With both teams coming off big wins, Thursday’s matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs figures to be a good one. Before the two teams square off on Turkey Day, here are three bold predictions for the matchup.
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1) Rashee Rice causes big-time problems for Dallas’ secondary, going over 130 receiving yards for the second-straight week
While the Chiefs’ wide receiving corps has been extremely inconsistent this season, they still have some talented pass catchers that defenses have to account for. None more so than 25-year-old Rashee Rice.
Rice, who was suspended for the first six games of the regular season, has been on a tear since getting back on the field. In the five games since his return, Rice has caught 34 passes for 394 yards to go with 21 first downs and three touchdowns. In just five games, Rice has already recorded the third-most receiving yards and receiving first downs of the entire Chiefs’ offense.
Last week against the Colts, when the Chiefs desperately needed a receiver on their offense to step up, Rice rose to the occasion in a big way. The former second-round pick had a career day, recording eight catches for 141 yards, making multiple critical receptions that kept Kansas City in the game and ultimately led to a win.
This week, Rice gets a favorable matchup against a Cowboys defense that has struggled to slow down top receivers. The talented wideout builds off his strong outing on Sunday, going over 130 receiving yards for the second-straight game and just the second time in his NFL career.
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2) Cowboys’ defense forces Patrick Mahomes into his third multi-turnover game of the season
It’s been a strange year for Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. After a strange statistical season in 2024, the 30-year-old superstar has been back to looking like one of the league’s best passers this season, ranking top five in the NFL in EPA+CPOE (0.150), EPA/Play (0.235), and QBR (74.4).
Mahomes is so good that people find ways to nitpick his performance even when he is at his best. While that is certainly true, underlying statistics show that Mahomes has gotten very lucky with turnovers this year. While Mahomes has thrown just seven interceptions this season, the signal-caller has thrown the third-most interceptable passes (15) and recorded the seventh-most danger plays (18) in the league. With some worse turnover luck, Mahomes could easily be looking at 11-12 interceptions this year instead of the seven he currently has.
With the Chiefs’ inability to consistently run the football, Mahomes has been forced to throw the ball a ton over the last three games. Over those last three matchups, the 30-year-old has thrown the ball 125 times, an average of 41 pass attempts per game. This week, Dallas will use their talented five-man front to stop Kansas City’s rushing attack, forcing Mahomes to once again throw the ball 35+ times.
Mahomes’ outstanding turnover luck runs out on Thanksgiving Day, as Dallas’ defense records an interception and forced fumble against the superstar, forcing him into just his third multi-turnover game of the season.
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3) Both teams combine to score 60+ points, blowing past the pregame O/U total of 52.5
While both units certainly have their flaws, there is no denying that both the Cowboys and Chiefs have dynamic offenses. Both teams rank in the top ten in the league this year in points per game and have combined to score 30 or more points in a single game eight times on the season.
This week, with both teams coming off tough, physical matchups, offenses will reign supreme on Turkey Day. Tired defenses let up plenty of points on both sides, as the two teams blow past the O/U total of 52.5 in a Thanksgiving Day shootout.