Bitter rivals will meet for a Monday night showdown when the Cowboys and Eagles kick off the first regular season game at AT&T Stadium for the 2021 season. The Philadelphia Eagles came up short last Sunday in a 17-11 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. The Eagles were 3 point underdogs at home in that game. The Eagles are now 1-1 on the season. The Dallas Cowboys are also off to a 1-1 start after picking up a 20-17 road victory over the Los Angeles Chargers last weekend despite being three point underdogs. The stakes are always high for divisional games but when it comes to the Cowboys and Eagles, their recent rivalry brings it to a whole other level.
The Cowboys and Eagles split their season series in 2020. Ben DiNucci was at the helm for the Cowboys during their 23-9 defeat at the hands of Carson Wentz and the Eagles in November. Andy Dalton then led the Cowboys to a convincing 37-17 victory over Jalen Hurts‘ Eagles in late December. This is the first time Dak Prescott and Jalen Hurts will face each other in a head to head match-up.
While the Eagles are coming off their first loss of the season, it has still been a positive start for a team that was expected to be rebuilding. They crushed the Atlanta Falcons in week 1 before putting up a solid effort against a formidable San Francisco 49er team last week. The Eagles offense soared against the Falcons in the season opener but it was a different story against a much better 49er defense. Against San Francisco, a Jake Elliot field goal was the only score the Eagles offense put up until the 4:02 mark of the fourth quarter when Jalen Hurts ran it in from a yard out. The 49ers then proceeded to ice the game by picking up two first downs on the very next drive.
The biggest question marks for the Cowboys going into the 2021 season have been on the defensive side of the ball. Despite missing several starters, the Cowboys defense have answered those questions thus far by leading the league in turnovers and turnover differential. Adding Micah Parsons in the draft, plus replacing Mike Nolan with a far superior coordinator in Dan Quinn, has helped Dallas drastically improve their defense. Cowboys fans were thrilled with last weekend’s performance when they beat Justin Herbert and the Chargers on the road. Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott each recorded touchdown runs in the first quarter to get Dallas off to a hot start; while the Cowboys wouldn’t score again until the fourth quarter, a 56-yard field goal by Greg Zuerlein as time expired was enough to gain the victory thanks to the defense coming up with a few timely plays.
For this weeks’ Cowboys Eagles game, both teams will be fairly evenly matched. The Cowboys loaded offense has shown they can be effective through the air and on the ground. Dak Prescott has silenced any doubters that might have believed he was not going to be at full strength following his gruesome ankle injury last year and the injury he sustained to his throwing arm during training camp. For the Eagles offense, Jalen Hurts is a legitimate play maker who can make things happen under center, but the Eagles running backs and wide receivers don’t provide the same fire power that the Cowboys possess offensively. The Eagles offensive line is a solid unit but they have been dealt a couple blows in losing Brandon Brooks and Jordan Mailata. The Eagles will get no sympathy from any Cowboys fans as Dallas is completed depleted on the defensive line and may need rookie standout LB Micah Parson’s to contribute at DE once more just like he did in week 2.
Whenever division rivals square off, you can generally expect the game to come down to the wire. I believe Philadelphia will hang with the Cowboys for three quarters but ultimately Dallas’ far more explosive offense, with all their play makers at the skill positions, will be the difference. Dallas has been impressive so far against great competition in Tampa Bay and Los Angeles, while key injuries from last weekend are going to hurt Philadelphia’s chances of a road win here.
Final Prediction: Dallas Cowboys 37 Philadelphia Eagles 21
*Photo by Joe Glorioso https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/legalcode