NFL Week 2: Dallas Cowboys v. New York Giants – What to look for

A huge game goes down tonight at the Death Star (Cowboys Stadium). In other news, the sun rose in the East today.

After the jump, here’s a few things to look for in tonight’s game between the New York Football Giants and your Dallas Cowboys.

Look for Tony Romo to light up a banged-up secondary. On the New York Giants’ injury report this week, four members of the secondary were listed. CB Aaron Ross? Out. CB Kevin Dockery? Questionable. S Kenny Phillips? Questionable. S Michael Johnson? Probable. If Dockery and Phillips aren’t at 100%, Romo and the Dallas Cowboys have enough weapons to give that Giants defense headaches. But…

Look for Romo to be hassled by the Giants’ speed rush. Unfortunately for the Cowboys, neither Justin Tuck nor Osi Umenyiora are listed on the injury report. While the line for the Cowboys is currently healthy, it’s going to be critical for them to have a good game in order to keep Tony Romo upright. Last time these teams met, Romo was basically a punching bag for the New York Giants’ D, but the Boys were able to win, because…

Look for the Cowboys defense to focus on stopping Brandon Jacobs. The New York Giants have a decent bunch of receivers. Mario Manningham, Domenik Hixon, Steve Smith and tight end Kevin Boss give Eli Manning enough weapons to challenge a defense. But the focal point of the Giants’ offense is still their running game. Brandon Jacobs is one of the biggest bruisers among NFL running backs and Ahmad Bradshaw is a great change of pace. Look for the Cowboys linebackers to be fired up and play much better games than they did last week.

Look for the Dallas Cowboys to gain a home-field advantage. A lot has been written, said and argued about Cowboys Stadium. But one thing that people aren’t really talking about is what the sheer mass of humanity could mean for the Cowboys’ performance. With more than 100,000 people going to be there, the Mothership is going to be loud. If the Cowboys don’t get fired up for this game, we should really check on whether these guys are even human. So…

Look for the Dallas Cowboys to come out on top. This game is going to be a real season-definer for the Cowboys. A win this week against the Giants, and 5-0 should be expected. 7-0 even looks like a possibility. Did the Cowboys look great last week against Tampa? No. But this team has a great record on NBC’s Sunday Night Football (8-2), and Romo has never lost to the Giants in the regular season as a starter (4-0).

Prediction: Dallas Cowboys 27, New York Giants 21