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A quick review of the latest power rankings, where they rank the Cowboys, and where they rank the rest of the NFC East.
It's Giants week in Cowboys Nation, and as a special feature for the upcoming game, our power rankings today feature the comments for both the Cowboys and the Giants from this week's roundup of the latest power rankings, and a little farther down you can see how that compares to the rest of the NFC East.
Giants: No. 11 (5)
The Cowboys haven’t given us any reason to drop them from the top spot, and last week’s sloppy win only further bolsters their case as the best team. They showed they can win against a stout defense even when they struggle to move the ball on offense. The Cowboys are the team to beat until proven otherwise. The Giants simply aren’t as good as their record indicates, and Sunday’s loss proved that. For the second straight week, one of their top receivers went catch-less – first Sterling Shepard and now Victor Cruz. That shows they’re becoming reliant on Odell Beckham Jr., and it’s not exactly working. They need to get more creative and spread the ball around. That begins with Ben McAdoo and Eli Manning.Giants: No. 8 (4)
They won ugly at Minnesota, but it counts the same. Now comes a tough one against the Giants on the road. Eli Manning had a rough go of it at Pittsburgh. But now they have a tough turnaround against the Cowboys.Giants: No. 10 (5)
What a fugly game last Thursday in Minnesota. From the color rush to the discombobulated offense to the botched calls (fumbles that weren't fumbles; the Cowboys losing an important pick on a bogus hands-to-the-face flag that was actually caused by the offensive player; the blow to the head not called on the final two-point conversion), the TNF contest was not this sport's finest moment. Still, Dallas has shown it can win ugly, including Dak Prescott not making much downfield through the air but being able to extend drives scrambling. Even if Tony Romo is still better, that element of quarterbacking has not been seen on the Cowboys since the halcyon days of Quincy Carter. A gratuitous Quincy Carter mention ... I might have just jinxed this team. Not much the Giants could do Sunday. Stop the Steelers' offense? Not exactly. Jump-start their own offense. No dice. While New York owns the better record, there was little question left on the field as to who the better team was on Sunday. Thus, Big Blue plummets to the 10th spot in these here rankings. Many commenters called into question the No. 5 ranking last week, imploring me to drop this team based on a creampuff sked. While I think we still will hear from Eli Manning, Odell Beckham Jr. and Sterling Shepard this December, the readers saw it right with the Giants. Let's see how they handle the Week 14 Cowboys, a whole different animal than the Week 1 Cowboys.Giants: No. 11 (5)
Dez Bryant knows what playoff football is like. Jason Witten knows what playoff football is like. But Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott don't. So look at Thursday night’s down-to-the-wire battle in Minnesota as a litmus test. The top team in my power rankings passed it—barely. Was it pretty? Hell no. Elliott found little running room against the Vikings front seven. Prescott needed to pull off some late-game heroics just to get the lead. And the refs gave Dallas’ mistake-averse defense a big assist. Each obstacle was leapt over. Veteran Cowboys know it’ll be tough sledding come January. Now, Dallas’ biggest stars do too. Big Blue got fat off the chewy center that was its midseason schedule. Now it has to digest the tough stuff. Six straight wins masked all of New York’s early-season offensive struggles. A team like the Steelers, though, represented a step up in competition and a true test for the offensive line. That line failed in Week 13. Left tackle Ereck Flowers held in the end zone for a safety, while backup and interior linemen couldn’t push Pittsburgh off the ball in the run game (Rashad Jennings had 19 rushing yards).Giants: No. 10 (10)
Dallas is about a field goal favorite at the Giants this week. Which means they’ll be favored in every remaining regular-season game (at Giants, vs. Buccaneers, vs. Lions, at Eagles). Are we going to get a 15-1 team for a second straight season? Victor Cruz was not happy immediately after getting no targets in a loss to the Steelers, though he backtracked a bit on Monday. Cruz isn’t what he once was, but he’s probably right – it’s a little strange he was ignored completely on Sunday.Giants: No. 10 (4)
After two straight Thursday games, the Cowboys get a mini-bye before playing the Giants on Sunday night at the Meadowlands. They’ve already clinched a playoff spot and they have a three-game lead in the NFC East. But the Cowboys still must secure the top seed in the NFC playoffs, and they’re seeking to avenge their lone defeat of the season, at home to the Giants in the opener. If Peyton Manning has any pointers this week for facing the Dallas defense, brother Eli probably shouldn’t listen.Giants: No. 14 (10)
The Cowboys clinched a playoff berth in Week 13 and won their Thursday night game at Minnesota despite season lows in points, yards and third-down conversions. Dallas gets a chance to avenge its only loss this season when it takes on the Giants on Sunday night in Week 14. The 24 points allowed by the Giants in Week 13 were their most allowed in two months. The defense will keep them in games, but QB Eli Manning and his team can't have so many empty possessions, especially against the 11-1 Cowboys on Sunday night.Giants: No. 9 (6)
Dallas might have already clinched a playoff spot, but it still isn't worthy of the top spot as long as the Evil Empire keeps winning too. Dak Prescott and Zeke Elliott will look to exact revenge against the only team to beat them (Giants) this year when they come to MetLife Stadium this weekend. Ben McAdoo's squad tumbles three spots after Eli & Co. did a whole lot of nothing in Pittsburgh to snap their six-game winning streak. The Giants have been winning white knucklers all season. Were they a mirage all along? We'll find out a lot more when the Dak & Zeke Show rolls into town on Sunday.
For your continued amusement, the table below summarizes the power rankings for the NFC East.
Wk 13
Wk 13
Wk 13
Wk 13
FoxSports
1
11
12
24
CBS
1
8
14
23
NFL.com
1
10
11
25
Shutdown Corner
1
10
11
24
ESPN
1
14
13
20
Washington Post
1
10
18
26
SB Nation
1
11
12
21
B/R
1
11
13
26
NY Daily News
2
9
13
- -
Average 1.1
10.4
13.0
23.6
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