FRISCO, Texas – The Cowboys lost on a Sunday night in New Jersey.
The Cowboys lost on a Sunday afternoon in South America.
The Cowboys lost on a Thursday night down the road in Arlington.
Well, halleluiah, it's a Monday night game this week, at the witching hour of 7:15 p.m. in the loosely-termed Town of Brotherly Love, these Cowboys certainly hope, playing Game 7 this Monday against the equally 2-4 Philadelphia Eagles, the team the Cowboys on their way to a 7-9-1 record in 2025 defeated the last time they met, 24-21, part of a three-game winning streak last year, but unfortunately followed by a season crushing three game losing streak.
Unlike last year when the Eagles finished 11-6, the first team in the NFC East to repeate as champs since they did so four consecutive seasons from 2001-04, that final season the Eagles finishing 13-3 and advancing to Super Bowl XXXIX when losing to New England, this time the Eagles are buried in a four-game losing streak.
They are without starting quarterback Jalen Hurts, now relying on inexperienced third-year quarterback Tanner McKee. They might have back RB Saquon Barkley, having missed the past two games but did return to practice this week. Their offensive line is under reconstruction, and they have not scored more than more than 20 points in the past four games, averaging 14.5.
Eagles might be ripe for the taking, even if the Cowboys are playing in Philly before those folks sure to be all hyped up for the game, not only with more time to prepare for a Monday night game if you catch my drift, but also because, well, this city despises the Cowboys over all these years, and for sure "birds" will be flying upon their NFC East rivals upon buses heading into the stadium.
As 11th year Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott knows, preparing to play his eighth game against the Eagles in Philly, no place is tougher than playing before 70,000 fans in Philly, with very few Cowboys fans on the scene.
"It's one of the few opportunities you get that you feel like you're truly on the road, you know you're hated," Dak said. "It's you guys, those guys on the sideline, vs. the world it feels like, and that's what football is supposed to be when you go on the road, to someone else's house."
So here is the dilemma the Cowboys have placed themselves in thanks to losing these past two games, 26-16 to Tampa Bay and 23-13 to Green Bay. They currently are tied with those 2-4 Birds for second place in the NFC East, just one win behind the first place New York Giants (3-2-1) who play at Houston on Sunday. A Cowboys win and a Giants loss would leave the Cowboys just a half game behind the Giants with 10 games to play.
Oh, but a loss, stringing this losing streak to three conseutive games, means the Cowboys would fall to 2-5, three games under .500, and quite a hole to dig out of then having to overtake the 3-4 Eagles and potentially if they win the 4-2-1 Giants. The last time the Cowboys started out a season no better than 2-5 was in 2020, Mike McCarthy's first year as head coach and a season ending up 6-10. Prior to that, in 2015 the Cowboys began the season 2-5 and ended up with a 4-12 record.
Not sure Dak is versed with this bit of history when he said what he said out here on Friday, but just know the Cowboys, if history is any accurate indicator, have never started a season with no more than two victories in the first seven games to pull out a winning record. Closest they ever came has been in 1965 after five consecutive losing seasons since their 1960 inception, they meagerly began the season at 2-5 yet finished .500 at 7-7.
After that, for you history buffs, the Cowboys reeled off a record 20 consecutive winning seasons from 1966-1985 before falling to 7-9 in 1986, mostly thanks to losing quarterback Danny White, suffering torn ligaments and a broken bone in his right throwing-hand wrist in the ninth game during the 6-2 Cowboys showdown with the 6-2 Giants, who went on to win their remaining games, including the Super Bowl that year.
So there Dak, this team's mindset?
"I would say determined and I would hope urgent," Dak said. "We can only say 'we got a lot of games in front of us' for so long. It might be already past us this, right? We got to go win . . . we got to go win. You got to give yourself a chance to be a winning team, to be a playoff team. You gotta 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. Urgent – urgent to get it done now."
Bet we'd all second that motion.
And to capitalize on this urgency, the Cowboys must do a better job on offense. Can't come out of this game scoring less than 17 points a third consecutive game. My goodness, not after averaging 30 points a game over the first four, Thirtysomething the primary reason they actually stood 2-2 at that point. And having said that, here must be my three keys to 3-4.
First, protect Dak. All this blitzing must be stopped. Must be defeated. That's the quickest way to stop what Tampa Bay started and Green Bay followed. And Dak knows in this copycat league, even though Philly defensive e coordinator Vic Fangio isn't known for excessive blitzing, the Cowboys are bracing to face the same.
"I have to be better, the communication has to be better," says Dak.
Next, third down, this defense must get off the field at a higher percentage than what's been taking place all season. Why opponents are converting third downs at a 54.7 percent rate, worst in the league. Only two opponents have converted at less than 53.8 percent. And maybe these numbers are more telling than percentages, which comes to 41 out of 75, this the main reason opponents have hogged the ball for 32 minutes, 22 seconds.
And in order to stop these third down plays, that means producing undo pressure on opposing quarterbacks, and that will be at a higher priority facing the Eagles backup quarterback Tanner McKee, the now third-year player ready to start his fourth of what's going to be his eighth NFL game, having thrown but 133 passes, the 43 this past game, his first since the 40 in the final mop up start in 2025.
"Doesn't matter if you are old, or you are young, you're going to get blitzed," say Cowboys backup quarterback Sam Howell, who started all 17 games for Washington in his second NFL season of 2023 after attempting only 14 his rookie year for Seattle, knowing firsthand wht happens to inexperience QBs. "But you got to beat it, and they will back off."
Even those 7-man blitzes the Cowboys were facing from Green Bay this past Sunday?
"There is a ton of space out there," Howell counters.
Well, this Cowboys defense, having collected five of their eight sacks in the past three games can't allow McKee to have the time of day in the pocket, not as they did the rookie Jalon Daniels of Tampa Bay. And that pressure must burst his comfort especially on third down.
The Cowboys sorely need veteran Von Miller on the outside to step up. So, too, veteran Rashan Garry. Maybe more snaps for Malachi Lawrence. How 'bout some blitzing, maybe from Caleb Downs, now that seemingly veteran corner Cobie Durant seems set to play after missing the past four games with a hamstring strain. Durant is being listed as fully practicing on Friday, and while he'll probably be on a pitch count, claims he is ready for whatever the coaches ask him to do, including in the slot.
Or maybe DeMarvion Overshown, fully practicing on Friday for the first time since severely straining his hamstring in the opener against the Giants, also likely on a pitch count, maybe he can produce some pressure with his athletic ability.
Just do not, repeat, do not allow McKee to have the time of day in the pocket, because no matter his lack of experience, he is an NFL quarterback if allowed to be comfortable throwing the ball.
The NFL is designating this October "Crucial Catch" month. For the Cowboys this is "Crucial Game" Monday. Winning is "crucial."
"We got to get every win that we can," QB1 says, "and we got to get every win that we can, and this is an important one because it's now, we've just dropped two, can't drop another one."
Well, Thursday night didn't work out so well for the Cowboys. Nor Sunday in Rio. Nor Sunday night in Green Bay. So maybe the Mamas & Papas are right:
"Monday, Monday, so good to me."
Sure needs to be for the Cowboys Monday night.
