Los Angeles Rams @ Dallas Cowboys Preview 12/15/19: Analysis, Daily Fantasy

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The Los Angeles Rams are heading to Dallas to take on the Cowboys this Sunday. The Rams have been on a roll lately, and their offense is looking strong. They’ve scored 62 points total over the last 2 weeks and have over 455 yards in each of those two games. A lot of this increased production is due to an increased use of Gurley, who has close to 100 yards in 2 of their last 4 games. While the Rams have been on the up lately, the Cowboys have been moving the opposite. The Cowboys have lost their last 3 games and fallen into a losing record of 6-7. They still have one of the most productive offenses in the league, but their defense has been their downfall. I don’t think their defense will be able to contain the Rams especially if they’re playing at the high level they have been over the past two weeks. Click here for more details and betting information on the Los Angeles Rams @ Dallas Cowboys matchup.

TV Schedule

Date: Sunday, December 15, 2019
Time: 1:25 PM PST
Location: AT&T Stadium, Dallas, TX
Coverage: FOX

Injury Report

Rams: Gerald Everett (Q)
Cowboys: Michael Bennett (Q), Sean Lee (Q), Leighton Vander Esch (O)

Los Angeles Rams Analysis

Lately, the Rams have been looking like the Rams of last year. Over the past two weeks they’ve scored a total 62 points and have over 455 yards in each of those games. A big reason for this is their increased use of Todd Gurley. In weeks 1-10 he didn’t have a single game with over 20 touches. This was a very confusing thing for Rams fans, as they claimed Gurley was at full health. Over the past 4 games the Rams have played, Gurley has had 19 or more touches in 3 of them. The Rams won all three of these games. Basically, the more the Rams use Gurley, the better they are. This shouldn’t come as a surprise given how dominant he was last season. The Cowboys have been in the bottom half of the league against the rush, allowing 109.8 yards per game. With Gurley running the ball as well as he has been lately, I’m expecting the Rams to lean on the rush. The Cowboys have been tough against the pass this year, so Gurley and the Rams running game will be especially important this weekend.

The Rams have a tougher matchup on defense. The Cowboys get an average 430.8 yards per game, the most among teams in the league, and score the 9th most points per game with 25.7. With Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey the Rams have been tougher to throw against this season. They’ve allowed an average 221.2 yards through the air per game. On average the Cowboys throw the for the most yards per game this season, so it’ll still be a tough one for the Rams. The Rams have been worse against the run but still pretty good, allowing 99.4 yards per game on average, the 12th fewest in the league. Their main concern is going to be the passing game, which will surely give them trouble. I think they’ll be able to put up enough points to outscore the Cowboys, however, and take the win in this matchup.

Los Angeles Rams Depth Chart

QB: Jared Goff
RB1: Todd Gurley
RB2: Malcolm Brown
WR1: Brandin Cooks
WR2: Robert Woods
WR3: Cooper Kupp
TE: Gerald Everett

Dallas Cowboys Analysis

Whether the Cowboys are actually a “good team” has been up for debate this season, probably a lot more than the Cowboys would like to be seeing. The Cowboys are 6-1 against teams below .500, and 0-6 against teams that are above .500. They haven’t beaten a winning team yet, and if this trend is to continue, they’re set to lose against the 8-5 Rams. However, in football, statistics like this aren’t damning. The Cowboys can still beat the Rams, and I think they have a pretty good chance to do it. The Rams are a top10 pass defense, which will surely slow down the Cowboys passing attack. But, the Cowboys throw for an average 306.8 yards every game, the most in the league. I think Dak and the Cowboys are going to have a big one against the weak Rams secondary despite their defensive success. The Rams have been tough against the run, but definitely not shut down. They allowed the Ravens to rush for 285 yards so clearly there’s still potential for Elliott to have a big game on the ground, but I think the Cowboys will be focused more on throwing the ball.

Where the Cowboys have the biggest potential to lose this game is on defense. The Rams have been on fire lately, and if they can’t contain them they’ll be outscored. Gurley has been incredibly productive as of late and the Cowboys have been lacking against the run. They allow an average 109.8 yards on the ground per game, the 14th most in the league. Gurley will surely have a big game if the Cowboys don’t make a change. The Cowboys have had a tougher pass defense, so if they can get Goff to throw some interceptions like he was prone to in the middle of the season and get the ball out of the Rams’ hands they’ll be looking great.

Dallas Cowboys Depth Chart

QB: Dak Prescott
RB1: Ezekiel Elliott
RB2: Tony Pollard
WR1: Amari Cooper
WR2: Michael Gallup
WR3: Randall Cobb
TE: Jason Witten

Daily Fantasy

I’m expecting a big game for Gurley, so if he’s on your roster I highly suggest a start. The Cowboys allow an average 109.8 rushing yards per game, and Gurley has had some near 100-yard games over the past few weeks so I’m expecting them to feed him. Especially considering the Cowboys have a strong pass defense, the case for Gurley getting the ball a lot is a pretty good one. The Cowboys are matched up against a tougher Rams secondary, but they throw for the most yards per game on average across the entire league, so I wouldn’t expect a shutdown. Cooper could still have a big game as well as receivers like Gallup or Cobb who have had some big games this season. Ezekiel Elliott could also have a big game considering the Rams allowed 285 yards to the Ravens, but I don’t know if the Cowboys can be as productive as that so I wouldn’t bet on him considering the Rams have a pretty tough rush defense.