Dallas Cowboys at Seattle Seahawks Preview

By J.E. | Saturday, October 22, 2005 | ( 0 )

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The Dallas Cowboys (4-2) travel north to Qwest Field to take on the Seattle Seahawks (4-2). Kickoff is set for 4:05pm ET in Seattle.

With a win over the scrappy New York Giants last week, Bill Parcells' Dallas squad is showing that their good start is not a fluke. The team won despite the absence of leading rusher Julius Jones, who missed the game to a sprained ankle. Jones, who has gained 407 yards and scored 3 touchdowns this season, remains questionable for this week's contest against the Seahawks.

If Jones is not ready to go, look for backups Anthony Thomas and Marion Barber III will share the workload. Thomas carried the ball 21 times for just 47 yards against the Giants, while Barber had 11 carries for 30 yards.

Drew Bledsoe continues to have the most consistent season in his 13-year career. He has thrown for 1,663 yards and 11 TDs through the Cowboys' first 6 games, and has been picked off just 4 times. Bledsoe's passer rating is currently 100.4. His previous high was an 87.7 in the 1997 season with New England.

Because Seattle is likely to come at Bledsoe all day long with the blitz, that could open things up downfield for receivers Keyshawn Johnson and Terry Glenn. Glenn has been Bledsoe's go-to guy this year, and has 29 receptions for 582 yards and 3 TDs so far. Meanwhile, Johnson has 27 catches for 348 yards and 3 TDs. If Jones doesn't play, it's going to be even more important for Johnson and Glenn to find holes in the Seattle coverage and get open for Bledsoe.

The Seattle Seahawks are coming off a relatively easy 42-10 victory over the winless Texans. In addition to rushing for 141 yards, Shaun Alexander scored 4 rushing touchdowns in a game for the second time this season. Alexander remains the key to the Seattle offense, and you can bet that the Dallas Cowboys defensive line, led by La'Roi Glover, will be locked in on the Seahawks' star running back. This should be a good matchup, as Dallas was able to hold Tiki Barber of the Giants to just 64 yards last week.

Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck will again be without his starting wide receivers Darrell Jackson and Bobby Engram. Both are going to miss their third consecutive game due to injuries. Hasselbeck instead will look to Joe Jurevicius and Peter Warrick to spread the Dallas defense and open up some room for the running game. The Seattle passing game has not slowed down without Jackson and Engram. In fact, Hasselbeck has thrown for 484 yards and 3 TDs in the last 2 games. He'll be looking to add to those stats this weekend against the Cowboys.

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