Dallas Ends Skid, But Questions Remain: 3 Takeaways From Cowboys Victory vs. Eagles

The Cowboys and Eagles came out of the gates hot, teasing us with the prospect of a highly entertaining shootout. But it wasn’t to be. As expected, a Philadelphia offense missing Jalen Hurts and DeVonta Smith couldn’t match the pace or keep up with Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and George Pickens in the 38-21 loss on Monday night. Eagles backup Tanner McKee got off to a solid start, but quickly spiraled and threw away the game. Saquon Barkley's return from a hamstring injury helped early on, but he aggravated it on his second carry and was compromised for the rest of the night. Dallas did just enough to turn this one into a laugher. Dak Prescott threw for three touchdowns, and the running backs racked up 196 yards on the ground. The defense eventually tightened up after a few costly mistakes helped the Eagles score in the first half. Here are my takeaways: The Giants may have been the big winner on Monday night. They’ll head into their bye week with a two-game lead and won’t feel threatened by what they saw from Dallas or Philadelphia in the battle for second place. The Dallas offense put up points, as usual, but that felt more like a product of Philly incompetence. While Dak Prescott did hit a few unreal touchdown throws, his ball placement was off all night. The Cowboys finally got their run game going, but every team has run on this Eagles' defense, so they’ll have to prove they can do it against a better unit. This game didn’t tell us anything new about the Cowboys offense. The defense limited a shorthanded Eagles offense that’s playing without its starting quarterback or top wide receiver, and Saquon Barkley was clearly compromised by the hamstring injury that kept him out of the last few games. We still saw the poorly timed penalties—including TK that gifted Philly with first downs—and loose coverage that has plagued this unit all season. Getting linebacker DeMarvion Overshown back on the field did provide a bit of a spark for the Dallas defense. The rangy defender, who missed the last five games with a hamstring injury, made plays all over the field, including a fourth-quarter interception of Tanner McKee that essentially put the game away. If the oft-injured Overshown stays on the field and keeps making splash plays, that may offset some of Dallas’ inconsistency. With the division’s best quarterback in Prescott and two star receivers, the Cowboys should still be considered the favorites in the NFC East, but would anybody trust this team to win a playoff game? We’ve seen what happens when a defense can get pressure on Prescott, which most playoff defenses will be built to do. It’s awfully tough to win in January without a reliable run game or defense. The Eagles defense was supposed to provide a high floor for the team as the offense worked through some things. Instead, it’s been a bottom-ten unit and it’s showing no signs of improvement after letting Dallas march up and down the field on Monday night. There are red flags across the unit, but the run game is the biggest one. Defensive tackles Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter were pushed around by the Cowboys' interior line and combined for just one stop despite the high volume of inside runs for Dallas. The Eagles secondary didn’t fare any better. Cornerback Riq Woolen, one of the big offseason acquisitions, was targeted relentlessly and gave up 111 yards and a touchdown.  Cooper DeJean’s poor run of form continued as he gave up the Cowboys’ first touchdown. The defense can’t stop the run and is looking increasingly vulnerable against the pass. Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio has no obvious answers, and the same plays that worked in the past just aren’t working now. It’s hard to say it’s a scheme issue, though. Outside of linebacker Zack Baun and cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, few Eagles defenders are playing up to their potential. All of that is adding up to one of the NFL's worst defenses. Only four teams have surrendered more points after seven weeks. Now that we can give up on the dream that Tanner McKee could keep the offense afloat, Philadelphia needs to start looking ahead to 2027. This team desperately needs an injection of talent — and perhaps a new coaching staff to develop it — and the best way to do that is to stockpile draft picks. While the Eagles are a bad football team right now, they have plenty of tradeable assets. We’ve already seen them pick up some draft capital in the Cam Jurgens trade. Woolen’s name has been floated in trade rumors, and the calls to deal the cornerback will only get louder after Monday’s game. Plenty of offenses could use a home-run-hitting back like Barkley, but his contract could be tough to move, and his lingering hamstring injury will also complicate things with only two weeks left before the deadline. Defensive lineman Moro Ojomo and tight end Dallas Goedert are in the final year of their contracts and will garner plenty of interest from contenders around the league. Philadelphia doesn’t require a complete teardown. There’s no need to go wild and start shipping off long-term pieces, but the roster needs an offseason refresh. Arming general manager Howie Roseman with as many roster-building resources as possible is the best way to prepare for a busy offseason. We’ve seen Roseman quickly rebuild this roster into a contender before, and nobody would be surprised if he can pull it off in a matter of months. The 2026 season may be lost, but the team's immediate future is still salvageable. The Cowboys have a chance to go on a little run here, with the Cardinals coming to Dallas next week before a trip to Indianapolis to take on a reeling Colts team. They face the 49ers the following week, one of the four remaining games against teams projected to make the playoffs. If the run-game improvement is real, Dallas has enough offensive firepower to win the NFC East. This was the first of three straight division games for the Eagles, whose season is on the brink, with a trip to Washington followed by a game against the first-place Giants. If Philadelphia loses to the Commanders, the trade deadline could be very interesting for this team that appears to be transitioning from one generation to the next.