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The Giants vs. Cowboys spread for Week 14 of the 2011 NFL season had Dallas as a -3.5 favorite. This line has dropped a half point in recent days. You can bet this game at Sportsbook.com. Receive up to $250 CASH when you open an online betting account today (based on initial deposit).
Sportsbook.com Line & Total: Dallas -3.5 & 49
Opening Line & Total: Cowboys -4 & 50
One of the league’s most entertaining division series continues Sunday night when Dallas hosts the slumping Giants.
Both teams are coming off heart-breaking losses, as the Giants allowed the Packers to score in the final minute to beat them, and the Cowboys lost in overtime after botching clock management issues led to missing a potential game-winning field goal in regulation. New York suffered its fourth straight defeat since beating New England, and Dallas is now 1-5 ATS in its past six games. These teams have played tight and high-scoring affairs in the past two seasons with the total points adding up to New York 125 and Dallas 123 (31.3 to 30.8 PPG). This week, the Cowboys are in much better shape physically than the banged-up Giants, and are outscoring opponents by an average of 12.2 PPG at Cowboys Stadium this year.
Eli Manning has not been Mr. December is his career, posting a 14-18 record, 55% completion rate and a 75.4 passer rating in the game’s final month. But his career numbers against the Cowboys tell a different story. In 13 career meetings, Manning has completed 60% of his passes for 3,106 yards (239 YPG), 26 TD and 17 INT. New York has the worst rushing offense in the NFL (84 YPG), which doesn’t help alleviate any of the burden on Manning to carry his team. Top RB Ahmad Bradshaw returned to the field last week, but gained only 47 yards on 13 touches. He could have another rough day against the Cowboys ninth-ranked rush defense (101 YPG).
Like Manning, Tony Romo has also been a poor December player, going 9-13 with 206 passing YPG, 22 TD and 20 INT in the last month of the calendar year. He’s 5-5 lifetime versus New York, posting a 95.4 career rating against the G-Men (17 TD, 10 INT). Romo’s top WR Miles Austin (hamstring) will probably not be back on the field, but Laurent Robinson has been a huge fill-in for Austin, catching 28 passes for 393 yards and seven touchdowns in the past six games. New York has the fourth-worst passing defense in football (260 YPG) with several injuries on defense. RB DeMarco Murray has come down to earth after his sensational four-game stretch (601 rushing yards), as he has been held to 198 rushing yards on just 3.4 YPC in the past three weeks.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
