After nine games, it’s safe to say that the Eagles don’t know how to win pretty, but fortunately for them, none of that matters.
Philly’s (8-1) defense bent a lot on Sunday against the Cowboys(5-3), but they didn’t break as they would defeat the Cowboys 28-23 at Lincoln Financial Field.
Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott completed 29-of-44 passes for 374 yards and three touchdowns; however, the Eagles’ defense stood up when it mattered most.
With the help of three penalties, Dallas drove the ball from its own 14-yard line to Philly’s six-yard line, but two penalties and a big sack by Josh Sweat pushed the Cowboys back to the 27-yard line. The Eagles sealed the victory when Sydney Brown forced a fumble against CeeDee Lamb at Philly’s three-yard line that Reed Blankenship recovered as time expired.
With the win, the Eagles improved to 8-1, which is the best record in the league. Philadelphia has either held or shared the top mark in the NFL every week since Week 1 of 2022.
Jalen Hurts, who completed 17-of-23 attempts for 207 yards (9.0 avg.), two touchdowns, and one touchdown on the ground, gave the Eagles’ defense credit for the win.
“A ton of credit for that defense, man, [for] how they played out there today,” Hurts said. “So, those are opportunities for us to grow, and we need to learn from that. But, I think for our defense and being in the situations that they’ve been in, and I rarely ever talk about that. Obviously, we all have our role, we all challenge ourselves to be better at our roles and our jobs. But, you look at the defense and the situations that they’ve been in throughout the season and how they showed up today in this moment, whether it was a [defensive pass interference], a holding, or whatever, they found a way to respond. So it’s a great job by them. And obviously, with them [the Cowboys] having an opportunity to score as many as they did and not giving them one – [Eagles DE Brandon Graham] got into the ball to put us in a game of inches, you know, and just a ton of credit for them, just continue to grow, that’s the mindset.”
The Eagles have yet to play a complete game, but they’re still 8-1; however, winning is all that matters.
“We still have yet to play a complete game,” Hurts said. “We’re still hungry and eager to continue to grow and build upon the things that we’ve been able to do. Just way to show up in the end. Obviously we have some things that we want back defensively, offensively, and on special teams. But it’s always about finding a way… But all that matters is winning. That’s something that I’ve been saying all year.”
Near the end of the first half, Hurts already injured left knee got twisted up, and he struggled to get to his feet. He returned and gutted it out the rest of the way. Hurts danced around questions surrounding his knee, and fortunately, the Eagles have a bye next week before they battle the Chiefs in a rematch of last year’s Super Bowl.
“I don’t think the bye week could come at a better time,” Hurts said.
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