DALLAS — A nightmarish season for the Dallas Cowboys continued as they were humiliated by the NFC East rival Philadelphia Eagles 34-6 in Week 10. The team lost for the fourth time in four home games and were dominated once again on their home field.
At 3-6, and with starting quarterback Dak Prescott likely done for the year, it didn’t seem like things could get much crueler for the Cowboys. That sentiment was thrown out the window during another third quarter swoon from the team, which saw their much-loathed opponent embarrass them.
This cannot be easy for head coach Mike McCarthy, owner Jerry Jones or anyone in the organization to watch. Losing is one thing, but it’s another thing altogether to get dismantled on a weekly basis. The sharp decline has been even more pronounced by the fact that Dallas had won 12 games in each of the last three seasons. Those days seem like a distant memory at this point.
Another blowout loss was made even worse considering how poorly the Cowboys have played in front of their fans at AT&T Stadium, where the team has now been outscored 153-59 on the year.
This all comes following a year in which Dallas went undefeated at home during the regular season. It’s almost impossible to believe the sour turn that the Cowboys have taken but the history books don’t lie. When going back to the playoff loss in January, it’s been a record-breaking horror show.
There are losses, and then there are the kinds of beatings that the Cowboys continue to repeat. This is a team that looks ill prepared, lifeless, and one that can’t seem to get out of their own way, which is the type of performance Dallas had in their Week 10 loss.
A blowout didn’t seem in the cards this time as the Cowboys were hanging tough with the Eagles for the first 30 minutes. Sure, Philadelphia was leading 14-6 at halftime, but McCarthy’s team was showing some fight in their first game with a new starting QB under center.
Some of the highlights from the opening half included five sacks, two forced turnovers, and a beleaguered run defense holding one of the league’s best ground games in check. The return of pass rusher Micah Parsons in his first action since Week 4 seemed to spark the defensive effort.
Parsons had two sacks in the first half, as did second-year linebacker DeMarvion Overshwon, who continues to be one of the defense’s best players. The duo led the charge to keep the game close, but the offense couldn’t cash in on the opportunities.
Elevated understudy Cooper Rush wasn’t up to the challenge of replacing Prescott and his fumble on the team’s second possession led to the first Eagles touchdown. Veteran running back Ezekiel Elliott’s goal line fumble was another major mistake that helped keep the Cowboys trailing in the first half. Dallas had their chances but were quite literally giving them away.
With the Cowboys forcing a Jalen Hurts fumble and getting the ball deep in Philadelphia territory, the team was poised to take the lead just before halftime. Down 7-3, and facing a second-and-goal, Rush threw to a wide open CeeDee Lamb in the end zone. However, the wide receiver couldn’t see the ball because of the sun blinding him through the stadium windows, and the pass fell incomplete.
The offense would settle for a field goal and the Eagles took that momentum and never looked back as they added a touchdown with under two minutes to go in the half to put the Cowboys behind the eight ball ahead of what proved to be a disastrous second half.
Jones was asked about the sun coming through, and the owner answered defiantly that the defect isn’t a problem.
A team circling the drain has enough going on without Jones’ stubbornness to fix the issue, and the game flipped quickly after.
With the Eagles up 14-6, the third quarter was once again critical as an area where the Cowboys have struggled mightily all season. If the Cowboys could keep up the fight, they might have a chance, if they failed to adjust as they’ve done almost all year, the rout would be on.
Sunday’s third quarter proved the latter. The Eagles scored 14 points in the quarter, while the Cowboys had nine total plays for -1 yard, and turnover as another blowout ensued.
Dallas has now been outscored 82-22 in third quarters this season. If we take away the Week 1 touchdown on a KaVontae Turpin punt return for a score, the Cowboys’ offense hasn’t scored a third quarter touchdown all year.
As another second-half implosion arrived, the Cowboys turned the ball over on three straight possessions to open the second half and those turnovers were a byproduct of an offense that couldn’t do much to move the ball.
Rush, as good as he’s been filling in for Prescott over the last few years, was awful in the loss. The backup QB showed that he’s not capable of carrying a team with little offensive talent, throwing for a paltry 45 yards, and turning it over twice.
McCarthy also tried to jumpstart the offense by playing third-string QB Trey Lance, but his initial insertion was as a runner, not a passer. Later in the game when it was obvious Rush wasn’t the answer, Lance got an opportunity to play QB, which went about as well as his predecessor. All in all, the Dallas offense totaled an anemic 146 yards and failed to score a touchdown.
Meanwhile, the defense couldn’t hold the line for an ineffective offense. After harassing Hurts and frustrating a great Eagles offensive line in the first half, Mike Zimmer’s defense didn’t get much pressure on the Eagles’ QB in the second half and surrendered 20 points in the last 30 minutes. While the defense put up a fight, they are another unit bereft of playmakers that was eventually worn down by nearly ten more minutes of possession (34:01 to 25:59).
Sunday’s Week 10 was another blowout loss for the Cowboys at home. Giving the ball away five times with an offense that can’t even muster 150 yards isn’t going to win games anywhere.
Ultimately it was another week with another ugly loss from the Cowboys, who are now 0-4 at home, and 3-6 on the year. Halloween may be over, but the nightmare season continues.
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