Tweet
NFL Preview - Philadelphia (7-1) at Dallas (3-5)
(Sports Network) - A pair of longtime NFC East rivals will take to the field on Monday night, as the Dallas Cowboys play host to the Philadelphia Eagles in a primetime battle.
The Eagles enter Monday's game fresh off their first loss of the season, a 27-3 dismantling at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday. Despite the defeat, Andy Reid's club maintains a two-game lead over the second-place New York Giants in the division, and has the best record in the NFC (7-1).
Things have not gone nearly as well for Dallas this season, as a 26-3 blowout loss at Cincinnati last Sunday was the fourth defeat in five games for Bill Parcells' team. After going 10-6 and making a surprising playoff appearance last year, the club is 3-5 and residing in a tie for third place with Washington in the division.
SERIES HISTORY
The Cowboys hold a 49-37 advantage in their all-time regular season series with the Eagles, but Philadelphia has won seven of eight head-to-head contests dating back to the 2000 campaign. Dallas' only win over that stretch was a 23-21 triumph in Big D last year.
In addition to their regular season advantage, the Cowboys have a 2-1 edge in the postseason series. The Eagles were 20-7 winners in the 1980 NFC Championship, while Dallas won NFC Divisional Playoff games over Philadelphia following the 1992 and 1995 seasons.
Reid has a career record of 8-2 against the Cowboys, and is 1-1 all-time against Parcells. Parcells has a 10-8 mark against Philadelphia in his career, including 9-7 while with the New York Giants from 1983 through 1990.
EAGLES OFFENSE VS. COWBOYS DEFENSE
Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb (2081 passing yards, 14 TD, 4 INT) faced constant pressure in last week's loss to the Steelers, and was sacked four times on the afternoon. McNabb completed just 109 yards worth of passes, and threw an ugly interception that wiped away a glimmer of momentum the team had accrued. Wideout Terrell Owens (49 receptions, 9 TD on the year) caught a game-high seven passes for 53 yards but had his weakest showing in an Eagles uniform. Todd Pinkston (19 receptions on the year), who had one catch, was the only receiver other than Owens to catch a ball against Pittsburgh. Reid's club ranks ninth in NFL passing offense (244.9 yards per game), and McNabb has been sacked 17 times through eight games.
The Cowboys remain thin in the secondary, where cornerback Pete Hunter (knee) is out for the year, safety Darren Woodson (back) is believed out for the year, and corner Tyrone Williams (hamstring) remains questionable. That leaves safety Roy Williams (52 tackles) and struggling corner Terence Newman (39 tackles, 1 INT) to play a central role in stopping the McNabb-to-Owens connection. Parcells' club limited Cincinnati's Carson Palmer to a modest 212 aerial yards last week, but 76 of those came on a key touchdown pass to tight end Matt Schobel. Dallas has just 16 sacks on the year, and failed to drop Palmer last Sunday. End Greg Ellis leads the Cowboys with six sacks in 2004.
Philadelphia running back Brian Westbrook (475 rushing yards on the year) had a minimal impact in his first game back from a broken rib, rushing six times for 17 yards and catching three passes for four yards against Pittsburgh. Look for the Eagles to try and establish Westbrook early this week. Dorsey Levens (130 yards, 1 TD), who received most of the carries in Westbrook's absence, had two carries for four yards last Sunday. The Eagles rank 24th in NFL rushing offense (96.5 yards per game).
Dallas has struggled to control the run in 2004, and comes into Monday night ranked just 24th in the league in rushing defense (113.5 yards per game). The play of linebackers Dat Nguyen (48 tackles), Al Singleton (31 tackles), and Dexter Coakley (26 tackles) has been unexceptional, and Ellis (25 tackles) and tackle La'Roi Glover (21 tackles) have been unable to compensate in the trenches.
COWBOYS OFFENSE VS. EAGLES DEFENSE
Dallas quarterback Vinny Testaverde (2051 passing yards, 9 TD, 10 INT) will try to bounce back from a rough outing against the Bengals, a game in which he tossed a trio of interceptions. With receiver Terry Glenn (foot) out for the year, Testaverde has locked on with wideout Keyshawn Johnson (34 receptions, 4 TD on the year) and tight end Jason Witten (45 receptions, 3 TD). Witten caught six passes for a game-high 97 yards last week. The Dallas line has allowed only 14 sacks on the year, including one against the Bengals.
