We are just one day away from the start of the 2012 NFL regular season, with the Dallas Cowboys taking on the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants. The Giants won their second Super Bowl in five seasons, as Eli Manning set himself apart even from older brother Peyton with one more ring.
But now it’s about this next season, and this opener with the Cowboys. It’s definitely clear that Dallas has more pressure entering this season than does New York. Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo is wearing thin on fans should they fail to make the playoffs once again, given the surrounding cast and quality players on the field.
So how about the keys for this NFL opener.
1. Dallas Secondary
The Cowboys made moves to sew up their secondary struggles from last season. Dallas ranked 23rd in the league in passing yards allowed, compared to seventh against the run. Dallas moved all the way up to No.5 in the draft in April to secure Morris Claiborne, the top corner prospect in the draft out of LSU. We saw the impact that Patrick Peterson made on Arizona last season, as Dallas will hope that Claiborne has a similar effect. We will see how Manning fares against the Cowboys passing defense on Wednesday night.
2. Giants Run Game
New York drafted Virginia Tech running back David Williams in the first round in April to compliment Ahmad Bradshaw. We think that this could be a really good running back duo, similar to Carolina’s Stewart and Williams. As for David Williams, if he can produce in the offensive backfield, look for the Giants to be Super Bowl contenders once again. But more importantly, it will be interesting to see how he does on Wednesday night against Dallas.
3. Romo vs Giants Front Seven
We’ve seen the stats this week. Romo has been sacked 22 times in 13 games against the Giants, including nine times in two games in 2011. It will be interesting to see how Romo holds up in the pocket, and on the run in against the defensive ends for the Giants. This will likely be how the game is ultimately decided in this NFL Week 1 matchup.