The Dallas Cowboys are officially a top-eight team in the NFL after winning their way into the divisional round of the playoffs. Despite not having an explosive passing attack or a "wunderkind" head coach, the Cowboys have somehow outlasted 25 other NFL teams.

As NFL teams around the NFL scramble to find their Sean McVay, the Cowboys are getting ready to face the real thing this weekend, as they will travel to Los Angeles to take on the Rams Saturday.

The Rams are stacked with top tier talent, as Todd Gurley, Aaron Donald, Andrew Whitworth and Aqib Talib are among the most talented players at their positions. Luckily for Dallas, the Rams looked beatable in the last month of the season, losing both of their games against teams with winning records (Bears and Eagles).

On defense, it's going to be an uphill battle, but the Cowboys have the personnel and play style to make things difficult on the high-flying Rams offense. On offense, the Cowboys should be able to move the ball and put points on the board as long as they are able to slow down the best defender on the planet (Aaron Donald).

With that being said, it's time to get bold. Let's get into some predictions for Saturday night's divisional-round matchup in Los Angeles:

Dak Prescott has 8-plus carries for 50-plus yards

Last week, the Cowboys offense had a lot of success in the fourth quarter using Dak Prescott as a runner; therefore, it should give them the confidence to use Prescott's legs more frequently this week against Los Angeles.

The Cowboys typically utilize Prescott's legs on zone reads; however, they incorporated a QB sweep and a QB draw against Seattle. Both concepts should remain this week against an aggressive Rams defense.

Dak showin us Russ isn't the only QB with wheels tonight 💨 @dak pic.twitter.com/9Hx5is2hHK — The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) January 6, 2019

While there is injury risk when using the quarterback as a runner, it does carry the added benefit of giving the offense a numbers advantage in the run game. On a typical run play, the quarterback doesn't block, forcing the offense to essentially play 10-against-11. When the quarterback is the ball carrier, however, the offense automatically gains a blocker that it wouldn't typically have, making it 11-on-11.

Love the zone read in the red zone. Look at the displacement Tyron and XSF create on the 3T. pic.twitter.com/2yot4suXHe — John Owning (@JohnOwning) December 27, 2018

When you add in the zone-read or option game where the quarterback reads an unblocked defender, it gives the offense an even bigger numbers advantage.

While it would be unwise to believe that Dallas is going to turn into Oklahoma and use a plethora of QB runs, it seems realistic to believe that Prescott could get eight-to-10 carries depending on the flow of the game.

The Cowboys are likely going to try to keep Los Angeles' explosive offense off the field as much as possible by putting together long drives with an emphasis on running the ball. While this obviously means that Ezekiel Elliott should expect a heavy workload, it could also mean that Prescott could help carry some of the running load as well.

Look for Dallas to call Prescott's number in the run game in

red zone and short-yard situations. Prescott has only accumulated more than eight carries and 50 rushing yards once this season (against Jacksonville), and this week's matchup against the Rams will be a great opportunity for him to do it again.

Tyron Smith, La'el Collins give up zero sacks,less than three pressures combined

For much of the season, La'el Collins was one of the weak links on the Cowboys offensive line, as he yielded too much pressure in pass protection while struggling to carry out his responsibility as a run blocker. Since Week 14, however, Collins looks like a new player, as he thrived in pass protection and as a blocker.

In pass protection, Collins is a brawler on the edge who uses powerful strikes to stymie the momentum of pass rushers while relying on his outstanding grip strength to latch onto and sustain blocks on the edge.

Smith, on the other hand, has dealt with his fair share of injuries this season but has still been one of the best tackles in the league. Smith incredibly powerful with long arms, allowing him to land strikes and latch onto defenders from abnormal distances.

This week's matchup against Los Angeles is tailor-made for Collins and Smith to impose their will on the Rams defense.

Los Angeles is extremely strong on the interior, with Aaron Donald, Ndamukong Suh

Michael Brockers, but are weak on the edge.

Dante Fowler Jr. and Samson Ebukam are Los Angeles' primary edge defenders, and neither should give Collins or Smith a ton of trouble in pass protection.

