The bloom is off the rose, so to speak. Courtesy of a four-game winning streak, some Dallas fans had listened to the need-a-story-to-tell national media and believed that Cooper Rush and his 5-0 record as a starter indicated there was some level of quarterback controversy. With Dak Prescott nearing return to availability, the Philadelphia Eagles made certain all who were actually watching the game know the difference between a winning quarterback and a franchise one.
Rush was erratic throughout the evening, throwing two interceptions in the first half and another in the second. Combined with numerous penalties at inopportune times and a defense that couldn’t make the stop when necessary, the running attack of Ezekiel Elliott was not enough to forge the comeback. Dallas cut a 20-0 lead to 20-17, but gave up a long scoring drive as the Eagles pounded them on the ground. A 26-17 loss drops the Cowboys to 4-2 on the season.
Multiple things happened to the Cowboys to start the game. Dallas was marched down the field on Philly’s second drive of the game, but made the third-down stop near the end of the fourth quarter. Somehow, Dante Fowler was convinced the Eagles were going to snap the ball when everyone in the universe knew it was the draw-opponent-offside-hard-count play. He jumped. One play later, touchdown.
On the Cowboys’ next possession, Rush’s chariot turned into a pumpkin when he threw late to Michael Gallup for a tipped-pass interception. The Eagles once again had Dan Quinn’s defense befuddled, leaving Micah Parsons to choose between covering Jalen Hurts or AJ Brown, and it turned into a touchdown. 14-0.
Then the coaching staff screwed up by not challenging the catch to CeeDee Lamb, who stretched for a first down. Not only that, but down 14-0, they called a fourth-down bootleg with an immobile QB who threw to a rookie TE in traffic. Incomplete.
Fortunately the defense stiffened and forced a long field goal attempt, but it was good and Dallas was down three scores midway through the second quarter.
The lead was stretched to 20 after another Rush interception, but the ensuing kickoff turned the tide.
Rookie Kavontae Turprin broke a 56-yard return that could’ve been a touchdown if Kelvin Joseph wasn’t in the way, but it led to a field goal before the half. That turned the momentum.
Dallas outgained Philadelphia by over 150 yards in the third quarter and by the time the fourth quarter was halfway done, the lead had been trimmed to three.
The first touchdown came courtesy of Elliott, who looked dominant when given the ball and scored a 14-yard touchdown. After a defensive stop, Rush found rookie Jake Ferguson to cut the lead to three, but that’s as close as it gets.
While there’s disappointment in the fact they couldn’t win, the Cowboys making this game competitive, with their rattled backup QB, could be a sign of things to come. The defense didn’t prove to be elite, but they are still very good with room to improve. The offense is soon to get back their actual leader, and there is still the possibility that Dallas could be dangerous down the stretch.
For now though, they are 4-2 and in third place in the surprising NFC East.