After playing to a rousing tie against the Green Bay Packers in Week 4, the Dallas Cowboys are turning their attention to their Week 5 matchup with the New York Jets. While there’s no such thing as an easy game in the NFL (something that the Cowboys have shown as both Week 3 favorites and Week 4 underdogs), the Jets do present as an easier opponent than the Packers did.
The first thing Dallas fans will notice about New York is that big, circular number in their win column. While the Jets have been close in all but their Week 2 matchup against the Buffalo Bills, they just haven’t been able to finish the job and, thus, are 0-4.
As mentioned though, it’s not like they’ve been getting blown out most weeks. Outside of that 30-10 loss to the Bills, their other three losses have come by a combined ten points.
That includes blown opportunities against a talented Pittsburgh Steelers squad and a very good Tampa Bay Bucs team, but an inexplicable loss to the formerly 0-3 Miami Dolphins in Week 4. It seems like New York is one of those teams that plays to the level of their opponent, for better or (mostly) worse.
These close losses are to be expected for a first-time head coach, which the Jets have in Aaron Glenn. Still, frustrations are mounting quickly, as evidenced by Glenn apparently yelling loudly enough in the locker room post-game to be heard in the press room.
From the Cowboys perspective, this means things could go one of two ways: they could either be facing an extremely motivated opponent, eager to show that they’re not as bad as their record shows. Or, they could be playing a demoralized squad, already seeing their season has slipped away and demotivated to fix it.
New York, for all of their faults, are still professionals, so I’d lean more towards the former and Dallas seeing a team ready to come out of the gate strong. While this season may be a wash, everyone on the roster still has to prove they’re a viable player for next year.
But, if they do fall flat, it could be the perfect opportunity for a much-maligned Cowboys team to prove that they can indeed beat bad teams. And, if they do pull off the win, they could very well find a way to inexplicably and improbably be a .500 team through five games of what’s been a rollercoaster of a season.