WR/Returner KaVontae Turpin is the Cowboys’ X-factor on Sunday.
John Schmeelk: Fiction – Turpin is a good choice, especially with how much the Cowboys put him in motion and got him the ball last week (2 catches, two runs, four kick returns), but I am going to go with George Pickens. Pickens has star talent and is especially effective at catching the deep ball. If the Giants have to double team CeeDee Lamb or drop a safety into the box and play single high coverage, I expect Prescott to give Pickens a number of opportunities in one-on-one coverage down the sideline to make big plays. Pickens is big, fast, and excellent at the catch point. The Giants have to make sure he doesn’t have his first big game as a Cowboy against them on Sunday.
Matt Citak: Fact – As talented as Lamb is, Turpin could have the biggest impact on Sunday. Turpin is one of the NFL’s best returners, and given the significant increase in kickoff returns in Week 1, I expect the 5-foot-9 speedster to get plenty of opportunities. Other than trying to not kick the ball to him, there isn’t a whole lot you can do to prepare for him. The biggest thing for the kickoff coverage team will be tackling. If you have an opportunity to make a tackle on Turpin, you can’t miss it because one missed with him could easily lead to a 100-yard touchdown.
RB Cam Skattebo is the Giants’ X-factor on Sunday.
John Schmeelk: Fiction – The Giants’ X-factor could be whoever their second cornerback is on defense, but I already talked about Lamb and Pickens so I will look elsewhere. I am going to cheat, and go with a narrow position group: the Giants’ interior offensive line. The Cowboys’ two best players up front may now be defensive tackles Kenny Clark and Osa Odighizuwa. The Giants struggled to keep defenders out of Wilson’s face last week, and it effected the passing game. They will have to secure the depth of the pocket this week, or Wilson, only 5’11, will once again have trouble finding his receivers over much taller defensive linemen rushing up the middle. The interior lines’ play will also greatly impact the run game, which needs to be better this week if the Giants want to win.
Matt Citak: Fiction – I liked what we saw from Skattebo in his NFL debut last week, despite what the final box score looked like. But the Giants’ X-factor this weekend, at least on the offensive side of the ball, is tight end Theo Johnson. The second-year tight end had just one reception in the season opener while dropping a couple of passes, but he will have a good opportunity to bounce back against the Cowboys. Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert had a team-high seven receptions on seven targets in the opener, and Johnson could be looking at a large number of targets this weekend, too. All it will take is a couple of big catches from Johnson to potentially be a difference-maker in this divisional game.