An Eagle pass rush that came into last week's game with 25 sacks couldn't put a great deal of pressure on Ben Roethlisberger, who was dropped only twice in a winning effort. Defensive tackle Sam Rayburn had both sacks, but is listed as questionable for the Cowboys following a car accident early Tuesday morning. Jevon Kearse (6 sacks on the year), who had just one tackle last week, will seek a greater impact against Dallas. In the secondary, safety Brian Dawkins tallied an interception of Roethlisberger to go along with nine total tackles. Cornerback Sheldon Brown had a game-high 14 tackles last week, and will likely be counted on for a greater role in pass defense versus Dallas.
The Cowboys' on-again, off-again rushing game was off again last Sunday, as running backs Eddie George (8 rushes, 23 yards), Richie Anderson (10 rushes, 29 yards), and ReShard Lee (6 rushes, 39 yards) failed to register much of an impact versus the Bengals. The hard-nosed George, a native Philadelphian, figures to get a bulk of the carries against the Eagles' suspect run-stopping personnel. George (372 yards, 3 TD on the year) is averaging just 3.4 yards per rush, and Dallas is 22nd in NFL rushing offense (101.9 yards per game).
The major questions that had cropped up about the Philadelphia run defense were hardly answered last week, when the Steelers amassed a bloated 252 ground yards against Reid's club. Charged with the task of stopping George and company will be linebackers Nate Wayne (29 tackles), Mark Simoneau (34 tackles), and Dhani Jones (41 tackles), with assistance from defensive tackles Hollis Thomas (18 tackles) and Darwin Walker (15 tackles). End Derrick Burgess (17 tackles), who had eight tackles against Pittsburgh, was the member of the line who made the greatest impact last week. The Eagles currently rank a distant 27th in NFL rushing defense (130.6 yards per game).
OVERALL ANALYSIS
Following last week's meltdown in Cincinnati, the Cowboys should be better focused on a Monday night at home against a division rival. At the same time, the significantly more talented Eagles will want to re-assert their dominance following last week's debacle. Dallas should be able to run the ball a bit and make a game of it, but they won't have an answer for McNabb and Owens, who will have the final word in a nail-biter.
Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Eagles 21, Cowboys 20
(Sports Network) - A pair of longtime NFC East rivals will take to the field on Monday night, as the Dallas Cowboys play host to the Philadelphia Eagles in a primetime battle.
The Eagles enter Monday's game fresh off their first loss of the season, a 27-3 dismantling at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday. Despite the defeat, Andy Reid's club maintains a two-game lead over the second-place New York Giants in the division, and has the best record in the NFC (7-1).
Things have not gone nearly as well for Dallas this season, as a 26-3 blowout loss at Cincinnati last Sunday was the fourth defeat in five games for Bill Parcells' team. After going 10-6 and making a surprising playoff appearance last year, the club is 3-5 and residing in a tie for third place with Washington in the division.
SERIES HISTORY
The Cowboys hold a 49-37 advantage in their all-time regular season series with the Eagles, but Philadelphia has won seven of eight head-to-head contests dating back to the 2000 campaign. Dallas' only win over that stretch was a 23-21 triumph in Big D last year.
In addition to their regular season advantage, the Cowboys have a 2-1 edge in the postseason series. The Eagles were 20-7 winners in the 1980 NFC Championship, while Dallas won NFC Divisional Playoff games over Philadelphia following the 1992 and 1995 seasons.
Reid has a career record of 8-2 against the Cowboys, and is 1-1 all-time against Parcells. Parcells has a 10-8 mark against Philadelphia in his career, including 9-7 while with the New York Giants from 1983 through 1990.
EAGLES OFFENSE VS. COWBOYS DEFENSE
Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb (2081 passing yards, 14 TD, 4 INT) faced constant pressure in last week's loss to the Steelers, and was sacked four times on the afternoon. McNabb completed just 109 yards worth of passes, and threw an ugly interception that wiped away a glimmer of momentum the team had accrued. Wideout Terrell Owens (49 receptions, 9 TD on the year) caught a game-high seven passes for 53 yards but had his weakest showing in an Eagles uniform. Todd Pinkston (19 receptions on the year), who had one catch, was the only receiver other than Owens to catch a ball against Pittsburgh. Reid's club ranks ninth in NFL passing offense (244.9 yards per game), and McNabb has been sacked 17 times through eight games.
