Cowboys vs. 49ers Sunday Night Football Picks: Which Struggling NFC Team Gets the Win?

Once Dominant, Now Questionable

It’s everyone else who is getting injured as San Francisco’s healthiest wideout (Ricky Pearsall) is their rookie who was shot in the chest in a robbery attempt in August. As for the Cowboys, they just have regrets that they didn’t do more to put talent around Prescott after giving him the richest contract in NFL history at $60 million per season.

But for a couple of flagship franchises in the NFC, this is a stunning matchup of teams who were so dominant last year after meeting in the playoffs in both 2021 and 2022. Now, you just wonder if either is going to qualify for the tournament this season, but the winner of this game can get on track for that.

Dallas Is Playing Lousy Football

Last season, the Cowboys were so used to blowing out bad teams and losing to good teams. This year, they’ve found themselves down by huge margins at home against the Saints, Ravens, and Lions. They just squeaked by the Giants and Steelers in close wins.

But this team has had to deal with the 47-9 blowout loss to the Lions for an extra week after having their bye. That was the worst home loss in owner Jerry Jones’ career, and he has gone off the deep end by threatening the jobs of radio hosts in Dallas after the Cowboys became a laughingstock for their bad performance.

The problem is they are going to San Francisco this week, and the 49ers have been the bully for this team for the last three years with a 3-0 record in those matchups. Last season, even when Dallas was playing well, the 49ers blew them out 42-10 on Sunday Night Football in a game where Dak Prescott threw three interceptions.

That talented defense led by the likes of Nick Bosa and Fred Warner has stifled coach Mike McCarthy’s “slants and flats” offense, and that was even when the Cowboys had better offensive talent than they do now. The backfield is weak, and the wide receivers aren’t anything special once you get past CeeDee Lamb. Dallas’ lack of money and refusal to find a way to create cap space and sign some better players has really hamstrung the roster and results this season.

The Cowboys couldn’t even score a touchdown at home against Detroit last time, and that’s not exactly a stout defense. The 49ers have their share of issues, but the defense is at least respectable against the run and the pass.

If Prescott couldn’t get the Cowboys to score more than 12 points in their last two trips to San Francisco, it’s hard to imagine he’s in for a high-scoring night in this one.

The 49ers Are Ridiculously Injured

San Francisco probably wouldn’t mind a low-scoring game, because they are ridiculously injured on the offensive side as it’s shades of 2020 again when they were coming off a Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs, riddled by injuries everywhere, and they finished 6-10. That’s the only season since 2019 where the 49ers didn’t reach at least the NFC Championship Game, and at 3-4, we could be headed that way again.

However, it was in 2022 when the 49ers started 3-4, lost to the Chiefs, then went on a 12-game winning streak. But that included a healthier roster and finding a hidden gem like quarterback Brock Purdy, who is struggling right now after losing so many skill players.

The 49ers won’t have Christian McCaffrey again, but that has been the case all season, and Jordan Mason is one of the leading rushers. The problem is at wide receiver where Brandon Aiyuk tore his ACL, so their best route runner’s season is over. Deebo Samuel Sr. came down with a pneumonia-like virus, so his status is up in the air for this one. Jauan Jennings leads the team in receiving yards, but injury kept him out of last week’s game. He might return this week.

George Kittle is also a little banged up, but he’ll need to shine as he had three touchdown catches against Dallas last year in that 42-10 rout.

While the 49ers are injured, they have shown they can move the ball in Shanahan’s system. Historically, his offenses have torched defenses coached by McCarthy, and you can go back to the 2016 Falcons vs. Packers for proof of that. McCarthy also has a history of coming up short against physical, talented San Francisco teams.

Also, the Dallas defense is an embarrassment right now. Even before Micah Parsons and the other pass rushers were injured, they were getting smacked at home by the Saints and Ravens on huge plays down the field and big runs. The Lions also destroyed Dallas with 47 points.

It is not clear if Parsons will be back for this game. Keep in mind, that he played last year when the 49ers ripped Dallas for 42 points.

Cowboys vs. 49ers (-4): Who Covers the Spread?

Getting final injury clarity on players like Samuel, Parsons, and Jennings would certainly help in picking this game with more confidence. However, there’s a strong reason to favor the 49ers on both sides of the ball.

It’s not like San Francisco hasn’t been close in defeat this year. The 49ers blew a pair of 10-point leads in the fourth quarter against the Rams and Cardinals. They were only down 14-12 to the Chiefs on Sunday before giving up some late touchdowns. The Chiefs are a far superior defense to Dallas right now too.

Purdy should protect the ball better this week and find plenty of holes in this Dallas defense that seems behind the times with new coordinator Mike Zimmer. The 49ers are also healthy enough on defense to think they can contain CeeDee Lamb and not give up big plays to Prescott. Make them work the ball down the field and rely on them to eventually make mistakes with turnovers and penalties.

The Cowboys are actually 2-0 SU as a road underdog this season while the 49ers have lost their last two games as a home favorite against the Chiefs and Cardinals. But that sounds like something ripe for regression with the home favorite covering.

Don’t expect a 42-10 repeat, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if the 49ers cruise to a double-digit win if the Cowboys of recent weeks show up. Let’s trust the 49ers to get back to .500 for your NFL picks.

NFL Pick: 49ers -4 (-115) at Bovada

49ers -4 (-115)

Visit Site

*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.