Just about everything on Sunday was bad for the Cowboys.
It never feels good losing to the Eagles, and that never rang more true than this Sunday. Seemingly all the good vibes the Cowboys had been feeling the past month-and-change were vanquished in Philadelphia, thanks to a 41-7 drubbing. There aren’t many good grades to hand out after this one, but that doesn’t stop them from being dealt.
Quarterbacks
It seems that Cooper Rush’s kryptonite is another green thing: the Eagles. Coming off arguably the best game of his career, Rush put up one of his worst. And if it wasn’t his very worst, it’s only because of his other two games against this franchise.
Rush barely completed over half of his passes for 147 yards and had two brutal interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown. It wasn’t all bad, though, throwing a touchdown and making a few big third-down throws. Still, this was a stinker of a performance.
Grade: D
Running backs
All things considered, Rico Dowdle continued his hot run. The running back got right back in the 100-yard rushing club following a brief hiatus against the Buccaneers. More importantly, Dowdle crossed the 1,000 yard rush mark with a game to spare, an impressive feat considering the narrative around his position group earlier in the year.
Of course, it wasn’t a perfect day for Dowdle: he fumbled on the Cowboys’ lone red zone appearance in the second half. Beyond Dowdle, Ezekiel Elliott took three carries for a total of two yards, reminding everyone why Dowdle is now the lead back.
Grade: B-
Pass catchers
As it turns out, the Cowboys got a steal with CeeDee Lamb’s new contract. Life after Lamb proved to be exceptionally harder, as there were very few big plays to be had in the passing game. Brandin Cooks led the team with four catches for 52 yards.
Jalen Tolbert caught a touchdown, and now leads the team in touchdown receptions, and Jalen Brooks had a nice highpoint catch to convert a third down. Jake Ferguson fumbled away one of his three catches on the day. All in all, it was a pretty unimpressive game for this group.
Grade: C-
Offensive line
All things considered, this was a banner day for the offensive line. The Cowboys were effectively in a two-minute drill for the entire second half, and Rush finished the game with just one sack and only three hits. That’s a good day against this Eagles pass rush.
Things were equally good in the run game, opening up holes consistently for Dowdle to run through. They also helped KaVontae Turpin bust open for a 12-yard run that may have gone for longer if he didn’t trip on Tolbert’s legs.
Grade: B+
Run defense
There’s a caveat to be had here: the second half saw the Eagles pretty much exclusively running the ball. In fact, Philadelphia attempted just five passes in the entire second half. Few offenses have run right at this defense like that in the past month, and the Eagles had great success in doing so.
Saquon Barkley finished with 167 rushing yards and crossed the 2,000 yard mark for the year. If there’s a bright side, though, it’s that only 40 of those rushing yards came in the first half. Of course, that still means he ran for 127 yards in just one half of football, so the grade for this run defense is not going to be great.
Grade: D-
Pass rush
The pass rush had come alive in recent weeks for the Cowboys, and the Eagles were downgrading at quarterback, especially in terms of mobility, in going from Jalen Hurts to Kenny Pickett.
Yet Dallas finished the game without a single sack. They only had one hit on the quarterback, too. Pickett rarely felt pressure, and when he did the quarterback was able to escape with ease. This was a major step back for the pass rush unit.
Grade: F
Pass coverage
Andrew Booth Jr. wasn’t the only defender who gave up passes, but it sure felt like it. Getting the start in place of Amani Oruwariye, who was added to the injured reserve earlier in the week, Booth was targeted early and often in this one.
He gave up several big plays and generally looked lost in coverage. It wasn’t all on him, though, as Pickett completed 66.7% of his passes. Shoot, Tanner McKee came in later and hit on three of his four passes, with two of them being touchdowns.
Grade: D
Special teams
There wasn’t anything egregious for the special teams units in this game. Bryan Anger dropped two of his four punts inside the 20. KaVontae Turpin had a pair of solid kick returns, and another big one that was wiped out by a penalty.
Brandon Aubrey banged a 61-yard attempt off the goalpost, but kicking such a long try in the cold weather of Philadelphia in late December is no easy feat. The Cowboys were also down 41-7 at that point, so it’s not like it mattered. It’s enough to drop them a letter grade.
Grade: B
Coaching
It’s fair to wonder what exactly the coaching staff was supposed to do in this game. Beating the Buccaneers last week was a bit of a miracle, but the Eagles are a much better team and Philadelphia is a tough place to play in late December. Losing CeeDee Lamb doesn’t make it any easier.
Still, though, the offense was moving the ball in the first half and the defense forced consecutive three-and-out punts to start the game. Coaching didn’t make Cooper Rush throw those two interceptions or force Andrew Booth Jr. to transform into a turnstile. Could they have done more? Perhaps, but the Cowboys came into this game wildly overmatched and they played like it.
Grade: C
