Dallas Cowboys vs Seahawks: Facts and stats game preview for Week 13

This game against the Seattle Seahawks was supposed to be the start of the Dallas Cowboys playing their tough run of games. After stacking wins against inferior opponents, we were supposed to see what this version of the Cowboys was really made of, but the recent collapse of the Seahawks has put this game into a zone of its own.

Seattle is 6-5 on the year but have won only one game in their last four played, and that one was a very close win over the Washington Commanders . The team from the Pacific Northwest no longer resembles the one we thought were strong contenders in the NFC. The Cowboys can’t look past them or they will end up with an embarrassing loss, but a win at home for Dallas won’t be quite the victory it once looked like in they eyes of NFL observers.

DraftKings Sportsbook has the Cowboys as 8.5-point favorites over the Seahawks. It’s a game everyone thinks the Cowboys should win, but if they want to continue to put pressure on Philadelphia in the NFC East, it’s a game Dallas absolutely must win.

Dallas has played Seattle 21 times, with two of those games being playoff games. In the regular season, Dallas holds a 10-9 advantage, although the Seahawks have won the last four regular season meetings. The two teams have split the playoff games, with Dallas winning after the 2018 season, and Seattle winning the infamous ‘Tony Romo dropped extra-point’ game after the 2006 season. The last time they played each other was in 2020 with Seattle winning 38-31.

The good news for Dallas is this game is being played at home, where they have been juggernauts. The Cowboys have set an NFL record by winning their first five games at home this season by 20+ points. In a crazier stat, the Cowboys have never trailed at any point during a home game in 2023. The Dallas offense leads the NFL in points per game with 31.5. At home they average 41 points per game. Simply remarkable.

All of that offense is being driven by quarterback Dak Prescott. He is second in the NFL with 23 passing touchdowns. After leading the league in interceptions last season, Prescott has only thrown six this season. His 3.83 TD-to-INT ratio is second in the league.

At home, Prescott has a 129.3 passer rating, second-best in that category. The last three times the Cowboys have played at home, Prescott has over 300 yards passing and four passing touchdowns in each game. If he can match those stats this week, he will become the first quarterback ever to do that in four straight home games.

Prescott has multiple touchdown passes in five straight games, which currently is the longest streak in the NFL. Tony Romo holds the Cowboys’ franchise record with seven straight games of multiple touchdown passes.

As good as the offense has been, the defense has been kicking in too. They have six defensive touchdowns on the season, tying the 2021 team for the most in a season by a Cowboys team. They have six games to go to break the record. Turnovers and a scoring defense have become a thing in Dallas since Dan Quinn took over as defensive coordinator. Dallas leads the league in defensive scores since 2021 with 15.

The main guy behind much of that? DaRon Bland. As we all know, he set the record for pick-sixes in a season (5) last week. He is one of five players ever to have 5+ non-offensive touchdowns in a season. J.J. Watt had five in 2014, Devin Hester had eight in 2007, and five in 2006, Roy Green picked up five in 1981, and Ken Houston accounted for five in 1971.

The Dallas secondary is currently third in interceptions with 12 so far this season. They are also second in the league by allowing only 167.2 yards passing per game. Their six touchdowns on defense leads the league.

Fast stats:

Despite what seems to be a down year for Tony Pollard, he only needs 98 scrimmage yards to reach 1,000 for the year. That would be his third consecutive season of 1,000+ scrimmage yards. Not only is Brandon Aubrey accurate on his field goals, but he is hitting them from distance, too. He has five field goals of over 50 yards so far, one more would tie him with Brett Maher for 50+ yard field goals by a Cowboys rookie. This might be a game to watch out for Michael Gallup. He has seven receptions for 155 yards against the Seahawks in two games. That is a 22.1 yards average on those receptions, plus he has a touchdown. Team comparison stats:

Scoring Avg. (NFL rank): Dallas - 31.5 (1) Seattle - 20.8 (19t)

Opp. Scoring Avg. (NFL rank): Dallas - 16.8 (4) Seattle - 22.6 (22)

Total Off. (NFL rank): Dallas - 377.6 (5) Seattle - 317.6 (21)

Rushing Off. (NFL rank): Dallas - 115.3 (13) Seattle - 95.8 (26)

Passing Off. (NFL rank): Dallas - 262.4 (5) Seattle - 221.8 (17)

Total Def. (NFL rank): Dallas - 276.3 (3) Seattle - 348.5 (23)

Rushing Def. (NFL rank): Dallas - 109.1 (13) Seattle - 117.7 (21)

Passing Def. (NFL rank): Dallas - 167.2 (2) Seattle - 230.7 (22)