ARLINGTON, Texas — Halloween has come and gone and November is here. But the stadium better known as JerryWorld continues to be a house of horrors for the Dallas Cowboys.
The Cowboys entered the eleventh calendar month since their last home victory.
A team that has lost just five games in three years has already surpassed that total.
The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Cowboys, 34-6, in a Sunday afternoon game that improved the Eagles to 7-2 in overtaking the Washington Commanders in the NFC East. The Cowboys fell to 3-6, their playoff hopes are almost lost.
In their first game this season without franchise quarterback Dak Prescott, the Cowboys showed that a long-struggling team could indeed be much worse. Prescott’s torn hamstringand its likely implications for the end of the season, could be the Cowboys’ main problem.
But it’s far from the only one.
Dallas’ struggling offense turned the ball over five times and scored no touchdowns, even as the Eagles began to rest their starters.
Philadelphia repeatedly capitalized on the Cowboys’ mistakes as they ran up the score in a game in which the Cowboys were surprisingly listed as underdogs by only 7 points.
For most of the first two quarters, the Cowboys’ defensive improvement showed a potential path to validating Vegas’ confidence.
Dallas sacked Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts twice in the first series and cornerback Trevon Diggs then jumped a pass intended for tight end Dallas Goedert to snag an interception in the end zone. Micah Parsons would later strip Hurts in Parsons’ first game following a sprained ankle. famous sun glare appearing to help the Cowboys’ defensive efforts as Hurts took three sacks on three consecutive dropbacks.
But Hurts mostly fueled his dual-threat ability to score two more rushing touchdowns in addition to his 14-of-20 passing for 202 yards and two touchdowns.
Running back Saquon Barkley gained 21 yards after the catch on third-and-six to set up Hurts’ initial touchdown run on the Eagles’ “Brotherly Shove” play.
Cowboys quarterbacks Cooper Rush and Trey Lance each contributed to the turnover count, with running back Ezekiel Elliott also fumbling at the goal line.
While Dallas set up kicker Brandon Aubrey for field goals of 46 and 23 yards early, they were completely ineffective in the second half. An improved Eagles defense held Rush to just 45 yards on 23 pass attempts, with Dallas hitting three attempts on each of its three chances to get the ball back in the third quarter.
Lance, active for the first time this season, threw an interception and a pass that tight end Jake Ferguson would have fumbled on consecutive series.
The Eagles did what good teams do against cellar dwellers: blow them up. Wide receiver AJ Brown caught passes of 30 and 44 yards en route to a 109-yard day, and Barkley rushed for 66 yards on 14 carries.
The Eagles will host the Commanders on Thursday night in a game with first place in the division on the line.
