The Cowboys are hosting Washington for the 11th time on Thanksgiving, looking to improve on their 8-2 mark in this specific game. But more importantly, the Cowboys are more focused on getting to 8-3 for their 2023 record. A win over the Commanders would be a great start to a three-game homestand at AT&T Stadium. Here's what the staff writers had to say about Thursday's game.
Patrik Walker: It's the first time this season we'll witness this longstanding rivalry get a new edition added to its library, and don't let the records fool you. For despite the woes of the Washington Commanders, they've been known to play the Dallas Cowboys like tomorrow doesn't exist, and that means the latter has to bury them early on Turkey Day. Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb (and the passing attack) will likely prove too much for Ron Rivera's secondary and a growing lead forces Sam Howell to throw more frequently, to disastrous results. The winning streak at home extends to 13 games in Dallas. 43-17, Cowboys
Nick Eatman: This one is giving me fits because on one hand, I really see the Cowboys having a lot of home success this year and not only winning games, but blowing out opponents at AT&T Stadium. But I've also seen enough of these Thanksgiving Day games to know that the opponents usually come to play as well. Regardless of records and prior history in the series, this game is big for all of the participants. It wouldn't shock me if Washington comes in here and gives the Cowboys a game for a while. But in the end, this is a game with the No. 2 scoring offense in the NFL against the No. 32 scoring defense in the NFL. We are way too far into the season for this to be just a trend. The Cowboys should score a lot of points by the end of the game and while it might be close for a bit, I see them pulling away for a 41-19 win.
Nick Harris: With Washington allowing more sacks than any team in the league through week 11 and an increase in Sam Howell turnovers coming as a result, I expect the defense to get after it early and often in the pass game, but I don't have a ton of confidence in the Cowboys defending the Commanders' rushing attack with the same success. Offensively, I think it's another really productive day for everyone involved as they build upon one of the league's highest scoring totals. Cowboys, 45-24.
Mickey Spagnola: Got a sneaky suspicion the Cowboys will be good enough to beat a 4-7 Commanders team that has lost four of its past five games. And the difference in this game will be the Cowboys ability to sack Washington QB Sam Howell. The Cowboys just nailed Carolina quarterback Bryce Young seven times, the second time this year they have registered seven sacks (Daniel Jones in the opener) in a game. They have registered 33 sacks so far in 10 games this season. That's 3.3 sacks a game, so rushing the quarterback is this defense's best quality. Well, Howell has been sacks 51 times in 11 games, most in the NFL. Gut says the Cowboys double their average if the Commanders are dead set on throwing the ball.
