The Dallas Cowboys came into Monday night’s game against the Eagles with their backs firmly against the wall at 2-4, eager to erase the bitter taste of two dysfunctional losses in Weeks 5 and 6–first dropping one to the winless Buccaneers, then falling to the Packers on the road–in which the offense was utterly out of sync.
Quarterback Dak Prescott knew it was desperate measures time. Asked about the team’s mindset before the game, Prescott said: “I would say determined, and I hope urgent. We can only say, ‘We’ve got a lot of games in front of us’ for so long. Might be already past us, right? We’ve gotta go win.”
Credit Prescott and the Cowboys–they did just that, wearing down a game but overmatched Eagles bunch that has suffered a raft of injuries and just could not keep up in a 38-21 defeat.
Dak Prescott Credits ‘Balance’
After the game, ESPN caught up with Prescott, who threw for 212 yards and three touchdowns, on the field: “We stuck to the run and we had great balance. When we’re able to do that, we should put ourselves in position like this. It was a great environment. We knew we had to win, we came out and got it done.
It was not a perfect outing for the Cowboys, whose defense still shows a troubling inability to stop the run, but given what the team saw overall in the past two weeks, there was some comfort in this one. The Cowboys offensive looked like the Cowboys offense again, racking up 38 points and topping 400 yards. The running game, which was under fire after last week when the Cowboys managed 48 yards on just 15 carries, saw Javonte Williams top 155 yards on 25 carries.
And the defense deserves its applause for making big plays and bowing up when needed: Quinnen Williams and Donovan Ezeiruaku racked up sacks, and DeMarvion Overshown notched the linebacking crew’s second interception in as many games.
Cowboys ‘Momentum Is Real’
The goal for the Cowboys now is to keep taking advantage of a schedule that is tilting in their favor, with back-to-back games against 2-5 teams, the Cardinals and the Colts before getting the 49ers at home. That’s followed by the 1-6 Titans and a rematch with the 2-5 Eagles.
Said Prescott: “Momentum is real. Division win, on the road, now we get to go home for a couple of weeks. We’ve got to stack some wins and get this thing rolling.”
Cowboys Answer Dak Prescott’s ‘Urgent’ Call