Game Preview: PHI at DAL
The MATCHUP
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (10-2) at DALLAS COWBOYS (9-3)
Game time: Sunday, 7:20 p.m. CST
TV/radio: NBC Sports, NBC 5 DFW / Compass Media, Westwood One Radio, 105.3 The Fan, KMVK 107.5 La Grande (Spanish)
Broadcast teams: National TV – Mike Tirico, Cris Collinsworth, Melissa Stark (sidelines); National Radio (Compass) – Kevin Ray, Danny White; (Westwood One) – Ryan Radtke, Mike Golic; Local Radio (English) – Brad Sham, Babe Laufenberg, Kristi Scales (sidelines); Local Radio (Spanish) – Victor Villalba, Luis Perez, Carlos Nava (sidelines)
Head Referee: John Hussey
Officiating Crew: Carl Paganelli, Frank LeBlanc, Carl Johnson, Anthony Flemming, Allen Baynes, Matt Edwards, Jamie Nicholson, Larry Hill Jr.
Last 5 Meetings:
11/05/2023 – Eagles 28, Cowboys 23
12/24/2022 – Cowboys 40, Eagles 34
10/16/2022 – Eagles 26, Cowboys 17
01/08/2022 – Cowboys 51, Eagles 26
09/27/2021 – Cowboys 41, Eagles 21
All Time Head-to-Head: Cowboys lead 73-56-0
WHAT’s at STAKE
It’s now or never! The Cowboys have won six of their last seven and four straight to put themselves in the best possible position going into Sunday night’s NFC East duel with Philadelphia. A Dallas win and they pull even in divisional standings and can control their own destiny for the top spot in the East. It would also get them one step closer to a home playoff game to open the playoffs, keep them in the running for the overall top spot and a first-round bye and shut the mouths of those who say the Cowboys can’t beat a winning team. A loss and the Cowboys are almost guaranteed to open the playoffs on the road barring a complete collapse over the final four weeks, and the voices of those naysayers will grow ever louder.
WHEN the COWBOYS HAVE the BALL
The Cowboys were inches from getting the win in the first meeting just over a month ago. Since putting up 406 yards of offense in that 28-23 loss in Philly, the Cowboys offense has only improved – averaging 448.2 yards over the last four games – wins over the Giants, Panthers, Commanders and Seahawks. Prescott has been the main reason for that success. Including the loss in Philadelphia, he has averaging 319.4 yards per game while completing just a hair under 69-percent of his passes. He has shown pin-point accuracy with his 16 touchdowns and one interception in 190 passing attempts. He is not only doing it with his arm, but his legs have been active as well – 18 carries for 70 yards, including a 10-yard touchdown run. In that first meeting, Prescott picked apart an Eagles secondary of cornerbacks James Bradberry and Darius Slay, as well as safeties Kevin Byard and Reed Blankenship, to the tune of 374 yards and three touchdowns on 29 completions. The Cowboys were running free in the Eagles secondary, causing Byard (9), Slay (8), Blankenship (7) and Bradberry (6) to account for 30 of the team’s 66 tackles in the game. Nothing has changed in the last four weeks to show that Sunday should be any different.
WHEN the EAGLES HAVE the BALL
It will again be up to the Cowboys defensive front to keep the Philadelphia offense in check. When two teams met in Week 9 Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts hurt the Cowboys defense with his arm and legs, while taking care of the football. He threw for 207 yards on 17 completions and two touchdowns, ran for another 36 yards and one touchdown on 10 carries. They also got 43 yards rushing on 18 carries from running back D’Andre Swift, as Philadelphia racked up just 292 total yards in the win. The Cowboys can expect more of the same this time around. Since that afternoon at The Linc, the Eagles offense has continued to stumble along, averaging just 316.3 total yards in the three games leading up to this Sunday night. They have continued to be solid on the ground with Swift and Hurts. If the Cowboys want to slow the duo down, they are going to need a big game up the middle from defensive tackles Osa Odighizuwa, Jonathan Hankins, Mazi Smith, as well as linebackers Damone Clark, Markquese Bell and Rashaan Evans and safeties Jayron Kearse, Malik Hooker and Donovan Wilson. If the Cowboys can find a way to force the Eagles into a turnover, something they couldn’t do in the first meeting, then a win should be within their grasp in the fourth quarter.
KEY COWBOYS to WATCH:
FS Juanyeh Thomas – The Cowboys rookie undrafted safety is playing in a supporting role on defense, backing up starters Malik Hooker and Jayron Kearse, and a primary role on special teams. Thomas has been active for 11 of the 12 games this season, missing the win over the Chargers with an injured hamstring. Since returning from injury, he has played snaps at safety in every game, but the loss in Philadelphia. He got his most work in the win on Thanksgiving Day over Washington, where he played 27 snaps at safety, and was credited with three tackles and one pass knocked down. For the season, Thomas has played 135 snaps on defense, recording 13 tackles, three passes knocked down, two stuffs and a blocked kick in the season opening win over the Giants. He has 223 snaps on special teams but has yet to record a tackle.