Fowler is an aggressive, bordering on reckless, pass rusher who looks to test tackles with his speed around the edge. Yet, Fowler's struggles with hand timing and placement mitigate the effectiveness of his notable speed around the edge. Ebukam is similar to Fowler in that he has an aggressive rush style; however, Ebukam employs more power in his pass rushes.

Tyron Smith takes Dion Jordan all the way out of the club. pic.twitter.com/aTV8iWDn5V — John Owning (@JohnOwning) January 6, 2019

As long as Collins and Smith play at a similar level as they did last week, they should be able to shut down Los Angeles' edge defenders. Their biggest test this week will occur when Wade Phillips

to align one of his interior studs on the edge, which he likes to do occasionally throughout the game.

Still, Smith and Collins demonstrate enough power at the point-of-attack and anchor ability against bull rushes to be able to stymie Brockers and Suh, in particular.

When Donald is aligned on the edge, the Cowboys would be wise to slide protection or send a running back chip Donald's way, meaning Dallas tackles should able to at least survive against the NFL's best pass rusher in pass protection.

On top of their individual matchups, Smith and Collins must be able to communicate well with the guards to pass off stunts.

DAL messes up defending the stunt here. Still don't think this one is Connor Williams' fault. If Tyron expected CW to pass off the stunt, he would have looked to overtake Jarran Reed, but he didn't. pic.twitter.com/uxewQ5ElyD — John Owning (@JohnOwning) January 6, 2019

Last week, a communication issue led to Smith and rookie left guard Connor Williams failing to pass

a stunt, which resulted in a sack. Luckily, Smith and Williams quickly corrected the issue and were able to pass off and stymie stunts throughout the rest of the game.

Overall, while the Cowboys will have their hands full on the interior, they shouldn't have much trouble with Los Angeles' edge defenders on the outside.

Don't be surprised if Collins and Smith put together a near flawless performance in pass protection.

Cowboys hold Todd Gurley under 100 total yards

The Cowboys defense has proven capable of stopping dynamic running backs this season.

The Cowboys would have kept the ultra-talented Saquon Barkley under 100 total yards in their Week 17 matchup, which didn't matter since Dallas already clinched a playoff spot and couldn't improve their

if it wasn't for

68-yard scamper in the third quarter. Outside of that one play, Dallas held Barkley to 74 yards on 20 touches (3.7 yards per touch).

Prior to that, Dallas did an excellent job slowing down the dynamic Alvin Kamara in Week 13, where the Cowboys limited the Saints running back to just 72 yards on 19 touches (3.78 yards per touch).

This week, the Cowboys defense hopes to have similar success against Todd Gurley, who was named a first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowler this season.

Great example of Dallas playing disciplined and sound run defense. pic.twitter.com/COUm5qNSz3 — All22Hype (@All22Hype) January 10, 2019

The Cowboys run defense has been so stout this season because the entire unit plays disciplined and with great effort. Dallas defensive tackles Antwaun Woods, Maliek Collins and Caraun Reid do an excellent job of occupying blocks and filling their gaps, giving Jaylon Smith and Leighton Vander Esch the ability to flow to the ball and outpace blocks. Defensive ends DeMarcus Lawrence, who just may be the best back-side pursuit defender in the NFL, and Tyrone Crawford are excellent against the run as well.

In the passing game, Smith and Vander Esch are the rare linebacker duo that can match the athleticism of the running backs, making them adept in coverage.

Jourdan Lewis' tackling ability is what gives you the confidence to leave him one-on-one in coverage with Alvin Kamara. How many teams can say that about their No. 4 CB? #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/beTLJ45ilJ — John Owning (@JohnOwning) December 1, 2018

Against New Orleans, Dallas made a nice adjustment to their scheme, using cornerback Jourdan Lewis to cover Alvin Kamara on third downs. It worked to perfection, as Kamara was targeted four times against Lewis, accumulating just two catches and nine yards in the process. Don't be surprised if Dallas does the same this week, as Gurley is one the best receiving backs in the NFL.

If the Cowboys defense wants to have another impressive performance against a top-five offense, priority No. 1 must be to stop Gurley, which Dallas is uniquely positioned to do because of its personnel.

Don't be surprised if the Cowboys are able to stifle another stud running back this week.

Twitter: @JohnOwning