NFL Week #15: TNF | Dallas Cowboys (9-4) @ Philadelphia Eagles (9-4)

[Doomsday]

Means they are near the top of the mediocre teams hill.

 

[yimyammer]

looks like the Cowboys are gonna have to pull off a miracle to get in the playoffs, in all likelihood they can't lose another game and must end up with a perfect December and a perfect road record of 8-0

Long odds

 

[ZeroClub]

Long odds

Yeah. It appears to be true.

 

[dbair1967]

Lambs about to do the Cowboys a solid. :towel

didn't work out so well for them

 

[dbair1967]

looks like the Cowboys are gonna have to pull off a miracle to get in the playoffs, in all likelihood they can't lose another game and must end up with a perfect December and a perfect road record of 8-0

Long odds

Even with a loss and finishing 11-5, they could still end up as one of the wild cards. Obviously the worst Arizona can finish now is 11-5 and they beat us in any tie breaker, but Detroit still has games vs Minnesota, at Chicago and at Green Bay. They arnt a lock to go 11-5 themselves.

In a way we get hosed bad in a 3 way tie with Seattle and Detroit over the conference record thing. It would seem more fair to eliminate a team first by head to head if you could, before moving on to conference record. But that's the way its always been I believe.

Ultimately I don't think any of this matters, because I think we'll probably lose 2 of these last 3 and finish 10-6

 

[Midswat]

This is all goodells fault. He should have scheduled more shitty opponents for us.

 

[dbair1967]

This is all goodells fault. He should have scheduled more shitty opponents for us.

If only we could have played all the NFC South teams this yr

 

[ThoughtExperiment]

This is what happens when your division sucks enough that 9-7 would win it three years in a row, though. That's not going to last forever -- you should've taken advantage of that when you had the chance.

That said, I'm not convinced we don't win it.

Anyone else feel like we might beat the Eagles but then lose to Indy?

 

[ZeroClub]

There have been two NFL teams that missed the playoffs with 11-5 records: The Patriots (2008) and the Broncos (1985).

... given the way this past decade or two have gone, it would somehow seem fitting for this to occur to the Cowboys.

 

[peplaw06]

This is what happens when your division sucks enough that 9-7 would win it three years in a row, though. That's not going to last forever -- you should've taken advantage of that when you had the chance.

That said, I'm not convinced we don't win it.

Anyone else feel like we might beat the Eagles but then lose to Indy?

I still think we're going to lose both.

 

[yimyammer]

Even with a loss and finishing 11-5, they could still end up as one of the wild cards. Obviously the worst Arizona can finish now is 11-5 and they beat us in any tie breaker, but Detroit still has games vs Minnesota, at Chicago and at Green Bay. They arnt a lock to go 11-5 themselves.

In a way we get hosed bad in a 3 way tie with Seattle and Detroit over the conference record thing. It would seem more fair to eliminate a team first by head to head if you could, before moving on to conference record. But that's the way its always been I believe.

Ultimately I don't think any of this matters, because I think we'll probably lose 2 of these last 3 and finish 10-6

yeah, they could really crater if Philly beats them again.

If they can't win the division, I'd love to see a scenario where they got the 5th seed and got to play NO/Atlanta, they win that and get to play AZ in the next round. I'd like to see how they'd do against Az with Romo playing. You'd think they could beat a team with a 4th string QB, then again backups have been lighting up the D all year.

 

[Midswat]

IRVING, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys have ruled defensive tackle Josh Brent out of Sunday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Brent (calf) had been listed as doubtful on Friday's injury report. He played in his first game in two years on Dec. 4 against the Chicago Bears, making two tackles in 22 snaps. The Cowboys had hoped Brent's size would help combat a Philadelphia running game that gained 256 yards in its 33-10 win on Thanksgiving. With two games left in the season, the Cowboys might not be able to wait for Brent to fully recover to play again.

 

[Doomsday]

IRVING, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys have ruled defensive tackle Josh Brent out of Sunday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Brent (calf) had been listed as doubtful on Friday's injury report. He played in his first game in two years on Dec. 4 against the Chicago Bears, making two tackles in 22 snaps. The Cowboys had hoped Brent's size would help combat a Philadelphia running game that gained 256 yards in its 33-10 win on Thanksgiving. With two games left in the season, the Cowboys might not be able to wait for Brent to fully recover to play again.

