FRISCO, Texas – The Cowboys went on the road to Philadelphia and beat a depleted Eagles team that was without their starting quarterback, starting running back (at least for a majority of the game), and two starting wide receivers.
Does that take away some of the "glamour" from the victory? Maybe, but wins are something no teams apologize for in the NFL, and the Cowboys certainly won't as they were in need of a victory.
Now at 3-4, the Cowboys play four of their next five games at AT&T Stadium and face only one team with a winning record. Is this finally the stretch where Dallas can stack wins? We'll see, but they found some momentum on Monday night, and as Dak Prescott said after the game, "momentum's real, especially in this league."
Let's take a look at where Dallas found some of that momentum on film:
Tip the cap to Dallas' offensive line, tight ends
What shows up in the box score is the Cowboys running 38 times for 204 yards, led by Javonte Williams' career-best 155 yard day. What really pops when you watch the tape back is how well the offensive line and tight ends blocked Philadelphia's front, their best rushing performance up front all season.
The Eagles' offense was banged up, but their defense still had their stars like Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis and Zack Baun playing. The Cowboys were able to get consistent push over the course of the night, and Williams was not tackled behind the line of scrimmage once in the game because of how well the front blocked for him.
On this play, you see the culmination of all of that. The left side of Dallas' offensive line is able to create a lane right off the snap, and even though Jalen Carter is able to penetrate initially, Brevyn Spann-Ford gets in the way to prevent a TFL. On the right side of the line, Jake Ferguson and Terence Steele set good block that would've allowed Williams a chance to run to that side, had Carter not penetrated. Ultimately, the defensive end doesn't set the edge on the left and runs into Spann-Ford, leaving Williams 1-on-1 for a solid gain. There was a lot of that over the course of the night.
Cowboys defense takes away an explosive play
One area the Cowboys defense has been susceptible to this season was big plays in the passing game. Whether it be third and long or a downfield shot off a double move, the unit has struggled to keep the top on opposing offenses. They did a better job of that against the Eagles, with Philadelphia's longest passing play being of 21 yards, although the Eagles did have seven receivers with 10+ yard receptions.
DaRon Bland has been a target for opposing teams especially early in the season, but has put together two better games against Green Bay and Philadelphia. On this play, he takes away what could've been an explosive play off a double move.
Bland is matched up with Hollywood Brown, who tries to sell the outside route, but cuts it back upfield. Bland doesn't bite fully on the route, and ultimately is able to stay square, turn around and stay in the hip pocket of Brown down the field. Even with the pump fake from Tanner McKee, the rest of Dallas' defense didn't flinch either, as Rashan Gary has the coverage on the running back in the flat and McKee has no choice but to throw the ball away.
Run game success allowing for creativity in the pass game
The Cowboys already have a high-volume offense and a lot of different things Brian Schottenheimer can dial up, but the playbook expands when Dallas is having success running the football, and when the offensive line is playing well up front.
Here's an example of what that can do. The Cowboys get Dak Prescott on the move going to his right from the snap, which essentially gives him two 1-on-1 matchups for CeeDee Lamb against Cooper DeJean and Ryan Flournoy against Riq Woolen. They're both more or less running the same out route, but Flournoy's route takes him a bit deeper.
Because Flournoy's route is deeper, he's able to set a natural pick for Lamb to become open as DeJean has to navigate around him. Prescott has the throw there if he wants it, but also has Flournoy 1-on-1 a little bit further down the field. He decides to take that option, and puts the ball in a perfect spot for Flournoy to make the toe-tap catch on the sideline for a bigger gain.
