Romo needs this one.
What do two Cowboys’ teams from Wyoming and Dallas have in common? Aside from a similiar team name, they both are heavy underdogs against offensive juggernauts on this fine Saturday evening.
Both Wyoming and Dallas have played fairly tough schedules, as the former has reached a six win season through a highly talented Mountain West Conference, and the latter playing in the toughest division in the NFC.
Wyoming is a ten point ‘dog, and the odds of them pulling an upset against a highly experienced, well coached Fresno State squad is as likely as my girlfriend shoveling the abundance of snow expected on the Northeast coast. These Cowboys rely heavily on a platoon at the running back position, and only see bursts of playmaking ability from Alvester Alexander with six touchdowns on the season. David Leonard, the athletic wideout hauled in 70 catches this season, and could cause some problems for Fresno State’s secondary.
On the other side of the ball, it’s not pretty. Ryan Colburn made mince meat out of Western Athletic teams behind center, and tailback Ryan Matthews might be one of the best players you’ve never heard about this season. Seventeen touchdowns on the season and over 1600 yards, all piled on top of a bunch of highlight reel runs. And if you don’t believe me, ask the BCS bound Boise State Broncos:
WI give Wyoming no shot to win today – and when I mean no shot, I refer to my Yahoo! Pick ‘Em League and my respective assignment of all 34 confidence points to Fresno State winning easily today, I think the “other” Cowboys could seriously do damage on primetime.
Damage? Yes, damage. As in damaging the current 13 game winning streak of the New Orleans Saints. I like them to cover the touchdown spread, even if their pass defense is the definition of average. Tony Romo has played absolutely incredible over the two game December stretch that has been much discussed in Cowboys land, with 600+ yards and 5 touchdowns. Dallas has the run defense to make New Orleans one dimensional, and DeMarcus Ware returned to practice this week. Assuming he plays sparingly, they have the players to matchup with New Orleans on both sides of the ball, and are more importantly desperate for a win to stay alive in the playoff hunt.
How desperate you ask? Well, imagine you’re a Cowboys player. Walk over to your couch and turn on ESPN. I’m giving 2 to 1 odds that it’s about the Cowboys inability to win during Santa’s month, and quite frankly I’m imagining a very agitated you. New Orleans is a better team, but Dallas needs this one. The Cowboys should cover, and they have a shot to pull off a huge upset at the Superdome.
Just a quick note, Rutgers and UCF will play tonight at 8:00 eastern.
Travis Yost is a native New Yorker and recent Arizona State University product . He is the team beat writer for the Ottawa Senators over at Hockey Buzz, and covers all sports here at The Prose. 