Caption (credit: www.dallascowboys.com)

The Dallas Cowboys are on the road again this week and will be invading the Meadowlands. A bye week has allowed this team to get some badly needed rest.   Jason Garrett takes his posse into the unfriendly confines of MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey for the week 12 matchup. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. Central Time/5:30 p.m. Pacific Time and will be broadcast live on NBC.

The Cowboys will come into New Jersey with the momentum of a 7-3 record. This is a divisional rival and Dallas must bring their “A” game to the Meadowlands.

In their first meeting of the season, the Cowboys defeated the New York Giants at AT&T Stadium by a score of 31-21.

Eli Manning had managed to win in his first four visits to AT&T Stadium, but Dallas has whipped the Giants on their last two visits there. Manning threw five interceptions last week and will try to make up for his mistakes against the Cowboys.

This game will welcome back defensive linemen Tyrone Crawford and Josh Brent. Crawford has been a constant threat to opposing quarterbacks this season and should be immediately inserted into the starting lineup after missing the last game with a knee injury. It will be interesting to see exactly how many plays Rod Marinelli has Brent in the rotation, if any at all.

Caption (credit: www.dallascowboys.com)

This will be the first time this season that Dallas has had all their entire defensive linemen healthy. Henry Melton has come back to life and has become a real force in the middle of the field. Having the big bodies at the one-technique position will only help Melton’s game. With the recent return of pass rushing specialist, rookie DeMarcus Lawrence, the front four will keep Eli Manning longing for the end of this season.

Rolando McClain will be ready to re-assume his role as the “Mike” linebacker. With that being stated, look for rookie Anthony Hitchens to get his fair share of snaps in this game. Hitchens looks like the real deal. He has stepped up and played beyond his rookie experience. Hitchens has played snaps at all three linebacker positions this season. Assistant director of personnel Will McClay and his crew did an excellent job of scouting this player from Iowa.

The injury to rookie cornerback Tyler Patmon will force the Cowboys’ hand into replacing the cornerback with either Micah Pellerin or Jakar Hamilton. The secondary will have its work cut out for them with the challenge of covering rookie Odell Beckham Jr. and Rubin Randle. Patmon has a knee/ankle injury which will sideline him for at least another two weeks.

Other than Patmon missing, and Tony Romo taking his usual Wednesday off, the Cowboys are back at full staff.

Tony Romo will be ready to put up big numbers on this Giant’s defense once again. He will be helped out by his massive starting offensive line and the running game.

This will be a huge game for Dallas Cowboy running backs. Expect DeMarco Murray to continue his monstrous season on Sunday.

Dez will need to get involved early against New York. Scott Linehan’s ability to dial up plays for Dez in the early stages of this game will open up the ground game and keep the Giants off balance and out of rhythm. Expect Jason Witten and Gavin Escobar to take pressure off the wide receivers by clearing the center of the field.

The Cowboys cannot afford to take the Giants lightly. There are six games left in the 2014 campaign, Dallas needs to take advantage of every single opportunity.

Expect the troops to circle the wagons, make their presence felt and handily defeat Tom Coughlin’s gang on their own turf.

Sports-Kings/Down and Distance contributor Whitebear560 – Whitebear560.com – Whitebear560 Facebook – @Whitebear560 Twitter