Dallas Cowboys 23 – Philadelphia Eagles 28
The marquee matchup of Week 9 took place in South Philadelphia; as the Dallas Cowboys took on the NFC’s top seeded Eagles. Going into this afternoon’s game the traditional fanfare and banter was exchanged between both fan bases. Countless hours of local Sports Radio (in both markets) was flooded with overhyped and crazed fans cheering on their respective teams. Social media was no different, former players chided one another and passed along harmless verbal shots; all in good fun.
To be honest though, the “Rivalry” that once existed in Philadelphia has somewhat diminished. The Eagles have been really successful and really good over the past 20 years; the same cannot be said for Dallas. Long gone are the days of Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman, and a formidable Dallas Line (offense / defense). While this is in no way discounting the regular season wins, and random division titles; the modern Cowboys teams just aren’t what they used to be.
Still, it was Dallas Week and affectionately: Dallas S*cks! There is no other game on the calendar that Eagles fans find and circle quicker than Cowboys at the Eagles. It’s in our blood, our DNA, heck it may be more important than who has the best cheesesteak. I know that’s saying a lot, but all Philadelphia can agree on thing; they h*te Dallas.
Coming into this iteration of Dallas vs Philadelpih, the Eagles were once again clearly in control of the division lead (7-1); while the Cowboys (5-2) were beginning to show signs of getting things rolling.
Many around the league, were interested to see if the survive and advance style of winning being played by the Eagles was going to hold up against their first “real” opponent. Dallas has a premier WR (Lamb), a very good QB (Prescott), a veteran RB (Pollard) and arguably a top defensive unit.
The Eagles on the other hand, were about as shorthanded as you could possibly get in the secondary; as the game progressed they would lose a few more guys for a series or two; before toughing it out to finish the game strong.
In typical Philadelphia vs Dallas fashion, the game would come down to a final drive, with a chance to win the game as time was expiring. Today, Dallas would come up two yards short as the Eagles ‘bend, don’t break’ secondary was able to tackle Lamb at the 2 yard line.
How did we get to that point? The teams traded touchdowns for the first two quarters. Philadelphia’s Kenny Gainwell rushed from 12 yards out, and Jalen Hurts from 1 yard on a ‘tush-push”. Dallas had receiving TD’s from Ferguson 4 yards and Trump from 5 yards. Dallas would tack on a FG from 51 yards (Aubrey – Rookie) giving the Cowboys a 17-14 halftime lead.
As the second half started, the Eagles knew it was time to make their move. Taking the opening drive of the second half 6 plays, 60 yards culminating with a wide open TD catch to Smith.
The Dallas offense would sputter and after an 8 play drive; they punted the ball back to Philadelphia.
Philadelphia began to impose their will. A tried and true Eagles offensive line got to work and the Eagles began to grind out one of their classic drives. 11 plays, 87 yards and almost 6:30 off the clock; the drive ended on a 4 yard Brown TD catch. Although Brown did not go over 125 yards receiving, his constant presence drew the attention of the Dallas secondary unit; thus creating space and opportunity for others.
This does not mean that the Eagles were flawless, in any way. There were still breakdowns on the offensive line. This led to multiple hits, pressures and sacks (3) on Hurts. Hurts was also visibly hobbling on his left knee after several hits and players being pushed back onto him. Hurts toughed it out and was able to finish the game, but he certainly needs to rest.
After the Eagles final touchdown of the afternoon, the Dallas defense would hold Philadelphia scoreless; giving Dak and the Cowboys offense plenty of chances to even the game and take the lead.
Alas, that would not be the case. Dallas was able to grab a late 4th quarter TD, cutting the lead to 23-28. However, on the ensuing 2 pt attempt, Brandon Graham forced Prescott to step out of bounds; thus ending Dallas’ hope at making it a Field Goal game.
Dallas would have one final attempt to take the lead, but as mentioned above the Eagles secondary would take down Lamb at the 2 yard line; popping the ball out and ending the game on a fumble recovery.
So, as we turn the page on this chapter of Eagles vs Cowboys we reflect once again on the good, the bad, and the ugly.
The Good:
The Eagles won the game and are heading into the bye week as the top ranked team in their division, as well as the entire league. They sit at 8-1 and hold a two game lead in both the win / loss column above all other NFC teams (Det 6-1, was on a bye). They need to get healthy, keep growing, and stay focused as their toughest schedule still lies ahead.
The Bad:
The Secondary is screaming for a break. They gave up 193 yards receiving to Lamb, and 374 yards passing and 3 TDs to Prescott. The schemes need to be reworked and the depth chart needs to get deep again.
The Ugly:
Penalties! Nine! Nine ***** Penalties. You simply cannot continue to win meaningful football games down the stretch if you continue to beat yourself. The ONLY thing that saved the Eagles from completely beating themselves today; was the fact that Dallas was just as bad. It goes without saying that discipline and attention to details are paramount when it comes to successful campaigns in the NFL, as in life. I’m certain that during this downtime, the full coaching staff will tighten things up and the Eagles will come out of the break sharp and ready to go.
Until then, get some rest and recharge your batteries Eagles fans; the gauntlet has just begun. A Super Bowl rematch looms on Monday Night Football against Kansas City (in Arrowhead) right out of the break; followed by back to back home games vs Buffalo & San Francisco, then onto Dallas for a rematch of today’s game. All I know is that I’m gonna need a lot more antacid before all of this is said and done; Go Birds!
