NFL Week 17 features a Thursday Night Football matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and the Tennessee Titans at 8:15 p.m. ET. The Cowboys are listed as 12-point home favorites, while the total sits at 40.0 points.
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One of the hardest parts of scheduling NFL games is that it’s hard to identify which games are going to have meaning at the end of the year. The NFL picked two teams with playoff aspirations for Thursday Night Football, but unfortunately, this game has minimal implications for both squads. It means absolutely nothing for the Titans, who will make the playoffs if they win next week vs. Jacksonville regardless of what happens vs. the Cowboys. Dallas technically can still finish with the top spot in the NFC, but 538 gives them less than a one percent chance of that actually happening.
Fortunately, it doesn’t seem as though the Cowboys are currently intending to rest their starters. That might still happen – make sure to monitor the news throughout the day – but I’m proceeding as though most of their top guns will be available.
The one exception appears to be Tony Pollard. He’s yet to practice this week with a thigh injury, and while he’s technically questionable, it would be pretty surprising if he suits up in a game with minimal implications.
That would leave Ezekiel Elliott as the Cowboys’ featured runner, which is a role he’s quite familiar with. He led the league in rushing yards per game in his first three years in the league, and while he’s not the same player at this point, he still plays for one of the best teams in football. That gives him plenty of scoring opportunities, and Zeke has responded with 11 touchdowns in 13 games.
However, the Titans do represent a tough matchup. They’ve been a massive pass funnel all season, ranking second in Football Outsiders rush defense DVOA but just 27th against the pass. With that in mind, it’s not surprising that the Titans have faced the second-fewest rushing attempts per game and allowed the fifth-fewest fantasy points to opposing running backs.
Ultimately, Zeke would see a nice boost in value if Pollard is unable to suit up, but it would still be far from a smash spot.
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