The Dallas Cowboys didn’t let a three-game losing streak get them down. More importantly, they didn’t let it keep them from claiming the top spot in the NFC East. The Cowboys looked poised to run away with the division after starting the year 3-0, only to allow the Philadelphia Eagles to pull even at 3-3. But the Cowboys are back at the top of the standings after their 37-10 shellacking of the Eagles at home on Sunday night.
“We didn’t show up,” said Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz after the game. “They beat the crap out of us.”
The key for Dallas was getting past their recent first-half woes. The Cowboys had scored a total of six points in the first half during their three-game losing streak. But that changed on Sunday, as the Cowboys jumped out to a 14-0 lead midway through the first quarter and took a commanding 27-7 lead at halftime.
While the Dallas running game got back on track with 189 yards on 36 carries, the Dallas defense sacked Wentz three times and forced four turnovers, including a pair of fumbles lost by the Philadelphia quarterback. It was a complete and thorough win by the Cowboys to get them to 4-3 on the season while dropping the Eagles to 3-4.
The NFC East may only get one team in the playoffs this season, so winning the division will be critical. The Vikings and Seahawks, both 5-2, have jumped ahead of the back in the NFC Wild Card standings. That puts the 3-4 Eagles one game behind Dallas but two games off the pace in the Wild Card race as we near the mid-season point of the season. With Dallas back on top in the NFC East, the Cowboys are now in playoff position with the Eagles having to play catch up and head back to the drawing board after Sunday’s lopsided loss.