The Giants come in to this game riding a hot streak, thanks to some excellent play by quarterback Eli Manning.  The Cowboys come in to this game in bad shape, with an injury to Terrell Owens, and the reliability of Tony Romo’s big game capabilities in doubt.

The Giants have had problems this season with turnovers, especially from Eli Manning.  Manning has shown excellent play in the last two games, limiting turnovers and being very effective through the air.  The result was a near upset over the unbeaten New England Patriots, and a dominating win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  The Giants will need Manning to continue this run if they wish to stand a chance against Dallas.

Amani Toomer and Kevin Boss will play a big role in assisting Manning, helping to fill the void left by the absence of Jeremy Shockey.  Plaxico Burress has been known to disappear in big games through his career, and will need to appear on the field, rather than on the side of a milk carton for the Giants to stand a chance.

The Cowboys are clearly the better team, as shown in their two wins over the Giants this season.  The two factors going in the Giants favor are the injury status of TO, and the big game reliability of Tony Romo.  In the two games against the Giants this season, Owens was the difference, combining for 212 receiving yards and two touchdowns in each game.  Without Owens on the field the Cowboys are downgraded to Terry Glenn, who has been sidelined all season with an injury.

Tony Romo has yet to show that he can handle the pressure of a big game.  Against New England he threw for just 199 yards.  In the Monday night game against Buffalo this season he threw for five interceptions.  In a Monday night game against the Giants last year he threw for three interceptions.  In the last four games he has thrown for three touchdowns, five interceptions, and averaged 214 yards per game.  One of those games was the much-publicized Jessica Simpson game, where he threw for zero touchdowns, three interceptions, and 214 yards.  We can’t forget the fumbled snap that eliminated the Cowboys from the playoffs last season.  The fumbled snap didn’t exactly erase a star performance by Romo.  Before literally dropping the ball, Romo had thrown for just 189 yards and a touchdown.

The Giants need to capitalize on the weakness of Dallas and get Romo off his game.  A steady pass rush by Osi Umenyora and Michael Strahan should be enough to assist the Giants cornerbacks against the Dallas receivers, and help put Romo off his game.  AccuScore has Dallas winning 67 percent of simulations, but a key factor is Owens.  He is putting up 76 yards and a touchdown in 90 percent of simulations.  Romo will need all the help he can get from Owens in order to win for a third time this season against the Giants.

Key Match-ups:

-Osi Umenyora and Michael Strahan vs Tony Romo
-Sam Hurd and Terry Glenn vs Giants secondary
-Terence Newman and Roy Williams vs Eli Manning