Game of the Week - Vikings at Cowboys

Thanksgiving bonus:
Vikings at Cowboys

OVERVIEW: These teams are going in opposite directions. The Vikings are tied for the best record in the NFL at 9-2, while the Cowboys are three games below .500.

WHEN THE VIKINGS HAVE THE BALL: The Vikings are running a balanced offense, as evidenced by last week’s 25 carries by running backs and 30 pass attempts. RB Robert Smith is a weapon not only on the ground, but as a receiver too. In Week 12, Smith racked up 173 total yards. QB Daunte Culpepper has definitely broken out of his minislump, throwing six TD passes and one interception in the last two games. Last week both Cris Carter and Randy Moss topped 100 yards receiving. The last time Moss played on Thanksgiving, he victimized the Cowboys for 163 yards and three touchdowns on three receptions.

WHEN THE COWBOYS HAVE THE BALL: The Cowboys will run Emmitt Smith at a Vikings’ run defense that has played well of late. The Vikes have allowed an average of 73.7 rushing yards in their last three games. QB Troy Aikman and the other ballhandlers will have to be on their toes, as the Vikings have improved in the takeaway and sack departments. Last week the Vikings forced three turnovers and recorded five sacks.

MATCHUP TO WATCH: Robert Smith vs. the Cowboys’ run defense. Dallas has been vulnerable on the ground this season allowing 171.1 yards per game. The team gave up 250 rushing yards to Baltimore last week.

Profile

Texas Stadium
Irving, Texas
Date: Thursday, November 23, 2000
3:05 p.m. Central Time
Type Of Turf: Artificial
Meeting Of The Year: Only
Season Record:
	Minnesota	9-2-0
	Dallas	4-7-0
Season Record Vs. Spread:
	Minnesota	7-4-0
	Dallas	5-5-1
Home/Road Record:
	Minnesota (R)	3-2-0
	Dallas (H)	2-3-0
Home/Road Record Vs. Spread:
	Minnesota (R)	3-2-0
	Dallas (H)	2-3-0
Record On Artificial Turf:
	Minnesota	7-0-0
	Dallas	2-4-0
Record On Artificial Turf Vs. Spread:
	Minnesota	5-2-0
	Dallas	2-3-1

BY THE NUMBERS: The Cowboys have won seven of their last 10 games on Thanksgiving and are 21-10-1 overall on Turkey Day. The last time the Vikings visited Dallas on Thanksgiving (1998), they won a 46-36 shootout. The Vikings are 4-1 lifetime in Thanksgiving games.

KEY INJURIES: Check the status of Cowboys SS Darren Woodson (forearm) and C Mark Stepnoski (knee) and Vikings FB Jim Kleinsasser (hamstring).

All game previews and depth charts were compiled as of Nov. 19, 2000

Vikings schedule
All times Eastern

Pointspread shown refers to Vikings
Date	Opponent	Spread	Score
Sept. 10	Miami	(-3)	13-7
Sept. 17	At New England	(+2.5)	21-13
Sept. 24	BYE
Oct. 1	At Detroit	(-2)	31-24
Oct. 9	Tampa Bay	(-1)	30-23
Oct. 15	At Chicago	(-5.5)	28-16
Oct. 22	Buffalo	(-5.5)	31-27
Oct. 29	At Tampa Bay	(+3)	13-41
Nov. 6	At Green Bay	(-3.5)	20-26*
Nov. 12	Arizona	(-12.5)	31-14
Nov. 19	Carolina	(-9.5)	31-17
Nov. 23	At Dallas
Nov. 30	Detroit
Dec. 10	At St. Louis
Dec. 17	Green Bay
Dec. 24	At Indianapolis
* Overtime

