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While it isn’t saying much, the Dallas Cowboys will face their toughest 2019 challenge yet Sunday night at the Superdome.
The New Orleans Saints, even after losing future first-ballot Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees, sit at 2-1 and welcome undefeated Dallas to one of the league’s toughest environments, hoping to spoil what’d be the first 4-0 start of the Jason Garrett era.
Like moving from JV to varsity, the level of competition is about to skyrocket for the Cowboys, who enjoyed tuneup games against the hapless Giants, Redskins and Dolphins. The Saints are an extremely disciplined club with a still-potent offense and hard-hitting defense, skilled enough to cause a discombobulation on primetime television.
Are the Cowboys planning accordingly for Sean Payton and company? You bet.
Are they worried about toppling New Orleans? You know better.
“We’re excited to go out there and compete every week, go out there and get better,” star running back Ezekiel Elliott said Wednesday, per The Athletic. “But we know we have a big test this Sunday and we got to be clicking on all cylinders to go out there and get this win.”
Elliott was asked whether the team required added motivation to emerge victorious in the Big Easy.
“I don’t think we need any extra juice,” he said.
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Tank Weighs In
Citing the Cowboys’ 13-10 win over the Saints in 2018, defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, like Zeke, has no fear regarding the Week 4 showdown of NFC powerhouses.
Despite a stellar effort last week, Teddy Bridgewater isn’t Brees. Nowhere close. But even if he was, Lawrence has adopted a been-there-done-that approach to opposing field generals, many of whom he’s personally escorted to the turf.
“We wear this three-letter word on our shirts and it’s ‘IDM.’ It means, ‘It doesn’t matter.’ So we played Brees last year and we came out with the win. Now we got Teddy Bridgewater and we got to come out with the win,” he said Wednesday, via ESPN.com. “It really doesn’t matter who we’re playing. It’s all about doing our job.”
Elliott Gushes Over Pollard
The two-headed monster that is Elliott and rookie sensation Tony Pollard are fresh off becoming the first Cowboys RBs since 1998 to each total 100 yards rushing in a single game. They’re already established among the NFL’s top duos, but Elliott, the richest back in history, can’t claim all of the credit.
“He’s just got juice. He’s physical. He’s fast. He runs angry. He runs with a chip on his shoulder,” Elliott said of Pollard, via The Athletic.
The pair should find success against a Saints defense that ranks 26th against the run, surrendering 134.3 yards per game. Establishing the run will set up the pass for Dak Prescott, who’s facing the third-worst secondary (301.7 YPG) and a sieve for points (27.3 per game, 26th in NFL).
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Follow Zack Kelberman on Twitter: @KelbermanNFL
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