Sunday night's prime-time showdown between the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys sits as the most intriguing matchup of the Week 5 slate.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones views it as a measuring-stick game for his club.
"They are, right now, probably the most likely team to go win the Super Bowl, but in order for them to get there, they have to go by us, hopefully two times if that's the way it falls in the playoffs and we're in the playoffs, of course," Jones said on Tuesday during his weekly appearance on "Shan & RJ" on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas. "But the bottom line is you're playing the best. You don't need the game to tell you you're playing the best, but you need the game to show you how you stack up against the best."
The 49ers have knocked the Cowboys out of the playoffs each of the past two seasons. In the 2021 season, San Francisco won 23-17 in Dallas in the Wild Card round on the infamous Dak Prescott run and spike with no time remaining. Last season, in Santa Clara, the Niners held on for a 19-12 win in the Divisional Round.
Sunday, the 49ers enter 4-0, scoring at least 30 points in each contest and allowing 14.5 points per game. The Cowboys sit at 3-1, with the lone hiccup a loss in Arizona, generating an 83 net scoring margin through four games (second-best in the NFL behind Buffalo's 84) while allowing 10.25 points per game.
The Week 5 power tilt won't just be a measuring-stick game for Dallas, but one for Kyle Shanahan's club as well.
"I'm a fan of football also first, growing up and everything and still am now," the Niners head coach said on Monday, via the team's transcript. "So anytime there's big matchups and stuff, especially for the night games, that's what's great for our league and there's nothing more fun
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