Question: How could the Cowboys show up with so little fire — both sides of the ball. From the quarterback who was throwing ducks to the wide receiver who refused to fight for the ball. The offense looked absolutely lost and I am talking about the first two possessions.
Gosselin: Puzzles me as well. It's Thanksgiving, it's home and the owner says it's the biggest Thanksgiving game in his memory. Show up, play like it's a big game and you take control of the division. Instead, the Cowboys were a no show. The offensive line had it's first really sub-par game of the year and it impacted every element of this team -- the pass, the run and the defense. This one is on the head coach and his staff. The Eagles came ready to play. The Cowboys didn't. Again, puzzling. I have no answers for this one.
Question: I see the rematch with Philly being slightly closer, in part, because it can't get worse; however, I see another loss by 10-14 points.
Gosselin: Bad matchup. The tip off of things to come came in the first half of the New York Giants game when the Giants ran an up-tempo offense and moved the ball at will against the Cowboys. The Eagles play at a faster tempo with better players. The Cowboys need a pass rush and turnovers in the rematch but, on paper, I don't see where they are going to come from. The Eagles have better players and are better coached.
Question: For more than a decade the Eagles have outplayed the Cowboys, especially on the defensive side of the ball. The late Jim Johnson, defensive coach of the Eagles and now, whomever it is, always seem to know how to out game plan and out game the Cowboys on the defensive side of the ball. Will this ever end?
Gosselin: Remember, games are won in the trenches. The Cowboys have a starting defensive line that features a third round pick (Crawford), two sixth rounders (Hayden and Mincey) and a seven (Selvie). And only Crawford was home grown. The Eagles ran run two first rounders (Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham), a second (Vinny Curry) and a third (Bennie Logan) at you at the front end of their defense. All were homegrown by the Eagles. As in the case with everything else in football, it all goes back to April and the draft.
Question: Was Mark Sanchez a real "find" for the Eagles or was it a revealing of the true skills of the Cowboy defense?
Gosselin: Sanchez went to the most quarterback-friendly offense in the NFL. He has excellent targets underneath -- three quality tight ends and two super running backs -- so he doesn't have to force anything down the field. The ball also comes out quick. The more it's in the hands of the receivers and the less it's in the hands of Sanchez automatically makes him a better quarterback. It's more Chip Kelly's system than hit is Sanchez. Kelly won with different types of quarterbacks at Oregon and he's proving he can win with different quarterbacks now in the NFL.
Gosselin: Puzzles me as well. It's Thanksgiving, it's home and the owner says it's the biggest Thanksgiving game in his memory. Show up, play like it's a big game and you take control of the division. Instead, the Cowboys were a no show. The offensive line had it's first really sub-par game of the year and it impacted every element of this team -- the pass, the run and the defense. This one is on the head coach and his staff. The Eagles came ready to play. The Cowboys didn't. Again, puzzling. I have no answers for this one.
Question: I see the rematch with Philly being slightly closer, in part, because it can't get worse; however, I see another loss by 10-14 points.
Gosselin: Bad matchup. The tip off of things to come came in the first half of the New York Giants game when the Giants ran an up-tempo offense and moved the ball at will against the Cowboys. The Eagles play at a faster tempo with better players. The Cowboys need a pass rush and turnovers in the rematch but, on paper, I don't see where they are going to come from. The Eagles have better players and are better coached.
Question: For more than a decade the Eagles have outplayed the Cowboys, especially on the defensive side of the ball. The late Jim Johnson, defensive coach of the Eagles and now, whomever it is, always seem to know how to out game plan and out game the Cowboys on the defensive side of the ball. Will this ever end?
Gosselin: Remember, games are won in the trenches. The Cowboys have a starting defensive line that features a third round pick (Crawford), two sixth rounders (Hayden and Mincey) and a seven (Selvie). And only Crawford was home grown. The Eagles ran run two first rounders (Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham), a second (Vinny Curry) and a third (Bennie Logan) at you at the front end of their defense. All were homegrown by the Eagles. As in the case with everything else in football, it all goes back to April and the draft.
Question: Was Mark Sanchez a real "find" for the Eagles or was it a revealing of the true skills of the Cowboy defense?
Gosselin: Sanchez went to the most quarterback-friendly offense in the NFL. He has excellent targets underneath -- three quality tight ends and two super running backs -- so he doesn't have to force anything down the field. The ball also comes out quick. The more it's in the hands of the receivers and the less it's in the hands of Sanchez automatically makes him a better quarterback. It's more Chip Kelly's system than hit is Sanchez. Kelly won with different types of quarterbacks at Oregon and he's proving he can win with different quarterbacks now in the NFL.
