 passes for 226 yards and a touchdown.
He also rushed for the game-winning touchdown after making the key play of the game, a 16-yard run on third-and-14 from the Seahawks’ 17-yard line.
“An incredible competitor,” McVay said, adding, “What a gutsy effort.”
Elliott rushed for a leaguebest 1,434 yards and also led the Cowboys with 77 receptions. He ran for 137 yards in 26 carries against the Seahawks.
Saturday’s game will feature Elliott and Gurley, who scored a league-best 21 touchdowns.
Gurley sat out the last two games because of a knee injury and finished third behind Elliott and New York Giants rookie Saquon Barkley in yards rushing.
“He’s similar to Todd — one of the most complete backs in the league,” McVay said of Elliott. “He’s got the ability to go through you or go around you with speed.”
The Cowboys’ late-October trade for receiver Amari Cooper improved the passing attack. Cooper has 53 catches, six for touchdowns.
“Amari Cooper has definitely given them a spark,” McVay said. “He’s wired to separate.”