Greetings, Dallas Cowboys fans!
In case you weren’t already aware, this is Brandon Lee Gowton from Bleeding Green Nation — the home of SB Nation’s Philadelphia Eagles coverage.
Ahead of this week’s Eagles-Cowboys
game, we’re trying something new at BGN and Blogging The Boys. In addition to the normal coverage you can expect at both sites, I’m going to be doing some writing here at BTB while RJ Ochoa is going to be contributing over at BGN (here is RJ’s article over on our site). We’re also going to be active in the comment sections of our posts, so, sign up for an account if you haven’t already (fewer ads … and an exciting new notification system) and join the conversation with us.
To kick things off, here are some thoughts I have on both teams.
Dallas Cowboys
- Even throughout their struggles, I’ve been bullish on the Cowboys’ defense improving over the course of this season. I didn’t know they were going to specifically trade for Quinnen Williams and Logan Wilson … but those opportunities existed given the draft capital they had from the Micah Parsons trade (which I still think was a bad move and I’m glad he’s no longer in Dallas). That plus getting Malik Hooker, DeMarvion Overshown, and Shavon Revel healthy means nearly half of the defense is different. Even if they’re not a great defense (like the Eagles have), them being average is a big deal if they can pair it with a high-functioning offense.
- As someone familiar with the benefits of two wide receivers playing very well (A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith in the past), I can understand why Cowboys fans are excited about the duo of CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. I still think it’s crazy the Cowboys didn’t pay Pickens at the time of acquiring him and I wonder if they’ll be able to keep him. If they do, that’ll be pretty annoying from an Eagles perspective. Even if they don’t, the Eagles will obviously have to deal with this duo this weekend. And that’s a concern since starting cornerback Adoree’ Jackson could be a weakness, even though on the whole he’s been more competent than originally expected.
- The Cowboys probably aren’t winning the NFC East; the magic number for the Eagles to clinch the division is four games (the number of remaining Eagles wins plus Cowboys losses). Dallas has an uphill battle to make the playoffs as a wild card team … but I don’t think it’s impossible. They could be viewed as a dangerous team if they do make it. That is, except for the fact that Dak Prescott is 2-5 in seven career playoff games. Out of 167 quarterbacks with at least one playoff win, only six have a worse winning percentage. And Dak’s two wins? The 18-15 combined record of those opponents adds up to the lowest opponent win percentage (.545) in playoff wins among 109 quarterbacks to win multiple postseason games. Whereas Jalen Hurts has earned the status of a playoff riser, the opposite can be said for Prescott.
Philadelphia Eagles
- The Eagles’ defense looks awesome. Really, way better than it has any business being since the Eagles have the youngest defense in the NFL and the least expensive defense in the NFL. But defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is really good at this job. And Philly’s pass rush has been boosted by the trade for Jaelan Phillips, the reintegration of off-ball Nakobe Dean (who’s really good as a blitzer), the unretirement of Brandon Graham, and the return of Nolan Smith from injured reserve. Also a very big deal: Jalen Carter, who presumably will be available for this game after not being able to play in Week 1 since he foolishly got ejected for spitting on Dak Prescott, looks much more healthy and effective following Philly’s Week 9 bye. The battle of the Cowboys’ offense versus the Eagles’ defense is a great matchup on paper.
- The Eagles’ offense, however … it’s hard to be optimistic about that group right now. It’s the most expensive offense in the NFL and they’ve way under-performed reasonable expectations. What’s the issue? It’s not just one thing. Jalen Hurts has to play better, sure. But it’s impossible to argue the coaching staff is doing a great job at helping him. The Eagles haven’t been able to run the ball effectively this season in no small part due to the offensive line being banged up and worn down from last year’s massive workload. The OL outlook is no worse with Lane Johnson banged up and starting center Cam Jurgens dealing with a knee injury.
- I reserve the right to change my pick based on new information (injuries and such) but I currently like the Cowboys to win this game since I just can’t trust the Eagles’ offense to keep up. And at some point the defense won’t be able to carry the entire weight. That being said, I still think the Eagles have a very real chance of being the No. 1 seed and repeating as Super Bowl champions. They just win.
For more Eagles-Cowboys talk, check out the latest volume of The NFC East Mixtape (exclusive to YouTube):
