Week 10: Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles Preview

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NFL

Bitter NFC East Rivals, Cowboys and Eagles, Clash in First Meeting this Season

The Dallas Cowboys will enter Lincoln Financial Field this Sunday Night for their 118th meeting against their division rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles. Dallas leads the all-time series 66-52, with their most recent meeting in December 2017. The Eagles rested their starters as the Cowboys, already out of the playoffs, took a 6-0 win.

This year, the two teams have bobbed above and below the .500 mark struggling early on to find offensive consistency. While this game serves as a sudden death for the Cowboys’ season, the Eagles’ will be grasping for a win almost as desperately.

Injury Report

Dallas Cowboys

Philadelphia Eagles

Keys to the Game

The Philadelphia Eagles are favorites to win this Sunday Night Football matchup. Odds are leaning in their favor for more reasons than just the home field advantage. While Dallas is allowing just 335 yards a game, they’re only tallying 336 yards themselves.

Dallas’ defense can only bear so much of the burden without their offense landing a few blows as well. Racking up yards against the Eagles will not be too much of an uphill task. The Eagles are letting up a staggering 371 yards a game, most of those from the air.

Philadelphia’s defense is average with the potential to bust on big plays. A lack of speed and communication in their secondary paired with consistently missed tackles by their front seven has cost them greatly. The Eagles’ offense, however, has been like rotating slingshot waiting to launch.

Their performance thus far has been average with some low and some high moments but what they haven’t had is a breakout performance. If the Eagles’ offense can find a way to score early and efficiently, the game should be theirs.

Dallas’ Backfield vs. Eagles’ Defense

Much of the Cowboys’ offense is dependent upon their ground game led by running back Ezekiel Elliott. Since October of last year, the Cowboys haven’t lost a game when Elliott carries the ball 21 or more times, the only exception being a 2017 game against the Seattle Seahawks.

Elliott is currently averaging 4.6-yards-per-carry but because of his usage fluctuating due to playcalling his yards per game numbers are misleading. If head coach Jason Garrett sticks to his guns and doesn’t quit on the run game early, Elliott will be their deadliest offensive weapon.

Philadelphia currently has the second-best run defense in the league allowing just 83.8 yards on the ground per game. While this will provide a challenge to Elliott, he has found a way to burn the Eagles’ defense during each meeting prior.

Cowboys’ quarterback, Dak Prescott, has a lot to do with that. The Eagles struggle to defend against mobile quarterbacks; from Russell Wilson to even Blake Bortles, Philadelphia tends to let up big plays on the ground and in the air.

With the Eagles’ front seven having to watch and contain both Elliott and Prescott, it will give Dallas’ backfield an advantage. Play-action, sweep, rollout, shotgun keeps, and screenplays could all be used to exploit Philadelphia.

Good Dak, Bad Dak. Weak Secondary, Awful Secondary.

Dak Prescott can be good, and Dak Prescott can be bad, and it is hard to know which one Jerry Jones is going to get on any given Sunday. A box of chocolates and interceptions if you will. The Eagles’ secondary is either weak or near non-existent.

They’ve allowed 29 20+ yard passes, 19.5 points per game via passing touchdowns, and 269.1 yards a game. While overall the Eagles’ secondary isn’t awful, they have at least one or two appalling moments a game often leading to game-deciding plays.

On top of the inconsistency, the secondary could likely be missing a few of its key players: Jalen Mills, Sidney Jones, and obviously Rodney McLeod. With defensive players dropping for Philadelphia and Dallas’ acquisition of wide receiver Amari Cooper if “Good Dak” shows up to play there could be big problems for the Eagles.

Philadelphia’s Passing Attack

The Philadelphia Eagles’ offensive line has allowed the second-most QB hits this season. Nick Foles and Carson Wentz have been hit for a collective 63 times along with 26 sacks. The Cowboys’ front seven, led by Demarcus Lawrence who has 6.5 sacks this year, will be looking to get to Wentz and take him down quick.

Outside linebacker, Damien Wilson recorded the third-fastest sack this year in Week 2. It took Wilson just 2.04 seconds to get to the quarterback. Lawrence or Wilson alone would be a challenge for Philadelphia. Together they’re a strategical nightmare for Eagles’ head coach Doug Pederson.

If the Eagles’ offensive line can manage to get Wentz some time, he’ll have the best receiving core to-date this season at his disposal. A healthy Alshon Jeffery, Zach Ertz, Nelson Agholor, Dallas Goedert, and now Golden Tate. Tate has already played the Cowboys this year but in a Detroit Lions’ uniform.

In the Week 4 game, Tate caught eight passes for 132 yards. Not only that but in previous meetings between Tate and Dallas, he has caught 94.7% of targets thrown his way for 236 yards. If Tate can get open and Wentz can spot him, it could finally be the breakout performance Wentz has been starving for.

The Cowboys’ secondary is only allowing just 217 yards per game as CBs Byron Jones and Anthony Brown stalk their receivers downfield. While it is a tough unit to have success passing against, the dimensional receiving core as Wentz’ disposal may be able to split them up.

With Agholor lining up on the outside and Tate in the slot along with Jeffery going downfield on the sideline and Ertz commanding is normal mid-field slant route, Dallas’ defense may not be able to keep up.

Run Game Rhythm

Since Week 1, the Eagles’ run game has been a point of contention. The pass-heavy offense along with an injured backfield has created offensive problems for the Eagles. While most of their success will likely come from the air on Sunday, Dallas has a weak spot in their run defense.

If Philadelphia can get Corey Clement, Wendell Smallwood, or Josh Adams hot early on, they’ll be able to take some pressure off of the offensive line and better manage the game clock. In what could be a long and must-win game, maintaining possession and dictating tempo is crucial.

Division Playoff Picture

The NFC East was originally projected to produce one if not two contenders for the conference title. The state of the division has gone from promising to pathetic. After nine weeks of football, there is only one team with an above .500 record.

Washington sits at the top of the division with a 5-3 record. The Philadelphia Eagles are currently 4-4 and ranked second within the division while the 3-5 Dallas Cowboys are ranked third. The New York Giants have all but cleaned out their lockers this season at 1-7.

The Cowboys’ record at this point even before a loss basically takes them out of the running. With another loss, making them 3-6, it would be lights out for Dallas. The Eagles have a lot of ground to make up for yet hold onto a 61% chance to make the playoffs according to ESPN. This division game is not a lose-able game for the Eagles as Washington is likely to sweep Dallas. At this point, Philadelphia will need to both win and hope Washington losses.

The Game at a Glance

Sunday Night Football and division rivalry games often don’t go down as predicted. The simplest way to look at the game is this: the Eagles’ 18th ranked offense vs. the Cowboys’ 29th ranked offense, or, the Cowboys’ 2nd ranked defense versus the Eagles’ 12th ranked defense.

Can the Cowboys hold the high-potential underperforming Eagles’ offense and manage to score just enough to win? Will the Eagles smother a struggling Dallas offense and be able to find ways to score against a lockdown defense?

Photo Credit

Featured Image courtesy of angelo loki

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