Tale of the Tape, Defense: Edge to Dallas Cowboys in San Francisco 49ers Comparison?

Tale of the Tape, Defense: Edge to Dallas Cowboys in San Francisco 49ers Comparison?

Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco 49ers in NFL Week 5 comes with all sorts of bells and whistles on offense. But the brains and the muscle featured by the two top-notch defenses might truly determine the winner.

Dallas is 3-1. The Niners are 4-0. How can the visitor to Levi's Stadium knock off the favored 49ers? The Tale of the Tape ... on the defense.

Dallas coordinator Dan Quinn's unit, keyed by "Lion-backer'' Micah Parsons, is second in the NFL total yards allowed (259.8) compared to the 49ers' 284.3, which ranks them fifth. The Cowboys are currently ranked first for points allowed per game (10.3), and Steve Wilks' unit - featuring reigning Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa - is third (14.3). So, neither gives much up.

In the next couple of key stats, both units are very similar.

Bosa vs. Micah

Dallas allows 4.7 yards per play to San Francisco's 4.5, and both defenses allow an average opponent drive time of under three minutes. Both also allow under 30 yards per drive on average and no more than seven plays. So when teams get the ball, they don't get it for long.

The Cowboys have only allowed four touchdowns through the first month compared to San Francisco's six, and perhaps the biggest difference and what could be the key to either team winning the game is turnovers. Dallas has forced double the amount of turnovers (10) as San Francisco does (five).

Dallas has only allowed two touchdowns in six red zone trips (33/3 percent), whereas the 49ers have allowed six touchdowns on nine trips (66.7).

Lastly is the money down. For Dallas, its ability to get off the field on third down has been good this season, only allowing 15 of 49 attempts (30.6 percent) to be converted. For San Francisco, 23 of 56 attempts (41.1 percent) have been converted.

So, can we give a slight edge to the Dallas defense? We think so. In truth, while many have the undefeated 49ers as favorites (rightly so), there is little to separate the two.

With both teams giving as good as they get on both sides of the ball, this has the makings of a true, 10-round heavyweight fight. ... with the defenses capable of throwing the winning knockout punch.