Blogging The Boys
Cowboys fans had seen this movie before. Sloppy play, lack of focus from star players, and some big, controversial calls from the referees to boot. By the time Jalen Hurts got pushed by his tush to score his third touchdown on the day and put the Eagles up 21-0, just about every fan was checking out. It didn’t matter that the game was only 28 seconds into the second quarter, Cowboys fans had seen enough: this was over.
The players didn’t get the memo.
Philadelphia went up 21-0 early in the second quarter, and the way they got there can best be described as a comedy of errors. Dallas started with the ball and ultimately turned it over on downs right at midfield. AJ Brown caught a touchdown bomb just seven plays later, scoring on the short field.
A Dallas three-and-out was quickly matched by the Eagles, who came up short on third and long. But Dallas was flagged for roughing the punter, gifting the Eagles a first down, even though the replay review showed that Ryan Flournoy – who had been charging on a block attempt – tipped the ball before making contact with the punter. That would’ve negated the penalty had the officials caught it, but penalties are not eligible for reviews, and thus the Cowboys were dinged by the referees’ error.
A few plays later, an offsides penalty for Jadeveon Clowney erased another third-down stop, and Hurts ran in for a score just a few plays later. After that, the Cowboys started mounting a drive for the first time all day. Tragedy seemed to strike when CeeDee Lamb fumbled the ball, but the replay confirmed he was down by contact first. Tragedy remained, though, as KaVontae Turpin fumbled on the very next play, leading to the tush push touchdown.
But the Cowboys kept fighting.
Dak Prescott found Jake Ferguson on an early third down to move the chains, and when Ferguson drew a false start on the very next play, Prescott hit George Pickens twice to move the chains again and overcome the penalty. A big play to Pickens was followed by a big play to Ferguson, which set Dallas up at the 1-yard line. But a false start backed them up five and then Prescott got picked in the endzone while trying to hit Lamb. Any momentum they had built on that drive evaporated quicker than it had formed.
But the Cowboys kept fighting.
The Eagles punted just three plays – and -2 yards – later. Turpin then took a quick curl route and turned it into a 48-yard gain, completely flipping the field. A few plays later, Tyler Guyton was flagged for tripping, making it first and 25. It didn’t deter Prescott, who hit Lamb and then Ferguson for 27 total yards and a first down before finding Pickens in the endzone.
With just 21 seconds left in the first half, Philadelphia opted to take a knee and go into halftime with a 21-7 lead...
