The Dallas Cowboys head to the Minnesota Metrodome to take on the Vikings in the 2010 NFC Divisional Playoffs this Sunday. Both teams have been absent from the NFC Divisional playoffs for some time, the Cowboys last made an appearance in 1996 and the Viking in 2001.

This will be the second NFC playoff game for Cowboys this year and the first for the Vikings, who enjoyed a bye week in week 17. The ways that the Cowboys offense and defense are plying, this can certainly be their next stop on the road to a truly attainable goal - becoming the Super Bowl Champions.

But before we get ahead of ourselves, the Cowboys must beat the Vikings. Here is our NFC Divisional Playoff preview between the Dallas Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings. It spells out the reasons why the Cowboys will defeat the Vikings in the 2010 NFC Divisional Playoffs.

And that word is DEFENSE.

The Dallas Cowboy’s had the 9th best defense in the NFL. They were ranked 4th against the rush and 20th against the pass. However, in last week’s Wild Card win, the Cowboys defense held the Eagles to 56 yards rushing while forcing 3 interceptions and a fumble. Over their last three games, the Cowboys are playing the best defense of the teams still alive.

The Cowboys offense is just as impressive. They had the 2nd ranked offense in the NFL during the regular season. They were ranked 6th in passing and 7th in rushing. Last week against the Eagles (12th overall total defense) the Cowboys gained 198 yards rushing and 228 yards passing. Tony Romo threw for 2 TDs and 0 interceptions.

Another important fact is the Cowboys beat the Philadelphia Eagles 3 times this season by a combined score of 78 - 33, a team that many predicted to win the Super Bowl.

Now let’s take a look at the Vikings. They had the 5th best offense overall in the regular season (13th rushing and 8th in passing). They have three players in the top 5 of the following offensive categories:

QB Brett Favre is 2nd in the NFL for QB rating at 107.2; RB Adrian Peterson is 5th in rushing yards with 1383, and WR Sidney Rice is 4th in Receiving Yards with 1312.

The Vikings are ranked 6th overall in total defense, 2nd against the rush and 19th against the pass. The Vikings defensive is led by Defensive End Jared Allen who is 2nd in the NFL in Sacks with 14.5. The Vikings had perhaps the most intimidating defense until they lost linebacker EJ Henderson for the season (broken league).

The Vikings certainly have some impressive statistics and league leading individual players. But there are some glaring concerns.

• The Vikings lost 3 of their last 5 games (@ Arizona, @ Carolina and @ Chicago.) in the regular season.
• In the last three games before the Vikings beat the “no-show” Giants in the final week of the season, Favre threw for 4 TDs and 3 interceptions. Some experts have surmised that Brett was going away from coach Ray Childress’s game plan. Many suspect that is what caused the on-field argument between the two late in season.
• Adrian Peterson has been amazingly mediocre over the second half of the season. He hasn’t rushed for 100 yards in a game since week 9.
• The injury to EJ Henderson was devastating to the Vikings defense. Since his absence, opposing offenses have been able to double team DE Jared Allen and run the right side.

The Vikings do have two things going for them. First, they have the advantage of resting during the bye week off and secondly, they are playing at home in the dome. Unfortunately, it won’t be enough for the Vikings to win this NFC Divisional Playoff game.

Winning in the playoffs is all about momentum and the quality of play at the current moment. You could almost throw out the regular season statistics when predicting the winner. The 2007 NY Giants are a prime example. They were mediocre in the regular season but excelled in the playoffs to become Super Bowl champions. And you can draw a parallel to one of these teams.

The Dallas Cowboys are that team!

Thenflthisweek.com Prediction

Cowboys 27 Vikings 21

Some sports experts say “something’s fishy” about the Seattle Seahawks signing of Pete Carroll. It’s nothing against Pete, it’s more about how the Seattle Seahawks seemed to bypass, circumvent or completely ignore the Rooney Rule when signing their new head coach.

In 2003, the NFL implemented the Rooney Rule which requires National Football League teams to interview minority candidates for head coaching and senior operations opportunities. The rule is named for Dan Rooney, the owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the chairman of the NFL’s diversity committee.

There is considerable debate about whether the Seahawks already had decided that Pete Carroll would be the new head coach before they fired Jim Mora Jr. The Seahawks hired Pete Carroll on Monday, four days after firing Jim Mora Jr. They interviewed Minnesota Viking defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, who is black, for the job over the weekend.

But the speed in which Seattle first fired Mora without a GM in place, and then lured Carroll away from USC led to questions, most notably from former head coach Tony Dungy, about whether the Seahawks interviewed Frazier merely to satisfy the Rooney Rule.

“That is not what the Rooney Rule is supposed to be, (that) you make up your mind and then interview a candidate for it anyway just to satisfy the rule,” Dungy told the Associated Press.

