4 Matchups The Eagles Need To Win Against The Cowboys

The Eagles win a lot. They enter this week 8-2, with a strong grasp on the NFC East, and in a good position to win the NFC 1 seed. So they do not need a win, per se. But they do need a good game, in particular a good game from their offense, when they head down to Jerryland to play the Cowboys.

It has been a struggle for the offense this season. They are outside the top 20 in most offensive stats. Red Zone Offense is really the only area where they look like a Super Bowl-caliber offense. They are winning on the backs of their defense, with the offense managing to make plays when they need to. But things are reaching a boiling point, with the offensive issues leading to drama off the field.

Enter the Cowboys defense. One of the worst units in the league. With a favorable matchup and ideal conditions in the climate-controlled AT&T Stadium, it feels like this needs to be the week the offense steps up.

A win will pretty much wrap up the NFC East for the Eagles. They would be 4.5 games ahead of the Cowboys and control the tiebreaker. They would still be in a great spot to win the East even with a loss, but this is an oppurtunity to end the Cowboys' season, and have a much-needed get-right game.

So how can they not only win but have a confidence-boosting game? Here are some matchups they need to win on Sunday.

No one should still be doubting Jalen Hurts. He has more than proven himself when it counts. But he is not above criticism, and part of the struggles the past 2 weeks on offense was because he did not play well.

In the cold, windy conditions vs the Packers and the Lions, he struggled with accuracy, missed open guys, and didn't always make the best choices. How much of that was weather-related? It is a fair question, given how the other 2 QBs struggled too. But he still needs to be better.

He will get that chance vs the Cowboys. Not only is he playing indoors with ideal conditions, but he gets to face one of the worst secondaries in the league. The Cowboys allowed the 3rd most passing yards (249.9). They have also given up the 2nd most passing TDs (23).

Hurts went into the bye week on a hot streak, throwing 7 TDs in 2 games. We need to see that version of Jalen Hurts again. Not necessarily to win this game, but for the sake of the mood of this offense. If he could get some to AJ Brown to make him happier, that would be great too.

Jackson made a bad 1st impression on Eagles fans when Lamb picked on him in game 1. Lamb had 7 catches for 110 yards, and 72 of those yards came with Jackson in coverage.

Since then, Jackson has actually been much better. We saw him lock down Amon-ra St Brown last week. Granted, that was in the bad weather we use to give Jalen Hurts a pass, so we need to factor that into how we judge players on defense as well, but it was still a great game from Jackson vs an elite WR.

It is likely he will see a lot of Lamb again. They will move around, and he will also see Pickens a bit. But in week 1, it was mostly Mitchell on Pickens, with Jackson on Lamb. If the Eagles' defense is going to keep another team under 10 points, Jackson winning this matchup is crucial.

Last week, the Eagles best chance to feast on defense was against the interior of the Lions O-Line. This week, it is on the Edge. The Cowboys' interior line is pretty strong, but their Tackles are a bit uneven. Tyler Guyton is better than he was in his rookie season, but that is not saying much. And while Terrence Steele is a good run blocker, he can be beaten in the pass rush. Steele and Guyton have each given up 29 total pressures; no one else on the team has more than 14.

We have seen the massive difference Jaelan Phillips has made in his 1st two games. They need him to step up again. If he wins, the rest of the line starts winning. But more importantly, it helps Adoree Jackson win. It is much easier to cover Lamb for 2 seconds than it is for 3 seconds.

A big reason why Jared Goff looked so terrible vs the Eagles is that he had no time. The quicker they get to Dak Prescott, the less time the Cowboys have to get open.

I am a broken record at this point, but the Eagles' run game needs to get going. The biggest difference between their offense this year and last is that they do not run it well. Some of that is scheme, a lot of it is the struggles of the O-Line, but Barkley also needs to wear that.

It is a small sample size, but RBs not named Barkley average 6.6 yards per carry. Barkley, in a much larger sample size, averages 3.8 yards per carry. That is not to say they need to use Saquon less, but it shows the O-line does open up some running lanes. The O-line needs to be better, Patullo needs to scheme better, but Barkley also needs to run better.

The Cowboys' run D is not very good. They give up over 130 yards per game on the ground. They might have no Lane Johnson or Cam Jurgens, but they still need to find a way to get Saquon going this week.