Washington Football Team vs Dallas Cowboys Prediction, Betting Odds, Picks

• The 6-8 Washington Football Team is having a tough time fighting a Covid spread
• The Cowboys are maintaining a decent balance of pass and run with their playmakers
• Against NFC opponents, Dallas has prevailed in each of the last eight matchups

Washington vs Cowboys Odds

Odds taken from Caesars Sportsbook. Click on the links below to head to the sportsbook and place your bet.

Washington vs Cowboys Pick

It’s always a good idea to take the Cowboys in Arlington, their offense perfectly capable of covering this spread against Washington.

The 6-8 Washington Football Team is having a tough time-fighting Covid, with much of their team roster still waiting to clear the proper protocols so they can play in this critical NFC East matchup with the Cowboys, so it could be practice squad QB Garrett Gilbert under center again since both Taylor Heinicke and his backup Kyle Allen are still questionable to play.

A major key for this 10-4 Dallas Cowboys to win is to play complementary football, effective on all three sides of the ball while maintaining a decent balance of pass and run with their healthy playmakers – QB Dak Prescott and RB Zeke Elliott and WR Amari Cooper – this group hoping not to fall for a trap game against whatever version of this Washington team shows up.

These two NFC East rivals have faced each other 123 prior times (including 2 postseason games), with the Dallas Cowboys winning 74 of those games and the Washington Football Team winning 47 of the games, plus there have been two ties.

Washington Football Team vs Dallas Cowboys Predictions

Can Washington Recover From its Recent Covid-19 Outbreak?

There are still eight Washington players on the Covid-19 reserve list and currently listed as questionable for this game, but there were even more last week, so much so that their game with Philly had to be pushed back to Tuesday (the lost to the Eagles by a score of 17-27).

The main problem right now is who to start under center since both Taylor Heinicke and his backup Kyle Allen is still listed as questionable to play due to Covid, so they cannot even practice in person with the team until they clear the new protocols now in place.

That means the job of QB could be up to Washington’s practice squad hurler Garrett Gilbert, the four-year pro who filled in against Philadelphia on Tuesday and completed 20 passes for 194 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions, but at least he will get practice snaps this week.

Can the Cowboys Continue to Play Complimentary Football?

With all the injuries that the Dallas Cowboys have had to face this season, it is no wonder that head coach Mike McCarthy was struggling to get his team to play complementary football, where each phase of the game – offense, defense, and special teams – plays at peak level.

The Cowboys have been on a three-game winning streak and much of the credit for that goes to Dallas’ playmakers getting healthy, since having guys like Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper on the field is critical to the ongoing game plan, their absence earlier affecting team play.

Now that most of the Cowboys roster is healthy and the team is fighting for that number one NFC playoff seed that the Packers are holding onto right now, expect them to come out in full force to earn a divisional win over this decimated Washington Football Team.

Washington Key Player: (WR) Terry McLaurin

A rising star on the Washington Football Team roster is wide receiver Terry McLaurin, a former Ohio State Buckeye who has been in the league for three seasons now (all with Washington) and is becoming a go-to target for whoever is under center.

McLaurin has decent size for a pro receiver – 6’ 0” and 210 pounds – and is a speedy route runner who can get open against single and zone coverage, right now with 63 receptions on the season for 859 yards and 5 touchdowns averaging 61.4 receiving yards per game.

With the role of the quarterback being heavily affected by Covid this week, it becomes important for McLaurin to step for whatever player gets the job, but the good news is he will be facing the Cowboy’s 24th ranked pass defense that allows 245 yards through the air every game.

Cowboys Key Player: (RB) Ezekiel Elliott

If Ezekiel Elliott can stay healthy, he and his new backfield sidekick Tony Pollard can be an integral part of the Cowboy’s December offense, with some games being played in winter weather that is more conducive to the run game than throwing passes against the wind.

Zeke Elliott is a former OSU player who has been in the NFL since 2016 (all six seasons with the Cowboys) and he is a patient runner who can find the slightest of creases to slip through, this year with 201 carries for 862 yards and 9 touchdowns averaging 4.3 yards per carry.

The dual-threat Elliott can also catch passes and often serves as QB Dak Prescott’s check down the receiver, this year with 59 targets and 44 catches for 265 yards and 1 touchdown, a fast runner who is tough to tackle after the catch, a weapon OC Kellen Moore will use on Sunday.

How to Watch Washington vs Cowboys