Falcons bold predictions for Week 9 vs. Dallas Cowboys

Through the first eight games of the 2024 season, the Atlanta Falcons are doing what many expected them to do: rule the NFC South. The Falcons (5-3), after last week's road win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, are now 4-0 in division play. That victory completed a season sweep of the Buccaneers. In their upcoming Week 9 matchup, they’ll remain within the NFC, but step out of division play to host a struggling Dallas Cowboys team.

While the Falcons were handling business in Tampa, the Cowboys (3-4) lost 30-24 to longtime rival San Francisco in Santa Clara in Week 8 on Sunday Night Football. That game was at least a slight improvement over their previous home matchup against the Detroit Lions, where they were throttled 47-9.

In what will be the Cowboys’ first visit to Atlanta since 2018, the Falcons will look to solidify their standing as one of the NFC’s top teams with another win this weekend. They’ll also hope to reverse recent history, as Dallas has beaten them in their last three matchups, including a 43-3 blowout in Arthur Smith's first season in 2021.

With that said, let’s get into our bold predictions for the Falcons against the Cowboys in Week 9.

Falcons and Kirk Cousins have an offensive explosion against Cowboys

By this point in the season, most teams might be looking forward to playing the Cowboys—mainly because opponents are having some of their best offensive production against them. In their four losses, Dallas has surrendered 44, 28, 47, and 30 points, two of which have been season-high totals for the Saints and Lions. With the way the Falcons’ offense has been finding its stride over the last several weeks with Kirk Cousins behind center, the Cowboys could be meeting Atlanta at a bad time. In three out of their last four games, the Falcons have averaged 35 points per game. Cousins has thrown a combined nine touchdowns in those games.

Kyle Pitts makes it two straight games with a touchdown, plus at least 60 yards

The Kyle Pitts we've all been waiting for finally made an appearance against the Buccaneers last weekend. Pitts had one of the best games of his career with four receptions for 91 yards and two touchdowns. If this is indeed the Pitts fans have been waiting for and he can prove to be consistent, then the Cowboys seem like the perfect opponent right now.

In the last three weeks, the Cowboys have allowed 13 catches for 230 yards and three touchdowns to tight ends alone, per CBS Sports. In their prior four games, they hadn’t allowed a single touchdown to a tight end and only 11 catches for 112 yards. Pitts could be in line for another big game this Sunday.

Falcons hold Cowboys to just under 100 yards rushing

Seeing as the Cowboys did little to improve their ground game during the offseason, they rank last in the league, averaging just 74.1 yards per game and only scoring three rushing touchdowns all season. The Falcons don’t exactly have the best rushing defense, ranked 21st and allowing 132.5 yards per game, but this feels like the game they could finally hold a team under 100 yards on the ground.

Over the last two games, Atlanta has put together its best performance against the run, allowing 103 and 102 yards, respectively. Meanwhile, Dallas has gone in the opposite direction, posting just 53 and 56 yards in its last two outings. The Cowboys have only had two games all season with 100 rushing yards or more.

Falcons takes early lead, beats Cowboys by two scores

In their five wins this season, the Falcons have only one multi-score victory, which came against the struggling Carolina Panthers in Week 6 with a score of 38-20. Atlanta has mostly kept it close this season, often playing from behind to pull off late-game wins. That wasn’t the case last week against Tampa Bay, as they took a 7-0 lead on their first drive and never relinquished it. They’ll aim to do something similar against the Cowboys in Week 9, then ultimately securing a two-score victory in this game.