Atlanta Falcons at Dallas Cowboys
Sunday, October 25 at 4:15 p.m. ET
BetOnline.com odds: Cowboys -4
The Cowboys (3-2) are coming off a bye, and luckily they didn't have to brood over a loss for two weeks. Dallas edged Kansas City in overtime in Week 5, which staved off Cowboys fans from taking out Wade Phillips Gambino Family style. Despite an above-.500 record, things are not well in Big D.
Inconsistency has been a major concern. Tony Romo is all over the map. He played excellent against the Chiefs though, throwing for 351 yards and two touchdowns. Either way, Dallas should run the ball well; it ranks third in the NFL in rushing, cranking out an impressive 161 yards per game.Defensively, there are some good pieces in place, but the Cowboys haven't capitalized on their potential. DeMarcus Ware has been so invisible it's almost criminal—you'd think he was Joe Blow Fafone the way he's disappeared. That is, until last Week 5; Ware picked up his first two sacks of the season against Kansas City, a welcome relief considering he had 20 a season ago. Offshore sportsbook bettors hope he charges ahead and keeps the sack train rolling.
Atlanta (4-1), on the other hand, should be feeling pretty good. The Falcons were outplayed by Chicago last Sunday night, yet they managed to scrape out a 21-14 victory. They kept pace with the Saints in the NFC South and, while it doesn't look like the undefeated Saints are slowing down, Atlanta is keeping that door open on its divisional NFL odds.
Two weeks after dropping 45 points on the 49ers, Atlanta's offense struggled. Matt Ryan has been a little Tony Romo-like with his inconsistency. The peaks and valleys haven't been as pronounced, but gambling fans endured a pretty rough performance against the Bears (19/33, 185 yards, two picks). The sophomore could use a little help from Michael Turner, who's on pace for almost 600 fewer rushing yards than 2008. He had just 30 yards on 13 carries in the Bears game.
The defense, though it gave up some chunks of yardage, played opportunistic football. Three takeaways and a pair of sacks negated 300 passing yards from Jay Cutler. This is not an elite unit by any stretch of the imagination, but it's still a serviceable group of defendants.
Dallas has yet to beat much more than bottom feeders this year (Tampa Bay, Carolina, Kansas City); the Falcons aren't bottom feeders. The Dallas running game will likely shred Atlanta, but Matt Ryan will be able to outgun Big D. He's only been sacked twice this season and, with Dallas struggling to get to the quarterback, the secondary is ripe for picking. Take the BetOnline.com underdog and bet the Falcons.