KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (6-2) AT DALLAS COWBOYS (4-3)
KICKOFF: Sunday, 4:25 p.m. Central, AT&T Stadium. TV: CBS, Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson (field reporter).
SERIES HISTORY: 11th regular-season meeting. Cowboys lead series, 6-4. Kansas City holds the bragging rights from the last matchup between the two franchises that once shared the city of Dallas. The Chiefs knocked off the Cowboys 17-16 thanks to two touchdown passes from quarterback Alex Smith in coach Andy Reid's first season in Kansas City. But the Chiefs own just one win in five tries in Dallas. This marks the team's first visit to AT&T Stadium.
KEYS TO THE GAME: A shootout seems likely between two of the league's top five scoring teams, and the Chiefs need to improve upon their red-zone performance. Kansas City settled for a mere six points on three trips to the red zone last week against the Broncos. Establishing the run with rookie Kareem Hunt and feeding a red-hot Travis Kelce should help the offense roll.
On the defensive side, the Chiefs must find a solution for slowing down the Dallas run game, especially with Ezekiel Elliott being cleared to play by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and putting his six-game suspension back on hold. Dak Prescott said it best. The Cowboys still have best offensive line in the league. So they plan to continue to run the ball against a suspect Chiefs run defense. Prescott will have to convert third downs and make some plays down the field.
Defensively, the Cowboys must stop Hunt and prevent big plays on the outside from receiver Tyreek Hill.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH:
--Chiefs TE Travis Kelce vs. Cowboys FS Byron Jones. Kelce might be the best tight end in football right now. He has 44 catches for 556 yards and five touchdowns. He is coming off a seven-catch, 133-yard performance against the Broncos on Monday night. With his size and quickness, he is the ultimate mismatch player and will be a challenge for Jones, who has seen his fair share of top tight ends in the league. He will need to contain Kelce or he will get danced on in the end zone.
--Cowboys WR Dez Bryant vs. Chiefs CB Marcus Peters. Peters is quietly becoming one of the best cornerbacks in the league -- a two-time Pro Bowl player who has a knack for turnovers. He has three interceptions this season and returned a fumble for a touchdown Monday night against the Broncos after also forcing the ball out on the tackle. The Cowboys can't shy away from his side of the field, and Bryant will need to make some big plays to complement Elliott.
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