After three games, they have struggled to find their consistency but at least found a way to get a road win at Cleveland.
That description works for the Cowboys and Giants, as they meet up in Week 4 for a Thursday night battle at the Meadowlands. The Cowboys beat Cleveland in Week 1 but have struggled in the last two home games as the Giants were 0-2 before a win at the Browns last week.
Here are the 10 big storylines for the week, with five for the Giants and five for the Cowboys.
Giants
- The Giants were able to avoid an 0-3 start by hanging on for a 21-15 win over the Browns last week in Cleveland. The win was rather impressive considering the start of the game couldn't have gone worse as the Giants fumbled away the opening kickoff and Amari Cooper scored on the ensuing play, giving the Browns a 7-0 lead just 11 seconds into the game. But the Giants buckled down and scored the next 21 points and used a stifling defense to get their first victory of the season.
- Wearing No. 1 for a reason, rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers isn't just the Giants' first-round pick, but he's definitely the best playmaker they have. Nabers looks like the real deal as he ranks second in the entire NFL with 23 catches and fifth in receiving yards with 271. No player in the league has more 20+ yard catches than Nabers, who has six. Last week, Nabers became the first player in NFL history to have 20+ catches, 250+ receiving yards and 3+ TD catches in his first three career games.
- Against the Browns, the Giants defense was off the charts, dominating a Deshaun Watson-led Cleveland offense. Led by Pro Bowl DT Dexter Lawrence, the Giants had 17 pressures and nine sacks. Lawrence was a beast in the middle, disrupting the Browns with four pressures and two sacks from the inside.
- In just three games, Daniel Jones has already doubled his season-total of TD passes this year. He has four, but obviously looks to be more improved than last season, when he played in just six games and threw only two touchdowns. Jones seems to be staying in the pocket more, averaging just 22.3 rushing yards per game. For his career, Jones has averaged 31.4 yards on the ground.
- Unlike the Cowboys, the Giants have some uncertainty with their kicker. Greg Joseph was signed off the Lions practice squad before last week's game in Cleveland. He missed a 48-yard field goal but hit on three extra points. The Giants recently placed veteran Graham Gano on injured reserve. After the game last week, Giants head coach Brian Daboll was non-committal on Joseph being the kicker for Thursday's game against Dallas.
Cowboys
- The last two weeks have been overly frustrating for the Cowboys – not just on the field but the players are voicing their displeasure through the media. In recent press conferences, both after the Ravens loss on Sunday and in the locker room Monday, a few of the veterans have discussed things such as accountability, details, practice habits and film sessions as things that could be corrected by the players and coaches. The finger-pointing hasn't been directed at specific players or coaches but Dak Prescott admitted he had a "bad practice" last Thursday beore the Ravens game. Jourdan Lewis said the players aren't "focused on the right details of every play" and added that these problems have existed in the past. Either way, wins usually cure those types of thoughts, making Thursday's game in New York even more important to right the ship.
- The Cowboys have the worst run defense in the NFL right now, ranking dead last with an 185.7 yards allowed per game. That comes off the heels of a 273-yard day by the Ravens. What is hurting the Cowboys the most are runs off the edge, either by the runners or the quarterback and that's something NYG's Daniel Jones and Devin Singletary could exploit on Thursday.
- On the flip side, the Cowboys offense went into the season with a "running back by committee" approach but so far after three games, it hasn't worked out. The team ranks 30th in the league with a 73.7 yard average per game. No player on the team has yet to hit the 100-yard mark as Rico Dowdle is the leader with 88 yards. Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones said on Tuesday morning on 105.3 'The Fan' that he doesn't anticipate veteran Dalvin Cook being elevated from the practice squad on a short week to play Thursday night.
- The one bright spot to this team right now has been Brandon Aubrey, who looks to be the best kicker in the NFL right now. Not only has he made all 10 field goal attempts and five extra points, but he's 5-for-5 on 50-yard kicks, which a 65-yarder last week, the longest in Cowboys history and the second-longest in NFL history.
- With the Cowboys desperately needing a win this week, could this be the perfect opponent for Dak Prescott? While it's hard to carry over success from one season to another, Dak seemingly has done that year over year against the Giants. Since losing two games to New York during his rookie season in 2016, Prescott has won 12 straight games over the Giants. Last year, he led the Cowboys to a combined 89-17 in two wins over the Giants. In those 12 total wins, the Cowboys' average margin of victory has been 16.9.
