Cowboys 38, Eagles 27
A few of my thoughts from Dallas' big win over Philadelphia on Sunday night, proving me wrong as I picked the Eagles, 30-27, before the game.
- The brain fart by the Eagles' Josh Huff on the opening kickoff set the tone for the first quarter. Apparently, it was not planned by Dallas. The wind knocked the ball down. Huff did not come up enough to field it and the kickoff is a live ball after 10 yards. Dallas recovered and was already set up in the red zone. The Cowboys had to punch it in and they did. Settling for a field goal there would have been a small win for the Eagles. Mark Sanchez was already playing from behind, the fans were deflated, and the Cowboys were pumped. It, of course, also gave the Cowboys an extra possession and took one away from the Eagles.
- For the second straight game, Dallas got off to a fantastic start. Sunday, the Cowboys had a 21-0 lead before Philadelphia even got a first down. In their last game against the Bears, the Cowboys led 14-7 at the half and 35-7 in the third quarter. Granted, that first-half start didn't compare to Sunday, but Dallas has scored first in two consecutive games. The start was almost so good I couldn't believe what was happening. I was beginning to wonder if Philly was just going to lay a huge egg, but I knew there was so much time left still in the game.
- I did not even consider a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter a big lead on the Eagles. Philly's TD drives rarely take more than three minutes because of its pace. If the Cowboys had gotten out to a 28-0 lead, I probably would have considered that a big lead, but still not insurmountable for the Eagles.
- When Dallas blew the lead, I was not even that mad about it, because when Dallas made it 21-0, there was still more than 41 minutes left in the game. As I said, the Eagles can score three TDs in nine minutes. And no one was expecting the Dallas defense to pitch a shutout. I was surprised,
though, that the Cowboys offense could not get anything going again until late in the third quarter. I was disappointed that on a couple of occasions, Tony Romo had all day to throw the ball and still did not get rid of the ball. What we he waiting for? He has to know the pass rush was circling back around to get him. And that is exactly what happened when he was sacked and fumbled, setting up the Eagles in the red zone. They subsequently took the lead.
- To say the lead was wasted, though, is silly, which stories that I have read seem to imply. So we should just not count those first 21 points? Of course not. They were significant. The huge start and big lead helped Dallas win the game. With such a large cushion, Dallas was down just three at 24-21 and not more.
- Injuries on the offensive line probably helped the Eagles slow the Cowboys down. Doug Free and Zack Martin both hurt their ankles. Free did not come back after hurting it in the second quarter while Martin played on. The line was less effective with Jeremy Parnell at right tackle and I have to imagine Martin was limited after his injury. As a result, DeMarco Murray finished with just 81 yards on 31 carries, though he did notch two TDs.
- I was happy that Dallas did not abandon the run once it stalled. The offense was ineffective for awhile after the Eagles stopped the run, but Dallas kept at the ground game. I think that was necessary for two reasons. First, it kept Philly's defense honest. It had to honor the run and Dallas' ability to break a big one. That allowed the passing game to start thriving. And two, it took time off the clock, obviously a precious element to Dallas' game plan -- to keep Philly's offense off the field. The Cowboys held the ball for 42 minutes to the Eagles' 18. Who knows? With less running, Dallas might have given the Eagles' an extra offensive possession or two.
- Can an Eagles fan explain to me their defense of Dez Bryant? It was non-existent. I did not get to watch the Thanksgiving Day game between the two rivals as closely as this one (nor did I want to once the fourth quarter started) because I was at work for that one, but I thought in that game that the Eagles mostly put Cary Williams on Bryant. This time, it seemed like Bradley Fletcher was on Bryant. He was certainly the corner who got beat on the three Bryant TDs, two of which came on the same route straight up the field.
- Dallas' defense had a respectable day. It started out fantastic, wilted in the middle, but ended strong. Dallas held the Eagles to just 74 yards rushing. The Cowboys sacked Sanchez four times (two each by Jeremy Mincey and Tyrone Crawford), picked him off twice (J.J. Wilcox and Bruce Carter to end the game), and caused a fumble at a critical moment in the game, when Brent Celek was stripped while he landed on top of Wilcox, who helped get the ball out along with Kyle Wilbur. There was about eight minutes left in the game and Dallas was up eight, 35-27, at that point.
- I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Murray's injury in this post. Murray broke a bone in his left hand late in the game and had surgery Monday. His status for next Sunday's game against the Colts is up in the air. Apparently, Emmitt Smith had a similar injury in 1999 and missed one game, though the stakes for that game weren't as high as it was in the middle of the season. Luckily, it is Murray's left hand so that is not as bad as his right, though sometimes as a running back you need to carry the ball in either hand. It could also affect him in pass blocking. He's also had fumble issues this year and obviously that could be a bigger problem if he has a hurt hand. If he can't function properly, it would be best for Dallas to not play him, even though he is a great player. And I think he is a great player, but the offensive line, to me, has been a bigger part of Dallas' success in the run game. While they haven't gotten as many carries, backups Joseph Randle and Lance Dunbar are averaging 7.0 and 3.5 yards per carry. Dunbar has been especially effective at times on screens out of the backfield. I think a more pressing concern is Free and Martin. If they can't go and Murray can't go, that could spell trouble for the Cowboys. If they are able to play and be mostly effective, then I feel pretty good about the running game even if Murray can't play. The Colts are 15th against the run and 17th against the pass, yardage-wise.
