Seahawks (6-5) at Cowboys (8-3)
Thursday, 8:15 p.m. ET, AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas TV: Prime Video
Spread (BetMGM):
Cowboys by 9.5
Seahawks’ keys to victory: Seattle QB Geno Smith could use more time to heal, but Seattle’s precarious playoff position demands he tough out the elbow injury. He’ll need to perform at a much higher level than he did in Week 12 in a loss to the 49ers, as the club will need to score at a steady clip to keep pace with Dallas. The Seahawks offense has been held under 20 points in three straight road losses. WRs DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett will need to create yards-after-catch opportunities if they are given off coverage.
Cowboys’ keys to victory: QB Dak Prescott is continuing his MVP campaign after dismantling the Commanders. In Week 12 against Washington, he had seven completions of more than 20 yards. This week they may prefer to throw slants and underneath routes to WRs CeeDee Lamb and Michael Gallup and look for horizontal attack routes. On defense, CB DaRon Bland has picked up where Trevon Diggs (torn ACL) left off, forming a one-two attack with LB Micah Parsons. The duo will look to force quick passes that can be broken on to create more turnovers.
Matchup to watch: Seahawks’ Metcalf vs. Cowboys’ Bland. Bland is pretty much cemented on the right side, and Metcalf is almost always lined up out wide to the left, meaning these two should have numerous battles.
Who wins? The Cowboys are 13-1 at home during the regular season in 2022 and 2023, including 5-0 this season. Seattle doesn’t look like it is firing on enough cylinders to stop that streak.
Cowboys, 33-24