·November 29, 2023·3 min read

Tale of the Tape: Cowboys Should Win Easily Versus Seahawks

It is rare to have one team favored in every statistic tracked on offense and defense in the Tale of the Tape. So rare, I’m not sure when the last time was that it happened. The Cowboys enter this game with that sort of advantage against the reeling Seattle Seahawks. The point spread reflects that, as Seattle is a massive 9 point underdog, an even larger spread than the 49ers enjoyed before their 31-13 shellacking.

My goal in these previews is to find weak points where the Seahawks can exploit an advantage. Those do not really exist. There are places where Seattle is at less of a disadvantage, but even the strength of the Seahawks (cornerback play), has not proven to be strong enough to change outcomes against good opponents.

The Cowboys have more blow out wins than any team in the league, leading them to the largest point differential in football. They manage that, despite being blown out themselves by the 49ers. Their last three scores were 45-10, 33-10, 49-17. They lost by five to the Eagles on the road, and before that, won 43-20.

The Seahawks have scored less points in their last two games, combined (29), than the Cowboys have scored in 4 of their last 5 single games.

I could quibble with quality of victory, but the Seahawks are not a good team, so that really does not matter. They barely beat the Commanders and Panthers teams the Cowboys just blew out, and lost twice to the Rams team the Cowboys smoked a few weeks back.

The hope is Seattle gets Abe Lucas back and he plays well. Beyond that, Seahawks fans can hope for the team to play differently than they have for the last 4-6 weeks. They will need to be a different team to even be competitive in this one, let alone win.

The way this works: Each offense will be pitted against the opposing defense and compared on an array of key statistical attributes based on their respective rank in the NFL. The tables that follow show the rank of each unit for each of these categories.

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Seahawks Offense vs Cowboys Defense

Cowoboys key advantages on defense

All of them? Dallas can rush the passer, cover, and take the ball away. Their defense has scored more points than the Seahawk offense lately. Micah Parsons and DaRon Bland are having All-Pro seasons.

Seahawks key advantages on offense

Jourdan Lewis is not a great slot corner. Look for the Seahawks to target Jaxon Smith-Njigba a lot, who has been the team’s best receiver the last month.

Cowboys Offense vs Seahawks Defense

Cowboys key advantages on offense

You guessed it. All of them. Dak Prescott has recovered from getting dismissed after the loss to the 49ers by playing some of the best ball of his career. He is operating the offense with tons of confidence and precision.

Seahawks key advantages on defense

The Cowboys target CeeDee Lamb a ton (104 times). He gets almost twice the targets of the next-closest player, tight end Jake Ferguson (58 targets). Seattle has the corner talent to limit Lamb, which could challenge the Cowboys passing game. Teams have recently tried to isolate Bobby Wagner and Jordyn Brooks in coverage. The Cowboys will have a harder time doing that with the offense they run and the focus they put on a single player. Still, they will try to isolate Tony Pollard on a linebacker where possible.