Atlanta Falcons vs. Dallas Cowboys Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 11/14/2021

Game time: 1 p.m. ET; November 14, 2021

Venue: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX

Where to watch: FOX

DraftKings: Cowboys -9; O/U 54

BetMGM: Cowboys -9; O/U 53.5

Caesars: Cowboys -9; O/U 53.5

Falcons: 4-4 (3rd place, NFC South)

Cowboys: 6-2 (1st place, NFC East)

Falcons: won 27-25 at Saints

Cowboys: lost 30-16 vs. Broncos

Going into last week, the Dallas Cowboys were 7-0 this season against the spread. Surely against a Denver Broncos team that just traded away its franchise cornerstone, the Cowboys couldn’t possibly regress against the means with Dak Prescott under center.

*looks at score* Oh, no.

Yeah, last week was about as bad as Cowboys fans could’ve asked for, especially after the emotional high of Cooper Rush taking his place on the Mount Rushmore of the one-game Cowboys legendary quarterbacks.

But Dallas, still comfortably in the first place in the NFC East, will get a chance to bounce back against the suddenly surging Atlanta Falcons who have become a dominant road team before our eyes.

In a weekend full of upsets and outright dogs cashing in hefty tickets, the Cowboys’ result at home against Denver went completely off the rails. Prescott, after a one-game absence due to a calf injury, threw for 232 yards and two garbage touchdowns as the Cowboys trailed 30-0 with six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Prescott also threw an interception in the loss.

"The message is don't take the cheese, and frankly we were outcoached, we were outplayed all the way through," Dallas coach Mike McCarthy said. "This is the first time I've felt clearly our energy didn't exceed our opponent. That's disappointing."

The Cowboys are dealing with plenty of injuries across the board; left tackle Tyron Smith didn’t play, Amari Cooper has been dealing with hamstring issues, Ezekiel Elliott was in out of the game on Sunday.

But that doesn’t excuse Prescott looking way off on his throws, the Cowboys going 0-for-3 on fourth down and having no answer for Teddy Bridgewater and the Denver offense. Nor did they have any answer for the Broncos’ defense which, again, no longer had Von Miller after trading him to the Los Angeles Rams.

The Cowboys had a season-worst 290 total yards and Elliott had only 51 yards on just 10 carries. Again, Denver moneyline was probably just the icing on the cake for those who bet heavy on the dogs this week.

And not a single soul would blame you if you did that with the Falcons this week. Atlanta is coming in winners of three of four and held on to a 27-25 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. The Falcons led 24-7 with 10:39 to go, but the Saints responded with 18 points in nine minutes to take a one-point lead.

Younghoe Koo’s 29-yard field goal pulled Atlanta to .500 and right in the thick of things in the division behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Matt Ryan was spectacular going for 343 yards and two touchdowns, while the renaissance of Cordarrelle Patterson continued with 126 yards on six receptions. Olamide Zaccheaus, the seeming replacement for Calvin Ridley, caught both of Ryan’s touchdowns to cap off a three-reception, 58-yard day.

"We just like to give our fans a heart attack, just keep them on their toes to make sure they're paying attention," Patterson joked. "We wanted to put them away early, but it's the Saints; they've got a great team over there. They fought till the end. We did a better job. We got the win, that's all that matters."

It hasn’t been an easy road for the Falcons to get back to even level; a seven-point win over the New York Jets and a two-point win over the Miami Dolphins doesn’t really do things on the ledger. Follow that with a six-point loss at home to the Carolina Panthers and it’s safe to say Atlanta is all over the place.

But so long as they have Kyle Pitts catching balls and providing matchup nightmares for the young, athletic, but inconsistent Dallas linebackers, there’s going to be plays had for the Atlanta offense.

Atlanta’s defense has been on the rough end of things giving up almost 28 points per game. If Prescott’s injury isn’t too nagging, I’d like the Cowboys to bounce back here and pick up a needed win. Fortunately, the Washington Football Team and Philadelphia Eagles forget how to win and the New York Giants caught the Las Vegas Raiders on a bad day. This is the first time Dallas looks pissed off, and I’ll be interested in how the Boys respond. Cowboys by 14

The Falcons are 3-1 ATS on the road this season.

The Falcons are 8-19 ATS since 1992 following a win by 3 points or less against a division rival.

The Cowboys are 5-0 ATS against NFC teams this season.

The Cowboys are 3-10 ATS since 1992 following an upset when they were double-digit favorites.

Falcons: Speaking of replacements for Ridley, Russell Gage is someone to watch for.He had seven receptions for 64 yards last week.

Cowboys: Pending on Elliott’s health, this could be a heavy dose for backup running back Tony Pollard. He’s averaging 5.6 yards per carry this season with only one touchdown.

Passing: Matt Ryan -- 2,157 yards, 15 TD, 6 INT

Rushing: Cordarrelle Patterson -- 278 yards, 2 TD

Receiving: Kyle Pitts -- 546 yards, 1 TD

Defense: Foyesade Oluokun -- 77 tackles, 1 sack, 1 INT

Passing: Dak Prescott -- 2,045 yards, 18 TD, 5 INT

Rushing: Ezekiel Elliott -- 622 yards, 5 TD

Receiving: CeeDee Lamb -- 632 yards, 4 TD

Defense: Trevon Diggs -- 7 INT