Brett's Cowboys Corner

It has been a rough week for the Dallas Cowboys, as tragedy struck the team 10 days ago with the passing of teammate Marshawn Kneeland. Players have said they want to honor Marshawn in the best way they can, showing it on the field.

This will be the Cowboys first ever regular season road trip to Las Vegas. Coming out of the bye, Dallas will be on Monday Night Football. As new additions join the team, the Cowboys will make one final push toward the post-season, as the NFC is stacked and there is a tough gauntlet ahead.

The Raiders are a struggling team to say the least. They haven’t really found a rhythm on offense yet. They will come into this game already playing two standalone prime time games, not being able to break 10 points in either game.

DALLAS	LAS VEGAS
Jadeveon Clowney: With help at DT, the edge pressure needs to step up for Dallas, and this will be a great opportunity to make a play for Clowney.	Ashton Jeanty: Only one game with 100+ rushing yards. He will look to dance around Dallas, showing signs of Boise State.
Malik Hooker: Returning from IR, the secondary has struggled, and maybe the veteran safety can help get things right.	Maxx Crosby: A game wrecker, can easily turn this game upside down against a questionable RT matchup.
Javonte Williams: The Cowboys have gotten away from their run game early, even if they trail, stick to Williams attack.	Brock Bowers: A feature of the offense, Cowboys have struggled with plans to stop a dominant tight end.

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The Keys to Victory-

1 – No Pressure.

 Cowboys right tackle Terence Steele has allowed a 10.0% pressure rate, ranking 24th among 36 right tackles with at least 100 pass blocks, and was briefly benched in Week 9 for Nate Thomas.

Coach Schottenheimer says the job of RT is an battle to win, and we may see Nate Thomas get the start or even more reps during the game. Though with Maxx Crosby on the other side, this isn’t the week to be offering tryouts at the tackle position.

Cowboys fans were calling for Crosby to join their team at the trade deadline but this week they will have to deal with what could (or never would) have been. Though it is interesting to note that Crosby is currently at a career low for pressures.

He has been chip-blocked or double teamed on a career-high 32.3% of his pass rushes and has been limited to a 6.2% pressure rate when facing extra help.

2 – Stuff the Run.

What a time to watch newly acquired DT Quinnen Williams. He has stuffed rushers for a loss or no gain on 8.9% of his snaps in run defense, the 2nd-highest mark among defensive tackles with at least 100 snaps in run defense.

The matchup with Ashton Jeanty, as the rookie back will try to take over this game knowing the success running backs have had on this Dallas D. Jeanty has struggled to get settled into his true form, will Dallas be the day?

Ashton Jeanty has been stuffed for loss or no gain on 28.7% of his carries this season, the 2nd-highest rate among running backs with at least 50 carries.

3 – The Student Becomes the Master.

When Brian Schottenheimer became the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, he credited a lot of people who influenced his journey. But one man he mentioned that really taught him how to be a head coach, Pete Carroll.

Schottenheimer credited his time with Seattle as most impactful, “going to Seattle was, I would say was critical to my development as a coach. Pete Carroll challenged me in a number of ways,” Schottenheimer said. “He challenged me to be authentic, to continue to dive into the relationships that matter, which is your coaches, your players, ownership…”

Now he will face his former mentor Pete Carroll as the Raiders and Cowboys play on Monday Night Football. Will Schotty use Carroll’s coaching tendencies against him? Or did Carroll not teach Coach Schottenheimer everything he knows?

As the playoff percentages dwindle down. The Cowboys will look ahead at a really tough stretch with Philly, Kansas City and Detroit all within 11 days of each other. This is the last chance to get their spirits right with a win in Vegas.