The Cowboys remain thin in the secondary, where cornerback Pete Hunter (knee) is out for the year, safety Darren Woodson (back) is believed out for the year, and corner Tyrone Williams (hamstring) remains questionable. That leaves safety Roy Williams (52 tackles) and struggling corner Terence Newman (39 tackles, 1 INT) to play a central role in stopping the McNabb-to-Owens connection. Parcells' club limited Cincinnati's Carson Palmer to a modest 212 aerial yards last week, but 76 of those came on a key touchdown pass to tight end Matt Schobel. Dallas has just 16 sacks on the year, and failed to drop Palmer last Sunday. End Greg Ellis leads the Cowboys with six sacks in 2004.
Philadelphia running back Brian Westbrook (475 rushing yards on the year) had a minimal impact in his first game back from a broken rib, rushing six times for 17 yards and catching three passes for four yards against Pittsburgh. Look for the Eagles to try and establish Westbrook early this week. Dorsey Levens (130 yards, 1 TD), who received most of the carries in Westbrook's absence, had two carries for four yards last Sunday. The Eagles rank 24th in NFL rushing offense (96.5 yards per game).
Dallas has struggled to control the run in 2004, and comes into Monday night ranked just 24th in the league in rushing defense (113.5 yards per game). The play of linebackers Dat Nguyen (48 tackles), Al Singleton (31 tackles), and Dexter Coakley (26 tackles) has been unexceptional, and Ellis (25 tackles) and tackle La'Roi Glover (21 tackles) have been unable to compensate in the trenches.
COWBOYS OFFENSE VS. EAGLES DEFENSE
Dallas quarterback Vinny Testaverde (2051 passing yards, 9 TD, 10 INT) will try to bounce back from a rough outing against the Bengals, a game in which he tossed a trio of interceptions. With receiver Terry Glenn (foot) out for the year, Testaverde has locked on with wideout Keyshawn Johnson (34 receptions, 4 TD on the year) and tight end Jason Witten (45 receptions, 3 TD). Witten caught six passes for a game-high 97 yards last week. The Dallas line has allowed only 14 sacks on the year, including one against the Bengals.
An Eagle pass rush that came into last week's game with 25 sacks couldn't put a great deal of pressure on Ben Roethlisberger, who was dropped only twice in a winning effort. Defensive tackle Sam Rayburn had both sacks, but is listed as questionable for the Cowboys following a car accident early Tuesday morning. Jevon Kearse (6 sacks on the year), who had just one tackle last week, will seek a greater impact against Dallas. In the secondary, safety Brian Dawkins tallied an interception of Roethlisberger to go along with nine total tackles. Cornerback Sheldon Brown had a game-high 14 tackles last week, and will likely be counted on for a greater role in pass defense versus Dallas.
The Cowboys' on-again, off-again rushing game was off again last Sunday, as running backs Eddie George (8 rushes, 23 yards), Richie Anderson (10 rushes, 29 yards), and ReShard Lee (6 rushes, 39 yards) failed to register much of an impact versus the Bengals. The hard-nosed George, a native Philadelphian, figures to get a bulk of the carries against the Eagles' suspect run-stopping personnel. George (372 yards, 3 TD on the year) is averaging just 3.4 yards per rush, and Dallas is 22nd in NFL rushing offense (101.9 yards per game).
The major questions that had cropped up about the Philadelphia run defense were hardly answered last week, when the Steelers amassed a bloated 252 ground yards against Reid's club. Charged with the task of stopping George and company will be linebackers Nate Wayne (29 tackles), Mark Simoneau (34 tackles), and Dhani Jones (41 tackles), with assistance from defensive tackles Hollis Thomas (18 tackles) and Darwin Walker (15 tackles). End Derrick Burgess (17 tackles), who had eight tackles against Pittsburgh, was the member of the line who made the greatest impact last week. The Eagles currently rank a distant 27th in NFL rushing defense (130.6 yards per game).
OVERALL ANALYSIS
Following last week's meltdown in Cincinnati, the Cowboys should be better focused on a Monday night at home against a division rival. At the same time, the significantly more talented Eagles will want to re-assert their dominance following last week's debacle. Dallas should be able to run the ball a bit and make a game of it, but they won't have an answer for McNabb and Owens, who will have the final word in a nail-biter.
Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Eagles 21, Cowboys 20
Comment