Cowboys, 49ers Meet Again
Brock Purdy will add his name to the lore that is the postseason rivalry between the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers, who will meet Sunday in the NFC Divisional Playoffs.
This will be the ninth postseason game between the Cowboys and 49ers, who have represented their conference in the Super Bowl six times.
This will be the second-ever divisional round contest between the two teams, who met in a Wild Card game last season won by the 49ers 23-17.
Purdy, the seventh-round pick out of Iowa State, saved the 49ers’ season when he stepped in seamlessly for an injured Jimmy Garoppolo and led San Francisco to a 7-0 record.
The Cowboys are trying to get back to the NFC Championship game for the first time since January of 1996, a span of 23 seasons. Remarkable when you consider they played in 14 of the first 25 NFC title games, winning eight of them, including four out of six against the 49ers.
Dak Prescott put a subpar regular season, which included 15 interceptions, behind him with 305 passing yards and four touchdowns in last week’s Wild Card win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Cowboys are a running team at heart, with Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott combining for 1,883 yards during the regular season, but now they face the NFL’s No. 1 rush defense.
The 49ers are +400 on the Super Bowl odds, while the Cowboys are +850.
Let’s check the latest NFL news, stats, injury reports, and NFL lines for Cowboys vs 49ers. We’ve plenty of NFL picks for NFL Divisional Round Playoffs Games.
Cowboys vs 49ers Betting Lines
McCaffrey Makes Niners Nearly Unstoppable
Purdy perfectly timed his ascension to the starting role with the same week the 49ers acquired dual-purpose running back Christian McCaffrey via trade from the Carolina Panthers.
McCaffrey’s addition to the team has been good for 50 yards per game and 10 points per game over what the 49ers were averaging in the six games prior to his arrival.
The threat he presents to the defense has made life easier for Purdy while opening things up for receivers Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk and tight end George Kittle.
Samuel (9.0) and Kittle (6.8) rank first and ninth, respectively, in yards after catch per reception, and at least some of that is attributable to McCaffrey’s effect on the defense.
Cowboys Need to Bring Pressure
The Cowboys should be able to move the ball through the air and score points, but they will need to find a way to slow the 49ers’ offense, and one way is with pressure on Purdy.
Led by Micah Parsons and Dorance Armstrong, Dallas finished with the third most sacks (54), third highest pressure rate (25.2%) and fourth best hurry rate (8.4%) and did most of that without having to blitz as they finished 13th in the NFL in blitz rate (25.6%).
Like many quarterbacks, Purdy was much better with a clean pocket (113.3 rating) vs. when facing pressure (74.4), and he had many clean pockets thanks to strong pass blocking.
The Cowboys also have the ability to make McCaffrey one-dimensional as they allowed the fourth fewest receptions and eight fewest receiving yards to running backs this season.
Cowboys vs 49ers Game Injuries
Cowboys vs 49ers Head-to-Head
Prior to last season’s Wild Card game loss, the Cowboys had won six of seven games against the 49ers. Dallas has won the last four meetings at San Francisco.
Cowboys vs 49ers Game Information
- Game: Cowboys vs 49ers
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 22
- Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
- Location: Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA
- How to watch Cowboys vs 49ers?: ESPN
Cowboys vs 49ers Live stream: NFL Game Pass
Cowboys vs 49ers Weather Conditions
39°, 5-10 mph wind, 2% chance of rain, outdoor stadium, grass field
Cowboys vs 49ers Picks & Prediction
Predicted Score 49ers 31, Cowboys 21
- Worth Betting on the Moneyline?
If you like the Cowboys, then you will be nicely rewarded with a money line bet at +163, but 49ers’ backers can do better with a spread bet than with -190 money line odds.
- Worth Betting ATS?
The 49ers have won 11 straight games and only one was decided by fewer than six points. San Francisco is 8-1 ATS in its last nine games.
- Worth Betting on the Totals?
This has the feel of a game that could top the 50-point plateau, which would easily cover the over/under of 46½ points. Six of the last seven 49ers’ games have gone over the total, while the Cowboys had a streak of five straight overs prior to the last three unders.
The odds and predictions in the article are based on the time of writing and publication. They may differ as to when the actual event takes place.
