The Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys will face each other on Sunday in the NFC Divisional Round as Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers looks to overcome a calf injury.
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The Green Bay Packers rested in the opening playoff weekend due to clinching the No. 2 seed in the NFC and a first-round bye.
They will play the Dallas Cowboys in Sunday’s NFC Divisional Round game. The Cowboys escaped the Wild Card Round with a 24-20 win over the Detroit Lions, which was controversial due to a maligned call by the officials.
When the Lions were on a 3rd-and-1 play, the Cowboys had a pass interference penalty flag thrown at them before it was picked up and negated. The Lions eventually punted due to being in a 4th-and-6 situation.
Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo capitalized on this and threw the game-winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Terrance Williams.
He and running back DeMarco Murray will provide a major test for the Packers defense, as will wide receiver Dez Bryant. Murray and Bryant had relatively quiet performances against the Lions though, as Murray was held to 75 yards and a touchdown.
Bryant caught three passes for 48 yards. While the Packers defense will not be as much of a challenge, they are nothing to scoff at as they have allowed 19.6 points per game since their bye week. This would be a lot lower if not for a 37-point output by the Atlanta Falcons.
The Packers offense will be the most difficult challenge of all for the Cowboys though. Although quarterback Aaron Rodgers is nursing a calf injury, he will still be hard to stop along with running back Eddie Lacy, who had a fantastic December capped off by a 100-yard game against the Lions’ top-ranked run defense.
This game is expected to be an offensive shootout, but it will come down to which team turns the ball over the least. Rodgers has proven to be excellent at avoiding turnovers, as evidenced by throwing only five interceptions.
Prediction: Packers 28, Cowboys 20
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