Los Angeles Rams vs Dallas Cowboys
Preview
The Divisional Round of the NFL playoffs is almost upon us, as we continue to roll through the postseason. We’ve already been treated to a series of great encounters stemming from Wild Card Weekend, and that’s only the beginning. All eight teams remaining have a legitimate shot at reaching the Super Bowl. That’s a great position to be in.
One of the more intriguing match-ups at this point has to be the Los Angeles Rams vs the Dallas Cowboys, as the Texas-based juggernaut travels west to take on the Rams with a lot of pressure on their shoulders. It’s a 2nd seed vs 4th seed game and while you’d think that may give you an indication of how this one is going to go down, trust us, that couldn’t be any further from the truth.
The art of the playoffs allows for a few teams to get the week off during WCW. The Rams fell into that category. They were able to kick their feet up and watch the madness unfold, whereas Dallas put in a high-level performance to get past the Seattle Seahawks booking their ticket to the next round.
Cowboys
Of course, the nature of the Cowboys in the decade or so ensures that many fans are going to take that result with a pinch of salt. They’ve been known to build up the hopes and dreams of their faithful fanbase before letting them down all over again, and while a 10-6 record is nothing to shake your head at, it seems as if many are already writing them off in this one.
Rams
The Rams have been a little bit more terrifying in their approach, registering a 13-3 record to confirm that the rumors were indeed true: they are the real deal. They didn’t deal with the pressure of that tag twelve months ago, as we’re all aware, but you could certainly make the argument that they’re better equipped this time around.
This game will, in fact, be played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum but in our not so humble opinion, we don’t think that’s going to matter all too much. The big claim amongst neutral fans is that there’s still a certain ‘soul’ lacking from the Rams when it comes to their fanbase after the move from St. Louis, and they’ll have the chance to shut up the doubters once and for all with an impressive performance here.
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The Cowboys have their own doubters to deal with, mainly because this team has about as much potential as you can have at this point in the campaign. They’ve been living off of their success in the 1990s for too long now, and it’s about time that this group of players create a legacy for themselves.
Key Matchups
Some of us are going to be really jazzed come game day. Are you one of them?
The quarterback match-up of Jared Goff vs Dak Prescott is certainly an interesting one here. Goff has always been more of a poster boy than Dak and the comparisons have been evident ever since the 2016 Draft. Goff seems to take more chances but with high risk comes high reward, whereas Prescott feels like he’s gradually become more conservative as his time in the league has gone on. The big question is this: can Dallas force the turnovers, and can LA stop the run game that Dak seems to rely on?
Amari Cooper is also going to be a wanted man in this game, with many considering him to be the shining light in this Cowboys operation. Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters will both have to step up in a big way in order to neutralize him, but if they can manage it, they’ll have taken a big step towards the NFC Championship Game.
Betting Odds
It should come as no surprise to learn that the Rams are the favorites in this one, with BetOnline pricing them at -335 on the moneyline with the Cowboys being the +280 underdogs. In terms of the spread, BetOnline has the Rams at -7 with the Cowboys a +7 underdog. Bovada also favors the Rams at -7.
Things aren’t too different over on MyBookie with -7 (LA) and +7 (Dallas), although the moneyline is slightly different with the Rams being priced at -305 with the Cowboys at +245.
The general consensus here is clear: the Los Angeles Rams will be playing in the NFC Championship Game on January 20th. But, with a slight underdog status, can Dallas finally prove everyone wrong?
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