PHILADELPHIA -- Well, that was one of the best Philadelphia Eagles games in years. The Eagles survived the Dallas Cowboys with a thrilling 28-23 victory, talking full command of the NFC East at the halfway point of the year.
Jalen Hurts and Dak Prescott each had standout performances, but the Eagles were able to hold on and claim the victory -- stopping Dallas on the final play of the game just shy of the endzone.
There's a lot to process over this showdown, and plenty of overreactions as a result. Which ones are overreactions and which are reality?
Eagles had their biggest win over Cowboys in over a decade
Overreaction or reality: Overreaction
This was a monumental win for the Eagles in terms of Philadelphia capturing the NFC East. The Eagles have a 2.5 game lead over the Cowboys and the head-to-head tiebreaker with eight games to play, and they beat Dak Prescott (who owns the NFC East) to do it.
The anticipated matchup between Hurts and Prescott lived up to the hype, and established the Eagles' control over the NFC and the division. Is this the biggest win over the Cowboys in at least a decade? Based on the time of year, likely not.
The Week 16 win over the Cowboys in 2019 that catapulted the Eagles to the NFC East title was a massive win. Ditto with the Week 17 win in 2013 to win the NFC East, even though Tony Romo did not play in that game (Kyle Orton started).
Based on how good the Eagle and Cowboys are, this win for the Eagles is an historic one in the rivalry -- but it's not the biggest. Week 14 could have massive implications.
While this was a massive win against a Super Bowl contender
The Cowboys lost the game vs. the Eagles winning it
Overreaction or reality: Reality
The Eagles gave themselves multiple opportunities to lose the game, as the Cowboys outgained them, 163-14, in the fourth quarter. Not only did the Eagles go three-and-out on all three offensive possessions, but all four of Dallas' four possessions in the fourth quarter were inside the Eagles' 30-yard line. The Cowboys scored once and failed to get the two point conversion after the touchdown.
On the three other possessions inside the 30-yard line, Dallas turned the ball over on downs twice and failed to score the winning touchdown on the final drive despite having a first-and-goal on the Eagles' 6-yard line with 27 seconds left.
The #Cowboys had 1st-and-goal at the #Eagles 6 with 27 seconds left -- trailing 28-23.
— Jeff Kerr (@JeffKerrCBS) November 6, 2023
Their plays after that:
- False start
- Dak Prescott took 11-yard sack
- Incomplete pass
- Delay of game
- Pass to CeeDee Lamb short of end zone
Game over. Eagles win 28-23.
Dallas should have won that game based on the opportunities it had late. The Cowboys failed to capitalize, which falls into the inability to win big games.
Jalen Hurts is playing the best football of his career
Overreaction or reality: Reality
Given the circumstance regarding Hurts' knee injury and his inability to run the football and extend the play, Hurts has been playing excellent football since the loss to the New York Jets in Week 6. In the three games since, Hurts is 69 of 92 (75%) for 805 yards with eight touchdowns to one interceptions and a 125.5 passer rating.
Hurts is third in the NFL in completion percentage, first in passing touchdowns, and first in passer rating in that span. He only has 63 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in that span, clearly limited in mobility.
On passes in the pocket, Hurts has completed 60 of 78 passes (76.9%) for 671 yards with seven touchdowns to one interception (126.6 rating) over that three-game stretch. The Eagles are winning games because of Hurts.
This is the best stretch of football he's ever played.
Eagles pass defense is going to cost them a Super Bowl
Overreaction or reality: Overreaction
This week was the first starting secondary combination defensive coordinator Sean Desai could repeat this season: Darius Slay and James Bradberry at cornerback and Reed Blankenship and Kevin Byard at safety. This is a result of all the injuries the Eagles had in secondary, specifically in the slot.
With Bradley Roby still injured, the Eagles were forced to go with third-round rookie Sydney Brown in the slot in box-nickel formation (three safeties) and Eli Ricks also in the slot (Ricks is a natural outside corner and an undrafted rookie). The results did not go well, as Dak Prescott went 8 of 8 for 122 yards with a touchdown and a 158.3 passer rating targeting them.
This unit is going to get better with Byard getting more acclimated to the defense and Roby returning to the slot. Ricks and Brown are still learning on the fly and having assignments most rookies can't thrive in immediately in year one.
Slay and Bradberry are older and Blankenship has just 11 starts under his belt. Getting Roby back will significantly help this defense, but this secondary combination is still trying to mesh. Let's revisit this topic in December, but it is something to monitor.
Eagles need to play Rashaad Penny more
Overreaction or reality: Reality
What does Penny have to do to get on the field? Penny was active for the first time since Week 3 and got a carry for the first time since Week 2 -- and rushed for six yards. The only reason Penny was active was because Boston Scott was out due to a personal matter, and he only played two snaps.
The Eagles running game has not been good since Week 4, and only averaged 3.3 yards per carry in Week 9 (although offensive coordinator Brian Johnson deserves credit for running the ball 33 times and sticking to the run). The Eagles have only averaged 3.4 yards per carry since Week 4, which is 30th in the NFL. They're 14th in rushing yards, but also inefficient in running the football.
D'Andrew Swift is averaging just 3.4 yards per carry since Week 4, 57th amongst 71 player with 25-plus carries in that span. Kenneth Gainwell is just averaging 3.0 yards per carry, good for 64th.
Could Penny seriously do any worse? The Eagles won't keep four backs active and aren't benching Gainwell, but Penny deserves more opportunities. The running game may actually improve.
