The Battle of America’s Teams

In week 5 of the NFL season the battle of “America’s” two teams will take center stage at 4:25 p.m. on CBS. The game will be a rare and exciting event, since the two teams only play each other every four years. So, why is it the Battle of America’s Teams? That’s because the Patriots and Cowboys probably have the biggest fan bases in the NFL. At the same time, they are both the most hated teams in the NFL. The Patriots, Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft did not help their case either with the recent “Deflate-Gate Scandal.”

The game will be played up in Foxboro, at Gillette Stadium. For the Cowboys it will be a tall task to go into New England and knock off the Patriots. Over the past two seasons the Patriots have an impressive 15-1 record at home during the regular season. That one loss was against the Bills last year in week 17 in a meaningless game where many of the starters did not play in the entire game. If the task alone of Dallas going into New England was not hard enough, it will be even harder without Tony Romo and Dez Bryant. The Cowboys starting quarterback will be out 8-10 weeks with a fractured left clavicle injury, which he suffered against the Eagles in week 2. This same injury left Romo out for ten games in 2010. Backup quarterback Brandon Weeden will have to step up for Dallas to have any chance in winning. Number one wide receiver, Dez Bryant was also hurt in week one of the NFL season versus the Giants at AT&T Stadium in Dallas. Bryant’s foot injury had the Cowboys, the Dallas fans and his fantasy owner in a frenzy.

Going into the season this matchup defiantly favors the Patriots and now with the injuries it will only increase the point spread in New England’s favor. Both teams will most likely be battling for their division title this year. Even though Dallas has lost Tony Romo they still will have a good chance at the NFC East title because the division is weak. There is a good chance that they will go 9-7 once again and can win the NFC East. The Cowboys already have a win over the Giants so, that will help them down the road in a possible tiebreaker situation. As for the Patriots they have owned the AFC and AFC East since 2001 when Tom Brady came into the league. The AFC East is a lot better of a division now with the Jets, Dolphins and Bills. All of these teams will have a good shot at winning a Wild Card spot while New England will most likely run away with the division again and be fighting for a first overall seed in the AFC and first round playoff bye.

With the injuries the Cowboys have, it is going to be hard for the Cowboys to go up into New England and win. Head Coach Jason Garret needs to have a great game plan for Dallas to win. If the Cowboys are going to win they will have to play great defense. The most important part of winning the game though will be the Cowboys not turning the ball over and being able to run the ball. Running the ball well and winning the time of possession is the only chance the Cowboys have at winning this game. The only true way to stop Tom Brady is by keeping him off the field, if he’s not on the field Brady cannot score. When Tom Brady wins the time of possession he’s next to impossible to beat. A defense can only slow him down never completely stop him. I feel it will be too much for the Cowboys to handle though and the Patriots will handle the Cowboys easily winning 34-17.