Dallas Cowboys vs. Green Bay Packers 2017: Prediction, Betting Odds For NFL Divisional Playoffs

Following their victory on Wild-Card Weekend over the New York Giants, the Green Bay Packers will visit the Dallas Cowboys in Sunday’s divisional round. The winner will move onto the NFC Championship Game a week later in the 2017 NFL playoffs.

It’s a matchup between the NFC’s best team and the conference’s hottest team. Dallas finished the regular season with a 13-3 record and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Green Bay has won seven consecutive games, and they’ve nearly tied the Cowboys for the NFC’s best Super Bowl odds. Dallas is a four-point favorite at AT&T Stadium, via OddsShark.

This is a much different Packers team than the one that lost to the Cowboys 30-16 in Week 6. Green Bay should get plenty of support from the betting public after their 25-point win over New York. While the Packers got off to a slow start this season, they are playing like legitimate Super Bowl contenders, in large part because of their offense.

Aaron Rodgers might not have had the best regular season of any quarterback, but he’s currently playing about as well as any signal caller ever has. After posting a 125.2 passer rating against the Giants and their elite secondary, Rodgers has totaled 18 touchdowns and no interceptions in his last eight games.

The Cowboys’ defense was good enough in the regular season, ranking fifth in points allowed and first against the run, though it might not be equipped to stop Green Bay with the way Rodgers is playing. Only eight teams surrendered a worse opponents’ passer rating, and there doesn’t seem to be any team in the NFL that can stop Rodgers at this point. Green Bay has scored at least 30 points in five straight contests.

Jordy Nelson’s absence wasn’t a factor against New York, but it could become an issue for Green Bay if the wide receiver’s rib injury forces him to sit in Dallas. The Packers found out just how important Nelson was when he missed all of last season, and his 14 touchdowns will certainly be missed if he isn’t completely healthy, which looks to be the case.

Still, the Cowboys will likely have to outscore Green Bay in a shootout, one that sends the game’s final score well past the over/under of 52. New York’s anemic offense wasn’t up to the task at Lambeau Field, but the Cowboys should be able to move the ball against the Packers in Dallas.

A decimated Green Bay secondary was aided by key dropped passes by New York’s wide receivers, as well as the Giants’ inability to run the ball. That might not be an issue for the Cowboys, who have the NFL’s leading rusher and a rookie quarterback who was among the leading MVP candidates for most of the season.

Rushing for 1,631 yards on the season, Elliott almost had a season-high with 157 yards on 28 carries against Green Bay. The rookie helped open up the passing attack for Prescott as the quarterback threw for three scores and a 117.4 passer rating.

Green Bay’s defense is successful when it can force turnovers, but that isn’t likely to happen against Dallas. The Packers were tied for fourth in the regular season with 17 interceptions, but Prescott was picked off just four times in 16 starts. Prior to facing the Giants, who ended the season with six straight games scoring less than 20 points, the Packers allowed at least 24 points in three consecutive contests.

It’s easy to forget how good the Cowboys were in 2016 because they haven’t played a meaningful game since Dec. 18. Before Week 17, when they rested their starters, the Cowboys went 13-0 when playing any team besides the Giants. That included a schedule with just five losing teams as Dallas won the NFC’s best division.

Green Bay might be Super Bowl-bound if they get by the Cowboys, but that will be no easy task. Dallas has found a way to beat good teams all season long, and it should be no different in their biggest game of the season.

Prediction: Dallas over Green Bay, 35-30