DALLAS (9-4) at NEW YORK GIANTS (4-9)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EST, Fox
BETTING LINE: Cowboys by 10 1/2, according to FanDuel SportsBook.
AGAINST THE SPREAD: Cowboys 10-3; Giants 6-7.
SERIES RECORD: Cowboys lead 70-47-2.
LAST MEETING: Cowboys beat Giants 44-20 on Oct. 10 at Arlington, Texas.
LAST WEEK: Cowboys beat Washington 27-20; Giants lost to Chargers 37-21.
COWBOYS OFFENSE: OVERALL (2), RUSH (6), PASS (4), SCORING (2).
COWBOYS DEFENSE: OVERALL (23), RUSH (15), PASS (23), SCORING (12).
GIANTS OFFENSE: OVERALL (25), RUSH (26), PASS (20), SCORING (T27).
GIANTS DEFENSE: OVERALL (26), RUSH (25), PASS (19), SCORING (21).
TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Cowboys plus-9; Giants plus-2
COWBOYS PLAYER TO WATCH: LB Micah Parsons is 2½ sacks from tying Jevon Kearse’s rookie record of 14½ with Tennessee in 1999. The first-round pick from Penn State has at least two sacks three times during his six-game run of at least one sack, two shy of Kearse’s rookie record of eight consecutive games. Parsons is the first rookie in 15 years to get at least 12 sacks and three forced fumbles.
GIANTS PLAYER TO WATCH: RB Saquon Barkley has struggled coming back from a torn ACL last season. He started slowly and seemed to get in gear against New Orleans with a game-winning TD run in overtime and 126 yards from scrimmage. He sprained an ankle against Dallas early in the next game and missed the next four. Barkley ran for a season-high 64 yards last week and caught three passes for 31 yards. This might be the week the old No. 26 returns.
KEY MATCHUP: With Leonard Williams nursing an arm injury, New York’s defensive line is going to be hard pressed to slow down the Cowboys. In the first meeting, Dallas ran all over the Giants, with Ezekiel Elliott gaining 110 yards on 21 carries, and the team rushing for 201 on 39 attempts.
KEY INJURIES: Cowboys LT Tyron Smith will miss his fourth game because of a left ankle injury. The perennial Pro Bowler was out three consecutive games earlier in the season and reinjured it Sunday. … The Cowboys hope backup RB Tony Pollard can return after missing a game with a foot injury. … WR Cedrick Wilson is likely out after entering COVID-19 protocols Monday. Giants QB Daniel Jones is likely to miss his third straight game with a neck injury. WR Kadarius Toney (oblique, COVID-19), CB Adoree Jackson (quad), S Xavier McKinney (COVID-19), CB Aaron Robinson (COVID-19) and DL Leonard Williams (triceps) are iffy.
SERIES NOTES: The only victory for New York since the start of 2017 was the only game Prescott missed. The Giants won 23-19 in Week 17 last season to stay alive in the playoff race. Washington won the NFC East title later that night, beating the Eagles. The Cowboys were eliminated with the loss.
STATS AND STUFF: Dallas is 3-0 against the NFC East and has a three-game division lead with four games remaining. No other NFL team is unbeaten in its division. … Coach Mike McCarthy is 2-0 in December, pushing his career record for the month to 40-19 (.678). The victories and winning percentage are better than any other month for McCarthy. … l Elliott has reached 100 yards rushing four times in 28 games since the start of 2020. It’s by far the longest sustained drought for the two-time rushing champ, who has been slowed by a troublesome right knee for weeks. … WR CeeDee Lamb needs 15 scrimmage yards for 2,000. He would join Pro Football Hall of Famer Bob Hayes as the only Dallas receivers to reach that mark in their first two seasons. … The Cowboys have already tied a club record with five defensive touchdowns. The most recent year with five was 2013. … CB Trevon Diggs, the NFL leader in interceptions with nine, has a shot at the third double-digit season in franchise history. The most recent was Everson Walls’ club-record 11 in 1981. … The Giants have lost two straight but won their last three at MetLife Stadium. … New York has had 11 players catch a touchdown pass this season. … The Giants rushed for 135 yards against the Chargers. … RB Devonte Booker ran for 56 yards and had 84 yards from scrimmage. … Evan Engram needs four catches to become the sixth TE in NFL history with 40 catches in each of his first five seasons. … TE Kyle Rudolph had a 66-yard catch against Los Angeles, the longest of his 11-year career. … WR Sterling Shepard had two catches for 27 yards in his return after missing four games with a quad injury. He has had at least seven catches and 75 yards in three of his last four at home. … LB Azeez Ojulari got a sack last week, extending his team rookie record to 7 1/2. … CB James Bradberry has a pass defense in all 13 games this season. … Second-year LB Tae Crowder needs four tackles for 100.
FANTASY TIP: Prescott is a bit of a gamble because he’s in a slump. Then again, going to New York could be the cure. In this past three visits, Prescott is averaging 325 yards passing per game with 10 touchdowns and one interception. He’s won eight in a row against the Giants since losing twice as a rookie in 2016 (two of Dallas’ three regular-season losses that year). His 20 TD passes against the Giants are his most against any team.
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AP Football Writer Schuyler Dixon contributed to this report
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