This is a big one for the Detroit Lions. Last year they went into AT&T Stadium and played their hearts out against the Dallas Cowboys and were absolutely robbed by NFL officials. I know fans say that all the time, but in this case it's universally agreed upon that the official totally messed the call in a huge moment.
Now the Lions are looking for revenge. They can't get it on the officials, but they can get it on the team that benefitted from the gaffe. But how will they do it?
We talked with our Cowboy's beat writer Mauricio Rodriguez about the current state of the Cowboys and how the Lions can beat them and some things for the Lions to watch out for. Here's what he had to say:
What will the Cowboys do to get over the three big losses on their defensive line?
"Cowboys fans will not like this answer but mostly, they'll just cross their fingers and hope the depth comes in clutch. The front office has publicly said they're not adding major outside help. Chauncey Golston and Tyrus Wheat exceeded expectations on Sunday night but the Lions are a different beast when it comes to OL. I expect Mike Zimmer to go crazy with the blitzes to generate some pass rush and maybe some chaos against the run but it's not looking pretty. They'll need a big game from DT Osa Odighizuwa once again."
What will Cowboys be expected to do offensively in this game?
"I believe they'll challenge the Lions secondary and throw the ball early and often. Dak Prescott had three costly turnovers last weekend and somehow still managed to generate 0.28 EPA per dropback, which is a very positive outing. The Cowboys had the second best passing performance under that metric in Week 5. Of course, not easy to do with Hutchinson on the other side, but Mike McCarthy has found some answers with his pass pro scheme to help out whichever tackle faces him the most. Hutchinson will get some big plays, for sure, though.
Who's the under the radar Cowboy that Lions fans should be aware of?
"He doesn't get any hype but Amon-Ra St. Brown himself mentioned him in the offseason as one of the top DBs he's faced: Nickel cornerback Jourdan Lewis. Even though St. Brown had a touchdown on him last year, Lewis was on fire against the Lions offense most of that game. I expect this to be a top matchup headed into Week 6 and I look forward to seeing how the Lions attack him.
With Brandin Cooks out, who will be the Cowboys deep threat opposite Lamb?
"I was going to bring up Jalen Tolbert in the previous question but saved it for this one: Lions fans probably know about CeeDee Lamb and Jake Ferguson by now but a big story on this one should be Tolbert, who caught the game-winning touchdown in Pittsburgh in remarkable fashion. He's the team's WR2 now that Brandin Cooks is on IR. The third-year WR has had ups and downs in his career but seems to be hitting on all cylinders as of late, including a 48-yard grab last weekend. With that being said, the speedy KaVontae Turpin is used in a lot of verticals, having caught one for 34 yards last week. He's worth monitoring."
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