Here’s the key to NY Giants beating each NFC East team this season

Key to NY Giants beating Dallas Cowboys: Executing in the run game

You can’t fault the Dallas Cowboys too much for their underwhelming offensive output in 2020.

Losing quarterback Dak Prescott for the year to an injury early in the season put them behind the 8-ball under center, and the offensive line was never healthy either.

Expecting all of the skill position weapons to overcome that is an unfair ask. Ezekiel Elliot wasn’t going to drag a team with Ben DiNucci as the starter to a winning record even in the NFC East, and CeeDee Lamb wasn’t going to somehow excel in his rookie season after having his first NFL training camp drastically altered by COVID-19 and then lining up beside four different quarterbacks in his first year in the pros.

The offense should return to pre-Prescott injury normalcy if Dak can still perform at the level he had prior to his right ankle fracture. What isn’t known yet is if the defense could improve on a historically poor season in the Metroplex.

2020 saw the team give up the most points in a single season in franchise history, and the team’s second-worst run defense was a major catalyst as to why.

Saquon Barkley was absent for both matchups last year due to an ACL tear, but his return could produce highlight reel runs if the Giants can bully the weak defensive front of the Cowboys and punish them in the run game like teams did to the tune of over 2,500 rushing yards in 2020.