The Dallas Cowboys defense was far from perfect. But they did enough, contributing to a big win against their hated division rival, the Philadelphia Eagles.
Team stats allowed
The Cowboys allowed 21 points to the Eagles. The first two Philadelphia drives resulted in two touchdowns. After that, the defense would go on to surrender just one more touchdown on the night.
Tanner McKee threw for 211 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
The Eagles converted 23 first downs but were 5-of-12 on third down.
Dallas allowed
4.8 yards per carry on 25 rushing attempts, totaling 121 yards on the ground.
Individual stat leaders on defense
DeMarvion Overshown had one of the best games of his career on his return to the lineup, accounting for six tackles, one interception, two passes defended, and one tackle-for-loss.
Shemar James saw plenty of snaps as well, tying Overshown for the team lead in tackles.
Quinnen Williams recorded three tackles-for-loss and one sack. This may have been his best performance of the season.
Donovan Ezeiruaku also recorded his first full sack of the season.
Advanced analytics
SumerSports recorded the Cowboys defense finishing with a -.05 EPA/play allowed. This is their best EPA allowed on the season.
Furthermore, the Eagles finished with a -.10 EPA per drop back and +0.13 EPA per designed run. The pass defense limited Philadelphia while the Cowboys run defense struggled.
The Eagles struggled in success rate, finishing the night at 38.7%. For reference, the league average is typically between 45-50%.
Final grade: C
This Eagles offense is in absolute shambles at this point in time. They are down one franchise quarterback, two starting receivers, multiple offensive linemen, and too many running backs to count. This needed to be a game where the Dallas defense started fast and never looked back. They eventually got going, but it took too much time against a terrible Philadelphia offensive unit.
The Eagles came out and punched the Cowboys defense in the mouth right from the start. The first drive took just four plays in just over two minutes to go 75 yards for a touchdown. A horrendous start that had us pulling out our hair (if you had any left).
The next drive went 13 plays for 76 yards and took half a quarter off the clock, also resulting in a touchdown. Multiple key penalties kept this Eagles drive alive. Insane laughter from Cowboys fans ensued as our worst nightmares came alive at Lincoln Financial.
But then the defense buckled down, forcing punts on the next two Eagles drives. The half would end with the Cowboys up 20-14.
The first drive of the second half would be the last time Philadelphia scored on the night, walking their way down the field on an absurd 17-play, 84-yard drive, consuming over nine minutes of game clock. Short crossing routes to Makai Lemon proved to be a thorn in the Cowboys’ side on the drive, with the touchdown going to the rookie receiver on a well designed pick play.
After that horror show, the Cowboys defense had finally had enough. They would go on to force a three-and-out on the next Eagles drive, allowing Dak Prescott and the offense to go up multiple scores. As one could anticipate, asking Tanner McKee to play keep up would prove to be a recipe for disaster, as the backup quarterback would throw an interception on the next drive to DeMarvion Overshown.
The Eagles never recovered from that point. They would turn the ball over on downs on their very next drive, deep in their own territory. Dallas accepted the gift and put an exclamation point on the board with a Javonte Williams touchdown run.
This is the third straight week where the Cowboys defense has kept their opponent under 24 points. That’s all we asked for last season – an average defense. It’s unfortunate that the defense could not capitalize earlier on the state of the Eagles offense, but they eventually found their way to an interception and a pair of sacks late in the game, closing out the win in Philadelphia.
The defense looked average once again, and so once again, they’ll receive an average grade this week. Christian Parker’s unit earned a moderately disappointing C for their efforts against a banged up Eagles offense. I had personally hoped for a higher grade this week, considering the state of their opponent. But the defense continues to struggle early and tighten up as the game goes on.
The Cowboys will take on a struggling Cardinals team next week, likely led by QB Jacoby Brissett according to Arizona’s coach.
