Dallas Cowboys vs Green Bay Packers Prediction & Betting Tips - NFL

Prediction published on 12/01/2024, 16:30  by Matthew Newman | Modified on 13/01/2024 at 09:34 in NFL Predictions

The 12-5 Dallas Cowboys will welcome the 9-8 Green Bay Packers to Texas on Sunday. The Cowboys managed to get past the Philadelphia Eagles to win the NFC East. That success was built on the back of an 8-0 record at AT&T Stadium so playing here is a massive advantage for them. In seven of those eight games, they scored 30+ points and in five of them, they put up 40+. That came to a grinding halt against the Detroit Lions when they only scored 20, getting over the line by a single point after a Lions two-point conversion was ruled out. The Cowboys rushed for just 61 yards, only the San Francisco 49ers managed to hold them to fewer over the course of the season. A lot of that was down to the hulking mass of Aidan Hutchinson who caused the Cowboys offensive line trouble all night. They will need to stand taller to create gaps for running back Tony Pollard but the Packers gave up 40 rush yards more per game than the Lions this season, 672 more in total. Playing off a strong run game allows Dak Prescott to open up the field for the likes of CeeDee Lamb and the big tight end Jake Ferguson. Dallas might go for a big play to open the game as they did against the Lions but expect a steady dose of the run in the first quarter to establish the ground game. Mike McCarthy is the man in charge, a head coach who spent 13 seasons in Green Bay, winning the 2010 Super Bowl with the Packers. This game is going to be huge for him whether he likes to admit it or not.

The Packers are one of only two teams to make the playoffs this season with only nine wins to their credit. They were 3-5 on the road but the Detroit Lions will have given every other team the blueprint on how to contain the Cowboys at home, only giving up 20 points in their loss to the Cowboys. It's a matter of whether the Packers' defence can get the job done under pressure away from Lambeau. Jordan Love had to prove that he could take over from Aaron Rodgers and he has really done so in the second half of the season. Picked off a single time in the last eight games of the regular season is a great stat to be brought in given the Cowboys' DaRon Bland led the league with nine picks this season. Love has to look after the ball again if the Packers are to progress. They are one of the youngest teams in the league so the rebuild is looking well ahead of schedule but this is going to be a serious test to see just how far they have come.