It looked like it was going to be a rout for the Philadelphia Eagles (8-3) against their rivals, the Dallas Cowboys (5-5-1), until it wasn’t. The Eagles jumped out to a 21-0 lead early into the second quarter with the offense seemingly breaking away from their stagnant ways, scoring on their first three drives, only to not come close to scoring for the final 40-plus minutes of the game, allowing Dallas to score 24 unanswered for the collapsing loss.
It marks the largest blown lead in the Nick Sirianni era and the first 21-point lead that they gave away since Andy Reid’s first game as head coach in 1999.
Here are five takeaways from the brutal loss.
You could not have asked for a better start if you were Kevin Patullo, Nick Sirianni, Jalen Hurts and the offense. Three consecutive drives, three touchdowns to build a 21-0 lead. After that, the offense vanished.
Here’s how the rest of the game went for the offense:
Punt
Kneel down to end the half
Punt
Punt
Punt
Missed Field Goal
Fumble
Punt
They did not score a point in the second half, marking the third time this season the Eagles have not scored any points in a half and the tenth time this season scoring seven or less in a half in games this season. A recurring theme all season long when it comes to this offense.
Hurts threw for 164 yards in the first half, but only threw for 125 in the second half and struggled when facing pressure, completing four of his eight passes for 37 yards, as opposed to four of six for 83 yards in the first half.
Barkley only had four carries in the second half. A.J. Brown had three catches for 43 yards, while DeVonta Smith also had three receptions for 32 yards after the two combined for 124 receiving yards and a touchdown in the first half.
Hurts finished with 322 total yards, three touchdowns and did not turn the ball over, but he could not get the offense over the hump playing behind the sticks or generate any rhythm.
And it’s not that good. A unit that has taken pride in being regarded as one of the most dominant front fives in the NFL for quite some time simply is not the same this season.
Now, it’s not easy to criticize a unit that has been the keystone to the offense’s success over the years and the ability Jeff Stoutland has in coaching the linemen. However, the unit has struggled, especially in run blocking, while dealing with inconsistent play, injuries and penalties all season.
On Sunday, Hurts faced pressure on 21 dropbacks, the most in a game this season.
Lane Johnson missed parts of multiple games before suffering a Lisfranc fracture that will have him sidelined for at least a month. Cam Jurgens has been battling his way through injuries since the preseason. Tyler Steen is not Mehki Becton. Jordan Mailata and Landon Dickerson have not played as well as they have in previous seasons.
Postgame, some of the offensive linemen mentioned the five-man down front that the Cowboys implemented, which created problems.
“I think we really have to hone in on having a game plan for every defense a team has run and every possible defense they can run and make sure we can execute,” Landon Dickerson said.
The offensive line also committed four penalties for 35 yards, with two of them being back breakers. An illegal formation penalty on Matt Pryor, who checked into the game for the first time, negated a 20-yard catch for Dallas Goedert that would have set up the Eagles on the Dallas 40-yard line. Another was an illegal hands to the face against Fred Johnson, now in a starting role replacing Lane Johnson, on a 16-yard reception by DeVonta Smith, which would have put the Eagles on the Cowboys’ 28-yard line. Instead, it made it 2nd-and-17, and Barkley fumbled on the ensuing play.
“You can’t expect to move the ball when you’re committing things like facemask penalties, false starts, illegal formations,” left tackle Jordan Mailata said. “That stuff takes no talent. That’s something we pride ourselves on at the Eagles. I think a large part of that is a lack of focus, especially in crucial parts of the game. Third downs or extending first downs, making them 1st and 20 or 2nd and 20. You can’t play behind the sticks.”
The lack of success and production from Barkley is due in large part to the struggles of the offensive line. It was tough sledding for the running back in the loss, carrying the ball for 10 times and amassing a season-low 22 yards. Barkley also fumbled for the first time this season on a screen pass on what was arguably the most promising drive the offense had in the second half, giving up the ball on the Cowboys’ 36-yard line.
Tank Bigsby, who has shown some juice in the backfield since getting more carries, was only given one carry for eight yards while Jalen Hurts led the Eagles with 33 yards on seven carries. All said and done, the trio combined for 63 yards on 18 carries, averaging 3.5 yards per touch.
“I’m a big believer that the run game starts and ends with me,”Barkley said postgame. “I’m in a little funk right now. I’ve had funks like this before. Just gotta break it. The only way I know how is flushing this, work my butt off and get ready for the next opportunity.”
On a crucial 3rd-and-two late in the fourth quarter, the Eagles opted not to run the ball with Barkley or Bigsby. Hurts instead dropped back for a pass, had time in the pocket, but did not throw the ball, resulting in a 13-yard sack with two minutes left in the game.
Barkley averaged a season-low 2.2 yards per carry in the loss, marking the fifth game this season the running back has not averaged at least three yards per tote this season, more than any other season in his career, with his rookie season having four such games in 2018.
This season, the Eagles are 21st in rushing yards per game (110.5). At this point last season, they averaged 184.1 yards per contest. Philadelphia has only four designed runs of 20 yards or more this season, with two coming from Barkley.
The Eagles have a penalty problem. Penalties fall in the category of not needing talent to be successful, according to Nick Sirianni. Philadelphia had a season-high 14 for 96 yards in the loss on Sunday, the most under Sirianni since his coaching debut against Atlanta in Week 1 of the 2021 season. Now, there were a couple that may have been questionable, including the Smith offensive pass interference. However, 14 is just far too many.
The Eagles are averaging 10 penalties per game over their last three games, ranking seventh-worst in the NFL, averaging 7.6 per contest. They are just 20 penalties shy of surpassing their entire season total last year, where they finished in the top-10 in the department.
“Uncharacteristic of us, obviously. Put that on me,” Sirriani said regarding the penalties.“Obviously, I have to get my message across better. That’s gotta be on me. We will fix the things we need to fix technique-wise, look-wise, but we have to master the things that require no talent, and that will always be on me when that happens.”
One of the focal points over the last two games against Green Bay and Detroit was the new-look pass rush with the addition of Jaelan Phillips, along with the return of Nakobe Dean. However, the pass rush was unable to disrupt Prescott, only sacking the quarterback once, courtesy of Dean.
The defense did get six quarterback hits on Prescott, but none came until later in the third quarter. However, Prescott had himself another good game against the Eagles, throwing for 354 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for another as the Eagles’ defense gave up 473 yards.
“When it comes to getting pressure against an O-line like that, you gotta win,” Dean said. “You need to win one-on-ones up front. Win when Vic calls our name as linebackers to blitz, we have to win whoever they put up against us. He [Dak Prescott] was able to play his game today.”
It does not get easier for Philadelphia, who returns home on a quick turnaround to host the red-hot Chicago Bears, winners of eight of their last nine, at Lincoln Financial Field for a primetime Black Friday game at 3 p.m.