The fat slob is just a welfare case.

 

[Midswat]

5 things to watch


1 Divisional impact
The NFC East lead is on the line for the second time in three weeks between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles. The Cowboys haven’t won the division since 2009 and would like to get back on top by extending their road record to 7-0. The winner is in great position, too, with only two games left after Sunday.

2 Playoff implications
Not only is the division on the line, but a possible playoff spot is, too. The best way for the Cowboys to reach the playoffs is by winning the division — that’s the only way they control their own destiny. If they lose to the Eagles on Sunday, the Cowboys must win out and hope for other teams to falter the final two weeks. An 11-win season doesn’t guarantee a postseason berth.

3 Tony and the gang
The Cowboys are sick of hearing about their December struggles, and they got off to a good start by blowing out the Chicago Bears on Dec. 4. But if they have any missteps the rest of the way and miss the playoffs once again, the December story isn’t going away for at least another season.

4 Offensive matters
The Cowboys had their worst offensive game of the season against the Eagles on Thanksgiving. Tony Romo was off on several throws. The offensive line didn’t create holes for DeMarco Murray. And it all led to the Cowboys scoring a season-low 10 points. That must change, particularly with extended rest going into the rematch.

5 Time to prepare?

3 Tony and the gang
The Cowboys are sick of hearing about their December struggles, and they got off to a good start by blowing out the Chicago Bears on Dec. 4. But if they have any missteps the rest of the way and miss the playoffs once again, the December story isn’t going away for at least another season.

4 Offensive matters
The Cowboys had their worst offensive game of the season against the Eagles on Thanksgiving. Tony Romo was off on several throws. The offensive line didn’t create holes for DeMarco Murray. And it all led to the Cowboys scoring a season-low 10 points. That must change, particularly with extended rest going into the rematch.

5 Time to prepare?

Read more here: Cowboys-Eagles: Five things to watch | The Star Telegram

 

[Midswat]

Eagles RB LeSean McCoy vs. Cowboys LB Rolando McClain: The Cowboys struggled to contain McCoy in the first meeting, as he gashed them for a season-high 159 yards. McClain, one of the Cowboys’ best defensive players, must be the force in the middle to help slow down McCoy and the Eagles’ running game. He has a team-high 101 tackles, including seven for loss.
— Drew Davison

Read more here: Cowboys-Eagles key matchup: Rolando McClain vs. LeSean McCoy | The Star Telegram

 

[Midswat]

SPORTSDAY PICKS


Tim Cowlishaw
Cowboys, 28-20
It really was about the short rest before the first game as Cowboys gain the upper hand in East with another huge game from Murray.

Brandon George
Eagles, 31-27
I've gone back and forth all week on this one, but in the end I can't get past the fact the Cowboys have struggled in recent seasons in December games with the NFC East on the line.

Rick Gosselin
Eagles, 26-23
The Cowboys will be more competitive than they were two weeks ago, but the home field tilts the game in favor of the Eagles.

Barry Horn
Cowboys, 32-31
May the better quarterback lead his team to victory. Besides, they are due.

Jon Machota
Cowboys, 27-21
Nine days to prepare for Chip Kelly's uptempo attack will be the difference. Expect Tony Romo and the Cowboys defense to be much better than they were on Thanksgiving Day.

David Moore
Eagles, 30-28
The Cowboys should be more competitive in this game than they were on Thanksgiving Day. And yes, that's a little like saying Eaten Alive II would be better than what the Discovery Channel trotted out there Sunday evening.

Rainer Sabin
Eagles, 28-27
More time to prepare for the Eagles allows the Cowboys to make a game of it in the rematch, but in the end Philadelphia prevails by scoring just enough points.

Kevin Sherrington
Eagles, 28-24
Better, but still not enough.

 

[Iamtdg]

I'm so scared right now. Someone hold me.

 

[bbgun]

I'm so scared right now. Someone hold me.

 

[Iamtdg]

So damn creepy.

 

[cmd34]

Kind of wondering why bbgun has that saved...

No way he randomly searched and found that to reply to Iamtdg so quickly.