The 10 Keys to Beating the Colts

Coming off of a strong performance against the Saints on Thanksgiving day the Dallas Cowboys are actually being given a good shot to pull off the upset this week against the Colts. We've seen this team beat the Peyton Manning led Colts before but it seems like a lifetime ago that the Cowboys beat the undefeated Colts 21-14 in 2006. The Cowboys won't have Romo to run the offense this time around but the roster still has many of the same key components in place.

So what will it take to beat the Colts? The Colts aren't 9-0 like they were the last time the Cowboys faced them in 2006. But they still have Peyton Manning even if their record has slipped to 6-5. And the Colts have backed themselves into a corner by dropping two straight games to fall into a first place tie with the Jacksonville Jaguars. It is hard to imaging Manning having a third straight poor performance. The Cowboys will have to find a way to limit Manning's impact on the game. Here is what I think the Cowboys will need to do to beat the Colts.

1. Get off to a good start. Last week might have been a moral victory because the Cowboys refused to give up after quickly falling behind 17-0 against the Saints. Coming from behind is never easy and the Cowboys don't need to get in the habit of starting off slow.

2. Run the ball effectively. It looks like Marion Barber will be out with a calf injury so Tashard Choice should finally see the playing time he has been hoping for. And getting Choice on the field might help the running game considering how ineffective Barber has been all season. Felix Jones and Tashard Choice need to grind out first downs so the Cowboys can control the clock and keep Manning off the field.

3. Pressure Peyton Manning. The struggles that Manning has had over the last few games have primarily been due to pass rushers getting in his face early and often. Just like last week Anthony Spencer could be the difference maker in the game if he can finally break out of his season long slump.

4. Don't turn the ball over. It is cliche to say it but just look back to last week for evidence of what happens when you turn the ball over. Jon Kitna's early interception put the Cowboys in a hole that they had to spend nearly the entire game digging out of. And do I really need to mention how costly Roy Williams' fumble was?

5. Keep Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis away from Kitna. Part of this can be accomplished by keeping the defense honest with an effective run game. But Doug Free and Marc Colombo need to be at the top of their game this week to neutralize the pass rush of Freeney and Mathis.

6. Exploit the Colts cover 2 defense. This should be a big game for Jason Witten since the middle of the field is usually open against the cover 2. Kitna needs to work the middle of the field to force the Colts' safeties to come closer to the line of scrimmage to help stop Witten. That would open up the offense by freeing up Dez Bryant or Miles Austin on a deep route.

7. Be patient and consistent on offense. The Colts will force the Cowboys to march down the field on short and intermediate length plays. The Cowboys need to avoid penalties and negative plays to move the ball. If the Cowboys can move the ball early the Colts will be forced to adjust their defensive game plan which, again, will open up the field for the big play.

8. Don't allow Manning to beat you on big plays. The Cowboys did a good job for the most part last week against Drew Brees by forcing him to keep his throws underneath. But they gave up a huge play late in the game which turned out to be the difference in the game. Alan Ball and Gerald Sensabaugh need to be aggressive but smart against the pass. They can't let Reggie Wayne run free on the deep ball.

9. Stifle the Colts' running game. If the Cowboys can stuff the run early in the game the Indy offense will become one-dimensional. The Colts don't mind passing on every down if the run isn't working. If Ware and Spencer are free to get after Manning on every play they are sure to make some game changing plays during the game.

10. Make plays on special teams. The fumble that Reggie Bush gave up last week against the Saints was nearly the game winner for the Cowboys. The Cowboys need a big turnover or a big return at some point in the game to help out the offense.

If the Cowboys can achieve even half of these goals I believe they can win the game and actually win the game comfortably. I think Jason Garrett is just getting the momentum started and his resume will continue to grow with this game. I predict a 30-20 victory for the Cowboys.

Why Can't the Cowboys Win It All This Year?

Now I'm not saying that anything is guaranteed for the Dallas Cowboys this season. But what I am saying is...why not Dallas? Why not this year? Are the other playoff teams really that much better than the Cowboys?

Sure, you can say the Colts and Peyton Manning or the Cardinals and Kurt Warner have the experience edge over Tony Romo and the Cowboys. You can say the Vikings and the Saints are better than Dallas because they are the higher seeds in the NFC. You can say the Chargers beat the Cowboys late in the season. You can even argue that Brett Favre has seen it all so that gives him the edge.

But, realistically, the Cowboys are just as good as any other team remaining in the playoffs. The Cowboys have played the Saints and won. They played the Chargers and lost a close game. The majority of the core players on the team were here when the Cowboys beat the Colts and the great Peyton Manning a few years ago. There is no reason to believe that the Cowboys can't run the table.

Tony Romo is playing the best football of his career. The defense is peaking and really starting to play like the talent laden group that they are. Felix Jones is breaking out and may be on his way to star status if he keeps it up. All of the receivers are playing well...even Roy Williams looked pretty good last week. And, most importantly, the team has not lost a single player to a season ending injury this year.

That last statement is huge. What are the chances the Cowboys can go another season without a major season-ending injury to any player? Very, very slim. Every other team in the playoffs has lost not just players but starters to injuries. The Cowboys have the clear advantage on the injury front.

And the Cowboys have the confidence of a still somewhat young, but battle hardened team. Over the last few years the Dallas Cowboys have won and lost games in just about every way imaginable. But the key is that they seem to have finally put it all together and seem ready to finally take advantage of all of the talent on the roster. The Cowboys know how to win games no matter if it is a shootout, a defensive battle, or a game of evenly matched teams.

So maybe they won't win the Super Bowl this year. But maybe they will. No team left in the playoffs has a clear advantage over the Dallas Cowboys. It is just going to be a matter of which team plays the best football over the last month of the season. Who knows, it just might be the Dallas Cowboys. When was the last time you really believed that the Cowboys had a real shot to win it all? Probably not since the days of Aikman, Irvin, and Emmitt.

I'm going to sit back and enjoy the ride. Maybe, just maybe the Dallas Cowboys are going to make all of us happy and finish the year on top. It is nice to believe that could actually happen without feeling like I'm being delusional.