by John Breech
Dallas (6-4) at New England (9-1)
4:25 p.m. ET (CBS)
Point spread: Patriots -6.5
If Roger Goodell could handpick the Super Bowl this year, I'm guessing he would go with these two teams, and that's because a Cowboys-Patriots game would likely break every TV ratings record known to man. Since 50 percent of the country's population is either a
Cowboys or Patriots fan and the other 50 percent of the country would be hate-watching the game, that means 100 percent of the country would be watching. I think that's how that works. Hopefully 100 percent of the country is also watching this Sunday since the game is on CBS. I'll definitely be watching, but that's mostly because CBS is the only channel I ever watch. My contract stipulates that I'm only allowed to watch CBS and Christmas movies on the Hallmark Channel, in case you're wondering what I do with my free time.
By the way, on a somewhat related note, if I could hand pick the Super Bowl this year, it would be
Steelers versus
Browns and no one would be allowed to wear a helmet, but that Super Bowl isn't technically possible since both teams are in the AFC so let's move on, because I'm getting sidetracked here. I need to get to this pick before I forget which game I'm picking.
This might not be the best game of the week on paper -- that honor probably goes to Packers-49ers -- but this is definitely the most fascinating game.
For one, although you might not know it by their 9-1 record, the Patriots have been struggling on offense. As a matter fact, New England has been so bad on offense this year that the normally chipper
Tom Brady got kind of short with the media after New England's 17-10 win over the Eagles on Sunday.
To be fair, I'd be dejected too if I took the hits that Brady took against the Eagles. The Patriots offensive line hasn't been great this year, and one of their biggest weaknesses has been left tackle
Marshall Newhouse.
Does Marshall Newhouse know that his quarterback is 42 years old and can't afford be taking hits like that? I don't care how pliable Brady is, if he keeps getting hit like that, the Patriots aren't going to be able to do anything on offense, and I don't expect them to do much in this game.
As for the Cowboys, they're one of the few teams in the NFL that can actually attack the Patriots defense the way that the Ravens did; you know, the one team that actually beat the Patriots this year. The Cowboys have the quarterback, the running back and the wide receivers to be able to move the ball on New England, and the scary part for the Patriots is that the Cowboys offense might have more talent than Baltimore's (the Ravens offense is definitely better coached, but the Cowboys probably have more overall talent). If the Patriots defense has had one weakness this year, it's stopping the run, so I'm fully expecting Jason Garrett to copy the Ravens' game plan, which is smart for two reasons. For one, that means Garrett won't have to come up with a game plan of his own, which is arguably a good thing for Dallas. And two, the Ravens game plan worked, so why not use something similar.
Guys, I'm 10-0 picking Patriots games this year and I'm putting my perfect record on the line by picking against the Patriots.
The pick:
Cowboys 27-24 over Patriots