DE Dante Fowler Jr. – The Cowboys defensive end is coming for the quarterback, it’s what he has done best since coming into the league as the third overall pick by Jacksonville in 2015. Playing on both sides behind starters, DeMarcus Lawrence and Dorance Armstrong, Dante Fowler Jr. makes the most of his time on the field. He has played 208 snaps this season – 198 of those starting on the outside of the offensive tackles and only two coming from inside the box – the space between the tackles and within five yards of the line of scrimmage. He has recorded 30 total pressures of the quarterback this season, which have come in the form of 25 hurries, two quarterback hits and three sacks. In the first meeting, Fowler played just nine snaps and didn’t record a tackle.
WR/KR KaVontae Turpin – After being primarily a kick return specialist last season for the Cowboys, KaVontae Turpin has added wide receiver to his resume in his second season. Of the 193 snaps he has played this season, 108 of those have been on offense at slot receiver (72), wide receiver (20) and in the backfield (16). He has rewarded the Cowboys with 11 catches, nine of those going for first downs, on 16 targets for 123 yards and three big touchdowns. In his 85 snaps on special teams – kick return (41), punt return (42) and kick coverage (2), he has produced six kickoff returns that have averaged 31.7 yards each, with a long of 34 – a touchdown against Washington on Thanksgiving Day. He also has 11 punt returns for 73 total yards and 17 fair catches. In the meeting with Philadelphia in Week 9, Turpin played 13 snaps on offense and had one catch – a 5-yard touchdown to put the Cowboys up 14-7 early in the second quarter.
KEY EAGLES to WATCH:
RB D’Andre Swift – All it took was a move from Motown to the City of Brotherly Love to get running back D’Andre Swift cranked up. Now in his first season with the Eagles, Swift has already proved he is the complete package. He has a career high in carries with 167 and rushing yards with 783 through just 12 games and add to that another 208 yards receiving and Swift is just nine yards from crossing the 1,000-yard threshold for total yards this season. He is on pace to set the single season rushing record for Philadelphia if he continues his current pace of 65.25 yards per game. What he hasn’t done is find the end zone very often, with just four rushing and one receiving touchdown and five regular season games remaining. In the meeting with Dallas earlier in the season, he had 74 total yards from scrimmage, but averaged just 2.4 yards per carry on 18 totes.
RT Lane Johnson – Now in his 11th season, right tackle Lane Johnson is the top dog on an offensive line full of them. But he could be slowing down. He has played 707 snaps, 417 of those in pass blocking situations, and has given up 23 pressures – 19 hurries, two quarterback hits and two sacks, in 396 pressure situations. He is ranked by Pro Football Focus just outside the top 10 of offensive tackles with at least 400 snaps this season – graded at 74.8 (11th) in run blocking and 79.5 (12th) in pass blocking, some of the lowest marks of his career. Johnson has committed just two penalties this year, both false starts. His last holding penalty came in the first quarter of the Eagles game against Chicago in Week 15 of last season. This will be Johnson’s 16th start in his career against the Cowboys.
MLB Shaq Leonard – Not only did the Cowboys lose the bidding war for the linebacker’s services, but they will face him in his first game since being cut loose by Indianapolis. Leonard signs with Philadelphia and immediately goes into the Eagles starting lineup at middle linebacker. He replaces the injured Nakobe Dean and allows Zach Cunningham to move back to his regular spot at weakside linebacker. With the Colts, Leonard had racked up 65 tackles this season, and comes in and allows the Eagles to continue to be stout against the run, where they have been top 5 in the NFL through 12 weeks. What he won’t do is help much in passing situations, where the 31st ranked pass defense needs help the most. Leonard has not had a sack since the 2020 season, a span of 28 games. In that same time, he has 198 tackles, five interceptions, two fumble recoveries and nine passes knocked down.
The BOTTOM LINE
If the Cowboy want to win the NFC East and possibly earn a home playoff game, then Sunday night is a must win. It won’t be easy, but the Cowboys are playing their best football of the season right now. If they can get another big day from quarterback Dak Prescott and the offense and enough pressure on Philadelphia QB Jalen Hurts to get him off rhythm, then they have a good chance to pull out the win and even up the standings at the top of the division. If they can’t solve the Hurts equation, then Sunday night will probably be the end of the Cowboys quest for the NFC East crown. It’s just that simple.
Prediction: Cowboys 27, Eagles 26