The Dallas Cowboys are not in a position to waste favorable matchups.
At 2-3, with a defense still searching for answers and the NFC East already beginning to separate, Dallas heads to Lambeau Field on Sunday night needing a stabilizing win.
Normally, Green Bay would be exactly the kind of opponent that makes that difficult.
But this version of the Packers defense is badly depleted.
Micah Parsons still has not returned from the physically unable to perform list. Edgerrin Cooper is done for the season with a torn Achilles. Javon Hargrave is out after suffering his own Achilles injury. Several other defenders are either limited or missing practice.
For Dallas, that has to change the way this game is approached.
The Packers Are Missing Too Much Up Front
The biggest issue for Green Bay is not one injury. It is the accumulation.
The Packers already knew they would be without Cooper after the linebacker tore his Achilles in Week 4. Cooper had been one of Green Bay’s most disruptive defenders through the first month, recording 18 tackles, six tackles for loss, three sacks and an interception.
Then came Hargrave.
Green Bay lost Hargrave to an Achilles injury against Chicago, further thinning a front that was already trying to compensate for Cooper’s absence.
Parsons remains out as well. He has openly said he would play if this were the Super Bowl, but Reuters reported this week that Green Bay is still prioritizing his long-term recovery from ACL and MCL surgery over an emotional return against his former team.
That is the right decision for Green Bay.
It is also something Dallas should exploit immediately.
Dallas Has to Make Green Bay Defend the Run
If the Cowboys spend Sunday night asking Dak Prescott to throw 45 times into obvious passing situations, they will be making the game harder than it needs to be.
The better approach is obvious.
Run at the weakened middle of Green Bay’s defense.
Javonte Williams has been one of Dallas’ most productive offensive players through five weeks, and this is the kind of matchup where the Cowboys should make him a central part of the plan.
Green Bay’s injuries remove speed, power and tackling reliability from the front seven. Dallas should force the Packers to prove they can still hold up physically before turning this into a perimeter passing game.
That does not mean playing conservatively.
It means creating easier downs.
CeeDee Lamb‘s Health Gives Dallas Another Advantage
Dallas also enters the week with some encouraging injury news of its own.
The latest Packers-Cowboys injury report lists CeeDee Lamb as a full participant, along with tackle Tyler Guyton and several other Dallas starters.
That matters because if Green Bay has to commit extra bodies to the run, Lamb should see more favorable coverage outside.
George Pickens has also emerged as a reliable secondary threat, giving Prescott multiple ways to punish a defense that cannot afford to lose leverage.
This is the type of game where Dallas should be able to dictate matchups instead of reacting to them.
Green Bay Is Still Dangerous
None of this means the Cowboys should expect an easy night.
The Packers are 3-2. They are at home. Lambeau Field under the lights is never a forgiving environment.
Green Bay has also owned this matchup for much of the last decade. The Packers have gone 10-1-1 in the last 12 meetings between the teams, including the playoffs.
Jordan Love and Green Bay’s offense are more than capable of putting pressure on a Dallas defense that has struggled badly through five weeks.
That is exactly why the Cowboys cannot afford to leave points on the field.
Mike Pettine’s Arrival Adds Another Layer
Dallas also enters the game with Mike Pettine now on staff as a senior defensive assistant.
Pettine previously served as Green Bay’s defensive coordinator, which gives Dallas another set of eyes familiar with the Packers’ personnel, tendencies and environment.
That does not magically fix a defense that has been one of the league’s worst through five games.
But it does remove another excuse.
Dallas knows what is coming.
It knows where Green Bay is weakened.
It knows which matchups should be available.
Now the Cowboys have to execute.
This Is the Kind of Game Dallas Has to Win
A 2-3 team does not get to talk about favorable schedules or future opportunities.
It gets to deal with the game in front of it.
And the game in front of Dallas is against a Green Bay defense missing some of its most important players.
The Cowboys should attack the middle.
They should lean on Williams.
They should use the run to create better opportunities for Lamb and Pickens.
They should make Green Bay’s backups prove they can survive four quarters.
If Dallas does that and still loses, then the conversation becomes much more uncomfortable.
Because this is not a matchup the Cowboys should waste.
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