A few of my thoughts from Dallas' big win over Philadelphia on Sunday night, proving me wrong as I picked the Eagles, 30-27, before the game.
- The brain fart by the Eagles' Josh Huff on the opening kickoff set the tone for the first quarter. Apparently, it was not planned by Dallas. The wind knocked the ball down. Huff did not come up enough to field it and the kickoff is a live ball after 10 yards. Dallas recovered and was already set up in the red zone. The Cowboys had to punch it in and they did. Settling for a field goal there would have been a small win for the Eagles. Mark Sanchez was already playing from behind, the fans were deflated, and the Cowboys were pumped. It, of course, also gave the Cowboys an extra possession and took one away from the Eagles.
- For the second straight game, Dallas got off to a fantastic start. Sunday, the Cowboys had a 21-0 lead before Philadelphia even got a first down. In their last game against the Bears, the Cowboys led 14-7 at the half and 35-7 in the third quarter. Granted, that first-half start didn't compare to Sunday, but Dallas has scored first in two consecutive games. The start was almost so good I couldn't believe what was happening. I was beginning to wonder if Philly was just going to lay a huge egg, but I knew there was so much time left still in the game.
- I did not even consider a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter a big lead on the Eagles. Philly's TD drives rarely take more than three minutes because of its pace. If the Cowboys had gotten out to a 28-0 lead, I probably would have considered that a big lead, but still not insurmountable for the Eagles.
- When Dallas blew the lead, I was not even that mad about it, because when Dallas made it 21-0, there was still more than 41 minutes left in the game. As I said, the Eagles can score three TDs in nine minutes. And no one was expecting the Dallas defense to pitch a shutout. I was surprised,
- To say the lead was wasted, though, is silly, which stories that I have read seem to imply. So we should just not count those first 21 points? Of course not. They were significant. The huge start and big lead helped Dallas win the game. With such a large cushion, Dallas was down just three at 24-21 and not more.
- Injuries on the offensive line probably helped the Eagles slow the Cowboys down. Doug Free and Zack Martin both hurt their ankles. Free did not come back after hurting it in the second quarter while Martin played on. The line was less effective with Jeremy Parnell at right tackle and I have to imagine Martin was limited after his injury. As a result, DeMarco Murray finished with just 81 yards on 31 carries, though he did notch two TDs.
- I was happy that Dallas did not abandon the run once it stalled. The offense was ineffective for awhile after the Eagles stopped the run, but Dallas kept at the ground game. I think that was necessary for two reasons. First, it kept Philly's defense honest. It had to honor the run and Dallas' ability to break a big one. That allowed the passing game to start thriving. And two, it took time off the clock, obviously a precious element to Dallas' game plan -- to keep Philly's offense off the field. The Cowboys held the ball for 42 minutes to the Eagles' 18. Who knows? With less running, Dallas might have given the Eagles' an extra offensive possession or two.
- Can an Eagles fan explain to me their defense of Dez Bryant? It was non-existent. I did not get to watch the Thanksgiving Day game between the two rivals as closely as this one (nor did I want to once the fourth quarter started) because I was at work for that one, but I thought in that game that the Eagles mostly put Cary Williams on Bryant. This time, it seemed like Bradley Fletcher was on Bryant. He was certainly the corner who got beat on the three Bryant TDs, two of which came on the same route straight up the field.
- Dallas' defense had a respectable day. It started out fantastic, wilted in the middle, but ended strong. Dallas held the Eagles to just 74 yards rushing. The Cowboys sacked Sanchez four times (two each by Jeremy Mincey and Tyrone Crawford), picked him off twice (J.J. Wilcox and Bruce Carter to end the game), and caused a fumble at a critical moment in the game, when Brent Celek was stripped while he landed on top of Wilcox, who helped get the ball out along with Kyle Wilbur. There was about eight minutes left in the game and Dallas was up eight, 35-27, at that point.
- I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Murray's injury in this post. Murray broke a bone in his left hand late in the game and had surgery Monday. His status for next Sunday's game against the Colts is up in the air. Apparently, Emmitt Smith had a similar injury in 1999 and missed one game, though the stakes for that game weren't as high as it was in the middle of the season. Luckily, it is Murray's left hand so that is not as bad as his right, though sometimes as a running back you need to carry the ball in either hand. It could also affect him in pass blocking. He's also had fumble issues this year and obviously that could be a bigger problem if he has a hurt hand. If he can't function properly, it would be best for Dallas to not play him, even though he is a great player. And I think he is a great player, but the offensive line, to me, has been a bigger part of Dallas' success in the run game. While they haven't gotten as many carries, backups Joseph Randle and Lance Dunbar are averaging 7.0 and 3.5 yards per carry. Dunbar has been especially effective at times on screens out of the backfield. I think a more pressing concern is Free and Martin. If they can't go and Murray can't go, that could spell trouble for the Cowboys. If they are able to play and be mostly effective, then I feel pretty good about the running game even if Murray can't play. The Colts are 15th against the run and 17th against the pass, yardage-wise.
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