NFL
By: Greg Rector
The way the Dallas Cowboys took apart the Los Angeles Rams was magnificent and you almost would have thought they read my article for the game!! The Dallas Cowboys were dominant in all three phases of the game. Blocked a punt for a safety and Kavontae Turpin had a magnificent return right after the safety off the blocked punt. The offense was great as was the defense for the Cowboys as they put pressure on the Rams 17 times with only two QB sacks. Daron Bland continued to shine taking Trevon Diggs’s spot with his third pick-six interception of the season.
This means everything to the Dallas Cowboys Nation. To see the Texas Coast Offense operate the right way all game long was beautiful to watch. The Dallas Cowboys dominated the Rams and need that type of effort next Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles are now 7-1 after beating the Washington Commanders and the Dallas Cowboys are now 5-2 so they trail the Eagles by one game in the NFC East. So let’s look at this game between the two big boys of the NFC Beast Division.
This is the way Dallas Cowboys fans want to see their beloved Cowboys play especially against the Philadelphia Eagles. The new “Hate Week” rivalry is between Dallas and Philadelphia, much to my old guy preference of the good old days when it was Washington who was the most despised NFC East opponent for the Dallas Cowboys.
As I write this article I have no idea if the Dallas Cowboys make a move with the trade deadline coming on Halloween.
Dallas Cowboys Offense
Coach Mike McCarthy listened to me it seems after all. He got Tony Pollard (12 carries for 53 yards) to run the ball outside the tackles much more often and boy oh boy Dak Prescott (25 for 31 304 yards 1 interception yet another deflection off of a receiver but 4 TDs!!!) was on fire against the Los Angeles Rams. When needed Dak ran the football four carries for 19 yards, amazing what happens when you let him play this way Coach McCarthy!!
The offensive line was shaky early on as left tackle Chuma Edoga who ended up being carted off the field later on was burned early. Asim Richards came into the game and played great as the Dallas Cowboys were without Tyron Smith yet again this time thanks to a neck stinger. But no matter what the Rams did Dak Prescott had the right answers. Ceedee Lamb was magnificent and he had 12 receptions for 158 yards and two TDs. Oh, my Dak found Brandin Cooks three times and he had a beautiful TD reception. The offensive line will need to be at full strength facing the Eagles and their group of former Georgia Bulldogs defense.
When this Dallas Cowboys offense plays like that they are hard to stop and that includes playing the Philadelphia Eagles. The Cowboys will need to play like this next game exactly to get another win and take over first place in the NFC East. Dear Coach McCarthy do not allow the Philadelphia Eagles the football if you win the coin toss like you did against the San Francisco 49ers. Do exactly what you did to the Rams and take the football down the field against the Eagles. You need to shut down their crowd and do it early.
I don’t refer much to the past because folks don’t believe it matters much however, in this case, I believe that Dak Prescott’s ability to burn the Philadelphia Eagles’ defense means plenty if the Dallas Cowboys are going to erase the stain of what happened against the 49ers. Dak Prescott is 8-3 against the Eagles and he can go to 9-3 when they play the way they did against the Rams. Yes, I know all of the Dallas Cowboys wins this season are against teams who are not winning more games than they have lost.
The Dallas Cowboys must let the Philadelphia Eagles’ defense understand that they are a very good offense and can’t allow the Eagles’ defense any breaks. I don’t care about Jordan Davis or Jalen Carter nor do I care about cornerback Darius Slay or their new safety Kevin Byard. Smash them in the mouth right from the first drive of the game. This game matters in so many ways. The Eagles play a brutal set of five games and must face Dallas to begin and end the stretch of games.
Continue to get Tony Pollard involved outside the tackles again please Coach Mike McCarthy. You’ll need him to have more than one reception like he had against the Rams. When Pollard is used on the open field he is a dangerous running back and the Cowboys will need to use him like that in order to keep the Eagles safeties tied up so the wide receivers can be more open for Dak Prescott to find.
Dallas Cowboys Defense
Quarterback pressures mean more than quarterback sacks so often in every NFL game you see. The Dallas Cowboys lead the NFL in quarterback pressures by a healthy margin and if they plan on stopping Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles offense they must continue doing exactly that on Sunday afternoon. Right from the start when this Dallas Cowboys defense plays that way unlike the game against the 49ers this group is deadly.
The Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirriani can claim they start every drive with a 1st and nine approach because of the “Brotherly Shove.” Well if you are the Cowboys and you pressure Jalen Hurts the right way he isn’t going to get to use the “Brotherly Shove” anywhere near as often.
The Dallas Cowboys defense needs to make the Philadelphia Eagles one dimensional and it will help if they can score offensively and with their special teams just as they did against the Rams. Jalen Hurts isn’t running with the football as he did last season. Beware of that stat Dan Quinn. Jalen Hurts can still hurt the Cowboy’s defense if he does get loose.
Certainly AJ Brown is a huge weapon and he set a new NFL record with his sixth straight game of over 125 receiving yards and he scored two more TDs against the Commanders. Jalen Hurts will need to be perfect against the Cowboys’ defense with his passes as well. If not Daron Bland will pick him off as he’s done so often this season. Bland leads the NFL with 9 interceptions in the last two seasons and has three pick-six returns all of them this season.
That’s the key to quarterback pressures and why the Dallas Cowboys MUST be all over that aspect of the game against the Philadelphia Eagles offensive line which is a damn good unit. If you take the Eagles crowd out of the game at Lincoln Field that’s a huge win right there.
You won’t see Micah Parsons getting beaten up by right tackle Lane Johnson all game long either this year Philadelphia. Micah Parsons will come right up the middle and he will also be coming from the other side of the line as well. Sam Williams DeMarcus Lawrence and the rest of the Cowboys’ defense will also be coming for Jalen Hurts and must stay in their lanes to prevent him from running.
Much like every visit to Pennsylvania for Micah, this game will be meaningful for the former Penn State linebacker. You know he will be loaded for Bear to beat the Eagles and if he’s able to also sack Jalen Hurts that means the Eagles are in serious trouble.
If the Philadelphia Eagles are forced to play from behind guess what happens to the “Brotherly Shove?” It won’t matter much especially if you force them to be in fourth and long as often as possible. Getting Jalen Hurts under pressure as often as possible must be the key for the Dallas Cowboys.
My Prediction
Yes in my season preview article, I had the Dallas Cowboys losing this game in Lincoln Field. While the Philadelphia Eagles are playing very good football this game matters more to the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys must walk out of Philadelphia with a victory and take over first place in the NFC East. If the Dallas Cowboys play the way they did against the Los Angeles Rams and silence those insane Eagles fans early on I have the Dallas Cowboys winning this game 31- 24.
Let’s get the job done Cowboys Nation needs this victory to silence Stephen A Smith and the rest of the NFL media crowd. Now is the time to shut up his noise and the rest of the NFL media crowd.
As always you can find me on X @GregCowboys
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