clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Cowboys vs. Bills: Can Amari Cooper rebound in his second consecutive matchup against a shutdown corner?

Tre’Davious White poses a difficult matchup for the Cowboys’ passing attack.

If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

NFL: Cincinnati Bengals at Buffalo Bills Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

The Dallas Cowboys offense has been impressive for the majority of the 2019 season, ranking at the top of the NFL in total offense and passing offense. Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper have been huge reasons why Dallas has become an explosive unit on that side of the ball.

However, the offense was unable to get anything going this past weekend against the Patriots. The nasty weather conditions and the impressive Patriots defense were factors, but the Cowboys themselves also failed to execute in their own right. Prescott did not have his best outing, Amari Cooper could not break away from Stephon Gilmore all game long, and Jason Witten struggled to catch the ball when it was thrown his way.

This week, the Cowboys have another challenging task at their hands: finding offensive success against the Buffalo Bills defense.

The Bills have one of the best defensive units in all of football, ranking in the top-3 league wide in both total defense and passing defense. Sean McDermott’s team plays a physical brand of football that makes life difficult for opposing offenses.

One of the biggest reasons for the Bills’ defensive success this season is cornerback Tre’Davious White. White has blossomed into one of the better corners across the league since being taken in the first-round of the 2017 NFL Draft. The 5-foot-11, 211-pound defensive back has picked off four passes and has forced two fumbles in 2019, while limiting the receiver across from him each week.

The Bills have limited opposing offenses to 184 yards per game passing — only the 49ers (136) and the Patriots (158) have allowed less yards per contest through the air this season heading into week 13. Odell Beckham, Jr. was held to five catches for 54 yards, meanwhile Courtland Sutton had just one catch for 27 yards — on eight targets — while being shadowed by the LSU Tigers product.

Safety Micah Hyde, who also deserves a lot of credit for the Bills’ ability to defend the pass at a high level, spoke highly of his teammate after White shutdown Sutton last week in Buffalo’s win:

“If Tre’Davious White is not All-Pro this year, first team, then I don’t know who else deserves it. You know he’s literally doing everything he needs to do to be considered one of the best corners of the league.”

Amari Cooper went without a catch for just the fourth time in his career last weekend versus the Patriots. The Pro Bowl wideout was shadowed by Gilmore for much of the game in a low-scoring affair.

Dak Prescott has to do a better job of getting the ball to his number one target, while Cooper himself has to be able to win the one-on-one battles against some of the league’s top corners. Being back inside AT&T Stadium should help in that regard.

Can the Cowboys offense bounce back against another highly talented cornerback and secondary?

Sign up for the newsletter Sign up for the Blogging The Boys Daily Roundup newsletter!

A daily roundup of all your Dallas Cowboys news from Blogging The Boys