With the 2021 season nearing the midway point, both the Vikings and Cowboys are in a playoff spot ahead of their Week 8 matchup on Sunday Night Football.
Marc Sessler of NFL.com thinks there will be plenty of intrigue in this week's prime-time matchup.
Sessler wrote that while the Vikings are slight underdogs at home, he believes Minnesota can hang with Dallas and potentially get a win.
He also noted that, given the Vikings affinity for drama so far this season, he wouldn't be surprised if this one has some twists and turns until the final buzzer.
Sessler wrote:
Consider edge wonder Danielle Hunter and a Vikings defense tied for an NFL-best 21 sacks after allowing 17 or fewer points in three of its past four games. Kirk Cousins is playing top-shelf football beside a now-healthy Dalvin Cook and a trio of wideouts to match Dallas in the form of Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen and exciting upstart K.J. Osborn.
Minnesota also goes to sleep for drives at a time, but this is a balanced roster that fell to the Bengals, Cardinals and Browns by a combined 11 points. The Vikes don't blow people out; they don't get blown out. Close fights and heartbreakers are Minnesota's specialty. These home 'dogs were custom-made to drag Al [Michaels], Cris [Collinsworth], Michele [Tafoya] and the 'Boys into a cauldron of late-game madness.
The Vikings, who currently sit at 3-3 and in the NFC's No. 7 playoff seed, have had five of their six games decided by seven or fewer points this season.
Dallas, which is 5-1 and leads the NFC East, has had three games decided by seven or fewer points in 2021.
This is the third straight year the teams have met, with the road team winning in each of the past two seasons.
CBS Sports updates QB rankings
It wouldn't be a surprise if Sunday night's game turns into a back-and-forth offensive affair.
Both teams certainly have the firepower on that side of the ball to light up the scoreboard.
And the quarterbacks for both squads are a good reason why, as Kirk Cousins and Dak Prescott are each having strong seasons thus far.
Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports recently unveiled his weekly quarterback rankings, and slotted Minnesota's signal caller in the No. 12 spot.
He wrote:
He's been nearly, if not just as effective as Derek Carr this year, except with a worse team record. So efficient.
Cousins has thrown for 1,769 yards with 13 touchdowns and two interceptions through six games. His passer rating of 105.4 ranks eighth in the league.
Prescott, meanwhile, came in at No. 5 on Benjamin's list.
He's only dropping because of the jaw-dropping feats of more athletic specimens like [Kyler] Murray and [Lamar] Jackson. He still does everything well and deserves MVP buzz.
Prescott has 1,813 passing yards with 16 touchdowns and four interceptions in six games. He ranks fourth in the NFL with a passer rating of 115.0.