The head of the group that monitors NFL hiring practices believes strongly in the effectiveness of the “Rooney Rule,” which is supposed to provide more opportunities for minorities.

“I think it has done wonders in the NFL,” John Wooten, chairman of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, said Monday. “They’ve put a new face on the National Football League. I think the integrity and commitment are there. It’s outstanding, and that’s why it’s worked.”

Wooten said he recommended to Frazier that he interview for the job in Seattle after getting assurances from the Seahawks and Carroll last Saturday that a deal had not yet been reached with Carroll — contrary to what ESPN had reported that morning.

“I feel comfortable that Seattle approached it the right way,” Wooten said.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has said that the Seahawks have not violated the spirit of the Rooney Rule.

There is no doubt that the Rooney Rule has had a positive effect on the number of minority coaches in the NFL. In fact the 2006 Super Bowl had two African-American head coaches in Dungy and Lovie Smith. And in 2008, Mike Tomlin lead the Pittsburgh Steelers to a Super Bowl win.

Regardless of what Wooten and Roger Goodell say, Tony Dungy may know a lot more about the truth. ESPN is reporting that Seattle contacted Tony Dungy last month about their open GM position.

“They called Tony about three weeks ago to see if he would seriously consider becoming their president. He told them he wanted to pray and sleep on it but the next day he called them back and said he wanted to stick with everything he was doing now. He would have been the guy, I believe, if he had wanted to do it.”

ESPN reported that Dungy said last month that an NFL team asked him to consider a front-office role, but he wouldn’t reveal the team.

One could argue that the Seahawks met the requirements of the Rooney Rule by interviewing Leslie Frazer. But why would Tony Dungy express his concerns about the apparent disregard of the Rooney Rule by Seattle. After all, don’t you think the Seahawks front office discussed their “plan” for Seattle’s future with Tony three weeks earlier?

Something is fishy in Seattle!

Why does Jets’ Darrelle Revis deserve to be the NFL Defensive Player of the Year? He is the major reason the Jets are ranked #1 in passing defense against and #1 in total defense. His ability to take on opposing teams’ best wide receivers, man-to-man, week after week, allows the Jets defense to play 8-up-front to stop the run. His ability to cover wide receivers while the Jets blitz makes them dominant, confident and successful.

And if that isn’t enough … Jets coach Rex Ryan insists CB Darrelle Revis has made a bigger impact this season than Ray Lewis ever did in Ryan’s time with the Ravens. Ryan pointed to Revis’ ability to change the way the whole defense plays by erasing No. 1 receivers. “I was going to be subtle about this, but if he’s not the NFL defensive player of the year, something is wrong with the system,” Ryan said.

His 2009 regular season stats include 47 tackles, 7 assists, 6 interceptions with 1 returned for a TD. In post-season play he had 1 interception wihile shutting down the Bengals star WR Chad Ochocinco (or is it Johnson).

Darrelle’s durability is also one of his best assets. He has played in every Jets game over the last three NFL seasons - that’s 48 regular season games and 1 NFL playoff game.

In the NFL 2009 season, Revis has completely outplayed opposing wide receivers like Andre Johnson, Marques Colston, Randy Moss (twice), Terrell Owens (twice), Steve Smith, Roddy White and Chad Ochocinco (twice). In each of these matchups he has not given up more than 5 receptions or more than 35 yards. The opposition has only scored once against him.

Here is Darrelle Revis’s one-on-one matchup statistics:

Week	Wide Receiver	Team	Catches	Yards	TDs
1	Andre Johnson	Texans	4	35	0
2	Randy Moss	Patriots	4	29	0
4	Marques Colston	Saints	2	33	0
6	Terrell Owens	Bills	3	13	0
11	Randy Moss	Patriots	5	34	1
12	Steve Smith	Panthers	1	4	0
13	Terrell Owens	Bills	3	31	0
15	Roddy White	Falcons	4	33	0
16	Reggie Wayne	Colts	3	33	0
17	Chad Ochocinco	Bengals	0	0	0
WC	Chad Ochocinco	Bengals	2	28	0

And if his statistics don’t impress, his character will …

When asked his reaction to coach Rex’s praise, Darrelle responded, “That’s crazy for him to say that,” “I just look at it as simple: I’m just trying to do my job. He believes in my talent, I believe in my talent and I just go and play, man.”

Defensive backs coach Dennis Thurman, a former Pro Bowl cornerback, remembers joining Ryan’s coaching staff and meeting Revis for the first time.

“One of the first things he said to me was, ‘Coach me,”‘ Thurman said. “He wants to be recognized as the best corner, not one of the best. He’s still learning how to study the game and he’s willing to work at it, and that’s refreshing.”

Combine Revis’ athletic ability, impressive statistics, modesty, respect and outstanding work ethic and you have a player the NFL, and the New York Jets family, can be proud, and deserving of the NFL Defensive Player of the Year!

sources: nfl.com, yahoo sports, espn.com