If there’s one thing you should know about the Dallas Cowboys’ upcoming game, it’s this: They need to keep Dak Prescott clean.

The Minnesota Vikings enter the matchup as one of the best passing defenses in the NFL, and that’s largely because of the pressure they’re able to enforce. Defensive coordinator Brian Flores has built one heck of a unit that is aggressive yet blitzes in a safe manner. It will be a lot to handle, but there’s one unit Dallas can’t afford to fail: The interior offensive line.

Cowboys’ interior linemen will be crucial

Where the Cowboys struggled the most last Thursday versus the Lions was the edges. And while the Vikings are a good pass rushing team across the board, one of the reasons they’ve been so effective this season is their interior pressure. According to A to Z Sports Minnesota’s Tyler Forness, that has been the difference that has unleashed the Vikings defense this year.

“This is a really interesting pass rush unit,” says Forness. “Last season, it was led by Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel with both having at least 11.0 sacks and the latter earning second-team All Pro. The problem with the pass rush last year was a lack of interior pressure with only 4.0 of their 49 sacks coming from the interior. This year, they made the interior a major focus, and it’s worked. Of their 33 sacks, 12.5 of them have come from the interior, including Jalen Redmond’s major breakout with 5.0 of them.”

The Cowboys’ interior linemen needs to be ready. Tyler Smith, Cooper Beebe, and Tyler Booker have handled star defensive tackles like Chris Jones and Jalen Carter with relative ease in recent games. If they can handle Redmond and company, it will be easier for Dak Prescott to mitigate the problems that could arise in the edges. But interior pressure will be hard to overcome if they fail to step up.

Vikings will try to confuse Dak Prescott

A lot is made about the Vikings’ blitzing under defensive coordinator Brian Flores, but that’s not what worries me the most about the upcoming Cowboys game. Prescott is one of the best quarterbacks against the blitz in the NFL, and has been for years. The chess game I’m enticed by is rather Flores’ simulated pressures. In other words, when the Vikings show pressure, but only rush four.

They will force Prescott to react post-snap to heavy disguises. Additionally, Forness points out the Vikings use a lot of five-man fronts, not unlike the Cowboys.

“The best rusher is by far Greenard, but this unit is so much more than one pass rusher,” Forness added. “Simulated pressures and using a ton of base 3-4 packages have been a focus. Their blitz rates are often deceptive, since they usually just send all five defensive linemen and edge rushers, forcing you into 5-0 protections and/or keeping tight ends and running backs in to block. If they had issues with the Lions’ pressures, it’s not going to get any easier this week.”

Cowboys can’t afford to lose

At 6-6-1, the Cowboys need to win out to have realistic aspirations to make the postseason. Their likeliest playoff path goes through the NFC East. If the Philadelphia Eagles lose two of their next four, and the Cowboys finish 4-0, both teams would be matched at 10 wins, with Dallas’ tie being the tiebreaker in their favor.

To win on Sunday night, it will be all about keeping Prescott clean in the pocket.

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