ARLINGTON, TEXAS — The Philadelphia Eagles absolutely collapsed in a 24-21 defeat to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night at AT&T Stadium.
The Eagles (8-3) surrendered a 21-0 first-half lead, allowing 24 unanswered points and doing nothing but be conservative on offense.
Here’s who’s to blame for Philadelphia’s stunning defeat to its NFC East rival.
Kevin Patullo & Nick Sirianni
I’m lumping the play-caller and offensive-minded head coach together for the Eagles’ lack of offensive ambition in the second half. Philly scored touchdowns on its first three drives then completely took its foot off the gas.
After their third touchdown, the Eagles’ drive charts read as follows: punt, end of half, punt, punt, punt, missed field goal. Patullo’s play-calling is to blame, but so is Sirianni, whose risk-averse mentality allowed Dallas back in the game. Birds fans had to be infuriated with Sirianni and Patullo, especially when the offense was cooking early. Obviously, the players could have made plays. But the most blame falls on the OC and HC.
Lack of discipline
Were some of the flags ticky tack? Sure. But the Eagles were called for 14 penalties for 96 yards on Sunday. That’s the most penalties Philadelphia has had since Sirianni’s first game as head coach in 2021. For a team that preaches doing the things “that require no talent,” it failed to do that.
Xavier Gipson
What was Gipson thinking? The Eagles’ defense made a key stop with five minutes to go in a tied game, forcing a punt. Gipson foolishly fielded the punt at his own 2-yard line instead of letting it bounce into the end zone. Then, he returned it 10 yards before getting rocked and fumbling the ball back to Dallas. Gipson ended up getting bailed out (kind of) by the defense stopping Dallas on a fourth-and-goal. Still, if Gipson lets it likely go in the end zone, it’s a touchback, and the Eagles aren’t operating from the 1-yard line (and eventually punting).
Cooper DeJean
It’s not DeJean’s fault Adoree’ Jackson entered concussion protocol in the third quarter and the lack of options at CB2 in nickel forced DeJean to move from the slot to the outside. But when Jackson exited the game, Dallas attacked No. 33. DeJean allowed a 48-yard catch by Ceedee Lamb, setting up Dallas’ second touchdown. Then, he got mossed by George Pickens on a 43-yard connection that set up the Cowboys’ game-tying third touchdown. You could argue Lamb should have been flagged for OPI on the first big catch. But both reps were tough for DeJean.
Secondary
By no means was it just DeJean. Pickens had nine receptions for 146 yards. Lamb had four catches for 75 yards. Prescott threw for 354 yards. The defense came up with a couple big red-zone stops. But on the whole, Dallas’ top receivers were running rampant in the second half. That’s on the secondary, which lost not only Jackson but safety Reed Blankenship to injury.
The run game
Saquon Barkley had some yards after the catch on a few swing passes. But other than that, it was a dud of a day for the NFL Offensive Player of the Year. Barkley had nowhere to run when afforded the opportunity, gaining only 22 rushing yards on 10 attempts behind a beleaguered offensive line.
Then, midway through the fourth quarter with the Eagles driving in Dallas territory, Barkley caught a checkdown, turned upfield and was stripped of the ball by Cowboys edge rusher Sam Williams. It was an uncharacteristic mistake but a brutal one to make by Barkley, especially given the circumstances.
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