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Two 8-6 teams battling it out to make the Playoffs. The loser here will likely be restricted from moving forward. Dallas was at -4.5 here.
For the Cowboys to make the playoffs and take full advantage of being back to full strength, they likely need to win out and get some help elsewhere. Dallas (8-6), Seattle (8-6) and Detroit (8-6) trail Atlanta (9-5) in pursuit of the NFC's final wild card spot entering Week 16.
The Cowboys do get running back Ezekiel Elliott back from his six-game suspension for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy.
"He looks like he's in good shape," Dallas head coach Jason Garrett said. "He seems mentally into it, engaged and just fell right back in with his teammates in meetings and walk through."
Asked whether or not having Elliott back gives his team an energy boost in the playoff hunt, Garrett maintained his steady, almost robotic insistence on professional adherence to the weekly process.
"The biggest thing for us is just get back to work," Garrett said on Monday. "Come back in (Tuesday) with the players and go over the game in a very unemotional way and build on the good and clean up the bad."
The NFL Betting Power Ratings do such a bit of an overlay here as Dallas should only be favored by 3.
- Dan Shapiro, Gambling911.com
