Philadelphia at Dallas

In what is the biggest game of the weekend, the winner gets the NFC East Championship. For the Eagles, they move into the playoffs regardless of the outcome while Dallas needs a win here. The Eagles have sent a message over the last decade or so that when they play Dallas in the second meeting, they are able us an understanding gained from the first game in regards to how to stop the Cowboys’ attack. The last nine times these teams have squared off in their second meeting Dallas has been held to 7 points or less in six of them! That is regardless of where the game is, or who won the first one. The fact is that Dallas scores 8.4 ppg in the second meeting, while the Eagles score 24.9 ppg. That makes for a grand total of 33.3 ppg scored in the second meeting - a full two TDs beyond the lofty total posted for this one. Sure, Philadelphia's offense can score in bunches. But, the Dallas defense is one of the best in the league in keeping opponents off the scoreboard. Dallas has held teams to 16.7 points per game overall, 15.9 at home, and 12.3 over their last three games. Over the past two seasons, the Eagles are 6-0 UNDER on the road coming off an OVEr, and 9-1 UNDER after a game in which 50+ points were scored. With so much at stake, this should be an intense game and that often spells defense. Given that, and the history in this game, I like this game to go UNDER the total.