Thursday 24 November 2016 13:33, UK
It has been a phenomenal turnaround for the Dallas Cowboys. After finishing last year 4-12, the Cowboys lost starting quarterback Tony Romo to a back injury in preseason.
It looked as though Dallas might struggle once again, but instead they have flourished as rookies Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott have led the team to nine straight wins, a franchise record.
Running back Elliott leads all running backs in yards this season, and broke the Cowboys rookie rushing record on Sunday with six games left to play.
As well as a dynamic offence, the Cowboys also rank fifth in defence and defensive end Jack Crawford has played a big part, starting every game this year. On Sunday he sacked Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco as Dallas beat Baltimore 27-17.
Speaking with Richard Graves ahead of their Thanksgiving day game against the Washington Redskins, Crawford highlighted the chemistry as an important factor for team success.
"I've never been in this position before. To be number one in the league is something special. The chemistry we have now is different to any team, or any year that I've been in the league so for."
"Every team knows we're the team to beat - they come in here and take their intensity to another level, and we have to be able to top that. It gets harder every week."
When asked on the Thanksgiving day celebration, British born Crawford said that after 10 years in America the holiday was business as usual for him.
"We're playing on Thanksgiving this year so you can't relax too much. It doesn't get much bigger [than playing on Thanksgiving] and we know Thursday will be a battle.
"We're not taking anything for granted, we know the Redskins are rolling, so we have to make sure we're prepared."
Join Sky Sports for Thanksgiving day NFL, with a live triple header on Sky Sports 1 from 5pm. Watch all three games for £6.99 with a Day Pass from NOW TV - no contract.