Cowboys schedule
All times Eastern

Pointspread shown refers to Dallas
Date	Opponent	Spread	Score
Sept. 3	Philadelphia	(-6)	14-41
Sept. 10	At Arizona	(+3)	31-32
Sept. 18	At Washington	(+10)	27-21
Sept. 24	San Francisco	(-6)	24-41
Oct. 1	At Carolina	(+6)	16-13*
Oct. 8	BYE
Oct. 15	At New York Giants	(+3.5)	14-19
Oct. 22	Arizona	(-6.5)	48-7
Oct. 29	Jacksonville	(-3.5)	17-23*
Nov. 5	At Philadelphia	(+3)	13-16*
Nov. 12	Cincinnati	(-6.5)	23-6
Nov. 19	At Baltimore	(+8)	0-27
Nov. 23	Minnesota
Dec. 3	At Tampa Bay
Dec. 10	Washington
Dec. 17	New York Giants
Dec. 25	At Tennessee
* Overtime

Vikings depth chart

OFFENSE
WR	84 MOSS, 81 Walsh, 83 Kent
OLT	73 STEUSSIE, 74 Badger
OLG	63 LACINA, 76 Liwienski, 60 Withrow
C	78 BIRK, 60 Withrow
ORG	71 DIXON, 76 Liwienski
ORT	77 STRINGER, 74 Badger
TE	86 DAVIS, 87 McWilliams, 85 Jordan
WR	80 CARTER, 89 Hatchette, 82 Walters*
QB	11 CULPEPPER, 6 Brister, 8 Bouman
RB	26 SMITH, 21 Williams, 22 D. Palmer, 23 Chapman*
FB	40 KLEINSASSER, 33 Morrow, 48 Cercone
DEFENSE
DLE	93 RANDLE, 91 Burrough, 95 Paup
NT	99 HOVAN, 98 Robbins
UT	94 WILLIAMS, 98 Robbins*
DRE	97 SAWYER, 90 Northern, 95 Paup
SLB	57 RUDD, 55 Hall
MLB	52 WONG, 54 Wilson*
WLB	58 MCDANIEL, 56 Nelson, 54 Wilson*
LCB	25 DISHMAN, 20 Wright
RCB	28 TATE, 27 Thibodeaux, 29 Serwanga
SS	24 GRIFFITH, 37 Carter*
FS	37 CARTER*, 30 Banks, 42 Thomas
SPECIALIST
P	17 BERGER
PK	1 ANDERSON
H	17 BERGER
PR	22 D. PALMER, 82 Walters*, 28 Tate
KR	22 D. PALMER, 82 Walters*, 21 Williams
KC	51 M. PALMER, 91 Burrough
* Rookie

Cowboys depth chart

OFFENSE
WR	87 TUCKER, 83 McGarity, 85 Brazell
OLT	76 ADAMS, 77 Page
OLG	73 ALLEN, 61 Garmon
C	53 STEPNOSKI, 69 Fricke, 70 Hellestrae
ORG	77 PAGE, 64 Diaz, 71 Jackson*
ORT	79 E. WILLIAMS, 77 Page
TE	89 LAFLEUR, 88 Harris, 80 Santiago
WR	82 McKNIGHT, 83 McGarity, 16 Hodge
QB	8 AIKMAN, 7 Cunningham, 5 Stoerner
RB	22 SMITH, 42 Warren, 33 Wiley*
FB	44 THOMAS
DEFENSE
DLE	90 SPELLMAN, 96 Ekuban, 91 Underwood
DLT	94 MYERS, 91 Underwood, 90 Spellman
DRT	75 NOBLE, 90 Spellman
DRE	98 ELLIS, 93 Zellner, 97 Fields
SLB	54 D. HAMBRICK, 58 Bowden
MLB	59 NGUYEN*, 57 Wortham
WLB	52 COAKLEY, 46 Grant*
LCB	20 SPARKS, 41 Larrimore*, 38 Hawthorne
RCB	47 McNEIL, 25 C. Williams, 27 Edwards*
FS	43 REESE, 29 Myers, 23 Goodrich*
SS	28 WOODSON, 43 Reese
SPECIALIST
P	10 CANTRELL*, 7 Cunningham
PK	6 SEDER, 4 Knorr
H	10 CANTRELL*, 88 Harris
PR	83 McGARITY, 87 Tucker
KR	87 TUCKER, 41 Larrimore, 33 Wiley
LS	70 HELLESTRAE, 69 Fricke
* Rookie

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