FRISCO, Texas – Sitting at 2-4 on the season with back-to-back losses to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Green Bay Packers, the Cowboys know that now is the time for them to stack victories.
No team in the NFC East has won a game in the last two weeks, and two of their teams played each other in Week 5 when the Giants and Commanders tied. So for now, the division title is still within reach, but for QB Dak Prescott, time is running out to continue thinking that way.
"I would say determined, and I would hope urgent," Prescott said of the team's mindset. "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 got to go win. Gotta go win. You've gotta go win. You want to give yourself a chance to be a winning team, to be a playoff team, you've got to win as many games as you can. When you drop two games, and particularly games that we didn't expect to drop, it makes it that much harder. So urgent, urgent to get it done now."
If they want to get it done now, the Cowboys offense will need to perform better than they have the last two weeks, where they've combined for just 29 points and have struggled to hold up against heavy blitz looks from Tampa Bay and Green Bay.
"They're simple fixes," Prescott said of the team's adjustments to dealing with the blitz. "I said it after the game, I've got to be better in some plays. And we've got to be better as a whole of just communicating certain hots and moving protection if we need to."
One of the best ways to beat the blitz, or even avoid facing it? Running the football, another area Dallas hasn't been able to find success in as they enter this game 31st in rushing yards per game with 76.
"We've got to get it going, we've got to stick to it," Prescott said. "We've got to find ways. Trust me, the offensive line is taking a lot of ownership in it, and they want to go out there and do it more than anybody. Obviously, Javonte [Williams] and [Tyler Goodson], the backs want to be involved. Just opens up everything else in the game, it keeps us out of some particular situations, doesn't allow the defense to just pin their ears back as much, so it's important for us."
If Dallas can get the run game going, then it sets up an area Prescott is confident in and one he's been at the best at over the course of his career: Play action, which can also get the Cowboys' offense back to hitting more explosive plays.
"From there, you get your play action, your passes," Prescott said. "If you look at those numbers, I can guarantee you more than half of those were run action type plays and explosives. From there, a lot of things can open up."
The Cowboys' explosive play machine in 2025 was George Pickens. Getting Pickens involved earlier in games has been a topic of conversation throughout the week, and Prescott knows that Pickens. needs to have the ball in his hands earlier in games.
"I definitely think that would help just in games and throughout games," Prescott said. "He's a guy that's infectious to the team. When he catches a ball, just whether it be a celebration or his run after catch, it's good momentum we can build off of."
Prescott and the Cowboys offense is familiar with Eagles DC Vic Fangio, as is Dallas DC Christian Parker, who has been able to provide some bits of knowledge for game planning this week after his two years in Philadelphia before taking the coordinator job in Dallas.
The Eagles use four or fewer pass rushers at the fifth-highest rate in the league (75.9%), but with the Cowboys' struggles against the blitz in the last two games, Prescott is expecting to see a slight variation in that.
"More particularly because we haven't handled it the way that we should," Prescott said. "So I expect more than they do on average, but I don't expect Vic [Fangio] coming out and just using the game plan from the Packers or the Bucs. Very confident in his scheme, his guys are well coached, and he's gonna play to what he believes in. But I would not be surprised if there's more blitzes in this game than he's done in the past."
Playing the Eagles on the road in Philadelphia is an opportunity that Prescott relishes because of the environment at Lincoln Financial Field where Eagles fans pack the stands, and not like some other road stadiums where the Cowboys have a lot of fans present and can somewhat nullify the road environment at times.
"It's one of the few opportunities you that you get that you feel like you're truly on the road," Prescott said. "You know you're hated. It's you guys and those guys on that sideline versus the world, it feels like. And that's what football is supposed to be when you go on the road and you go to someone else's house. You want that feeling, you want that atmosphere. There's nothing better than hearing them quiet or getting them to boo their team. It's just a great atmosphere. They love football out there. They expect to win, and that's what makes the environment so fun and hectic."
The Cowboys practice one more time on Saturday before heading to Philadelphia for Monday Night Football, looking to get back in the win column.
