The Dallas Cowboys will be playing football on Sunday in a real game that will count in the standings. Can you believe it? The time has finally arrived. The Cowboys will square off with their first NFC South team as they travel to Carolina to face the Panthers. The last time these teams met was in 2015 and the Panthers gave the Cowboys a 33-14 Thanksgiving beat-down. Carolina came into that game 10-0 and finished 15-1 en route to a Super Bowl appearance.The Cowboys are hoping for different results this time as they look to get off to a good start in 2018. It’s should be a great game as these teams are evenly matched http://www.thecowboysfootballauthentic.com/tyrone-crawford-jersey-authentic , but what are some things that could be the difference maker? Here are five things to watch when these two teams square off.Panthers DT’s vs. Cowboys interior OLThe Cowboys were going to have their hands full with the Panthers stud defensive tackles Dontari Poe and Kawaan Short no matter what, but the absence of All Pro center Travis Frederick is going to make it that much more challenging. Backup center Joe Looney has been solid in relief, but when you consider that he’ll have rookie Connor Williams on his left, that can create a cause for concern for Cowboys fans as they fend off two former Pro Bowlers.The offensive line is such an important part of the Cowboys success. They need it working to get Ezekiel Elliott going and they need it to keep Dak Prescott upright. Winning the battle in the trenches is going to be key for Dallas on Sunday.Which will effectively influence...Cowboys first-down efficiencyThere is no secret that the Cowboys are going to employ a heavy does of the running game. Keeping quarterback Dak Prescott in manageable down-and-distance situations is going to be imperative and the Cowboys offense will need to win on early downs to make that possible. With the tough defensive front of Carolina, it’s going to be difficult for the Cowboys to move the pile. Dallas will need to work in some bootleg tosses, play-action, and quick passes in order to keep the Panthers from overloading against the run.If the Cowboys get stuffed early or have some negative plays that put them behind the chains Womens Joe Looney Jersey , then their offense could be forced to play uphill. It’s going to be important for the Cowboys to be efficient on first down.Randy Gregory vs. Taylor MotonThe Panthers offensive line is beat up as several key starters are battling injuries. One of those key starters is left tackle Matt Kalil who was selected fourth overall in the 2012 NFL Draft (by Minnesota). On Tuesday, the Panthers put Kalil on injured reserve, making him unavailable to them for the first half of the season.That leaves second-year tackle Taylor Moton to protect Cam Newton’s blindside. While Panthers fans are pleased with the progress of last year’s second-round pick, Moton is very inexperienced and only played five snaps last year.Opposing Moton will be another second-round pick who doesn’t have a whole lot of playing experience himself - Randy Gregory. However, the Cowboys young edge rusher has hit the ground running once he was reinstated by the league and he’s ready to show the world what he can do. This will be an interesting battle to keep an eye on as how well these players perform will have a huge affect on how successful these teams can be this season.Double-down on double-deuceChristian McCaffrey can be explosive when he gets in space and the Cowboys defense will need watch this guy carefully. McCaffrey can beat you as a running back, but he’s even more dangerous catching passes as the majority of his 1,000+ scrimmage yards last season came as a receiver. With Panthers coach Ron Rivera indicating that McCaffrey will get a heavy amount of touches Youth Kavon Frazier Jersey , this could open things up for the second-year running back to have a big season.The Cowboys will counter that with the great explosiveness of All-Pro linebacker Sean Lee. And with the improved movement from Jaylon Smith, the defense has a good core group of players who can go after the ball carrier. When it comes to McCaffrey, the Cowboys better allocate an extra defender to track his whereabouts. He’s a slippery littler sucker and if they don’t have an insurance policy in place when one guy misses, it could turn into a big play for Carolina.The rookie receiversThe Cowboys didn’t select fan-favorite D.J. Moore in the first round, but the Panthers did. Dallas opted to wait until the third round to draft their new wide receiver when they selected Michael Gallup with the 81st overall pick. How well will these young receivers fan in their NFL debut?Devin Funchess is the Panthers top receiving threat at the moment, but with with the talent of Moore, it’s only a matter of time before he starts becoming more involved in the offense. Cam Newton has a big arm and if Moore gets loose deep down field Youth Jaylon Smith Jersey , it could result in a big play for the Panthers offense.The Cowboys have an assortment of receivers and could end up dressing all six of them on the roster. It’s unclear what Gallup’s role will be, but he developed some nice chemistry with Prescott in training camp. Can the rookie makes a splash in his first NFL game?What will you be watching on Sunday? Coach Jason Garrett stepped up to the podium on Thursday and addressed the media about the state of the Cowboys heading into their game with the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday. (All Garrett answers are paraphrased and not actual quotes).Matt Ryan is a great playerJason Garrett began the day discussing how great of a quarterback Matt Ryan is. He noted he’s a prolific passer, he can carry the burden alone if the run games is failing, he uses different receivers, just goes about it the right way.Garrett was full of praise for Ryan. 4-5 is plenty motivation for everyoneEzekiel Elliott mentioned on Wednesday that the Cowboys have a lot of motivation in the form of their record. Jason Garrett emphasized this noting that they need to stay locked in the moment to play their best.Tyron Smith had spasms waking up on WednesdayGarrett did say that Smith is moving around better on Thursday but that it was a surprise and they had anticipated him practicing on Wednesday. He noted his back hasn’t been an issue this year until this point. Coaches and players have responded well to the Marc Colombo moveThat’s all Jason Garrett wanted to say about that.Leighton Vander Esch is “very committed” One of the things that the Cowboys loved most about LVE through the draft process is how committed he is to preparation, according to Jason Garrett. The head coach also talked about how Sean Lee serves as a great example for Vander Esch every day and that all of that has helped make for a great environment. He noted that Lee also helps the game of Jaylon Smith.Byron Jones is playing cornerback “the right way”One of the stars of the season for the Cowboys has been Byron Jones at cornerback. Jason Garrett emphasized that Jones has done a great job at everything they’ve asked him to do so far. He said the Cowboys play a lot of single-high safety and that whether they are in man or zone Jones does a good job of guarding his man, that he’s always around the ball. The biggest thing with Connor Williams is getting him healthyAsked if there was a competition at left guard Womens Chidobe Awuzie Jersey , Jason Garrett kept it close to the vest. He said the biggest thing for the rookie left guard is simply to get healthy right now.Update on the defensive line injuriesDaniel Ross, David Irving, and Taco Charlton won’t do very much today, Antwaun Woods either, hopefully Maliek Collins can do a little more today. He noted that this has altered the practice routine as those guys also sometimes pull reps on the scout team. He said they’ve had to alternate in some offensive linemen to perform those reps and have had to dial down the intensity a bit. Cowboys are feeling good about their receiversJason Garrett took some time to give some props to every single Cowboys receiver, including Noah Brown and Lance Lenoir. It feels like things are finally settling in to a comfortable degree which is partly why the Cowboys have had success lately.Jourdan Lewis has a lot of talentThe Cowboys understand that Jourdan Lewis has a lot of elements to his game which is why they’ve experimented with him on offense. Jason Garrett even went back to what Jourdan did at high school to reference the confidence they’ve had in him for a while.