'Boys Blank Birds

The Cowboys were dazzling Sunday afternoon in winning the NFC East down in Arlington. The ‘Boys will have to repeat their tremendous performance next week against the Philadelphia Eagles if they are to advance further in the playoffs. Dallas shutout the Eagles at home 24-0 to close out December with a winning record for the first time since 1996. Sunday’s loss snapped a six game winning streak for the Eagles. The triumph also set up a rematch between the NFC rivals in the first round of the playoffs next Saturday. It will be the first post-season NFL game played in the new Cowboys stadium.
Wade Phillips’ offense implemented the run and relied on the secondary and pass rush defense to carry the Cowboys over Philadelphia. Marion Barber and Felix Jones rushed combined for 103 yards on 14 carries in the first three series of Sunday’s contest. Each back finished with 91 yards as the Cowboys finished the regular season with an impressive 11-3 record. The win capped off a 6-2 home record for Dallas this season, and they are now riding a three game winning streak into the playoffs. The ‘Boys’ running game has been on the rise since the debacle against San Diego four weeks ago. The Cowboys are 9-2 when they run the ball more than 100 yards per game. It was hardly a problem establishing the run against the Eagles’ defense yesterday. Barber and Jones were able to get into their rhythm early, and remained a factor late in the game. The talented duo glided down the field on the opening possession to set up the Cowboys’ first touchdown. Barber had three touches, including an 18 yard surge. Jones carried the ball one yard before Dallas quarterback, Tony Romo, hit Jason Witten on third down from the Eagles’ 10 yard line. Witten’s ten yard touchdown grab was the elite tight end’s second of the season. It was good to see Witten scoring points and being a contributing factor in the win. He is one of the most underrated players in the league. The Dallas tight end caught six passes for 76 yards. In doing so, Witten became the third player at his position to post multiple 90-catch, 1,000 yard seasons.
The Eagles suffered poor field position most of the game. Thus, they never found the end zone. The Eagles were pinned inside the 20 yard line on their first nine possessions. David Buehler taunted Philadelphia’s special teams with four of five touchbacks on kickoffs. Rookie Jeremy Maclin, the former Missouri wideout, returned the only Eagles kickoff for 17 yards. It wasn’t as if the Eagles didn’t chew up yards against the Cowboys. Eagles’ signal caller, Donovan McNabb, passes for 223 yards and completed 20 of 36 throws. It was the lack of a ground game and array of fumbles that did the Eagles in on Sunday. And, of the course the Dallas pass rush was quite effective. McNabb was sacked for an eight yard loss on Philadelphia’s initial drive. Dallas held the ball over six minutes on their second possession but the drive ended with Romo’s only interception. Joselio Hanson picked Romo off at the Philadelphia seven yard line with two minutes remaining in the first quarter. The toss intended for Patrick Crayton was returned six yards. McNabb drove the Eagles to the Dallas 39 yard line to start the second quarter. His pass to Maclin was incomplete on third and and eight, and the Cowboys took over. Romo promptly and methodically marched Dallas down the field. After a false start penalty that set the Cowboys back five yards, Romo connected with Crayton for a 30 yard gain. A pair of Barber rushes and two significant tosses to Miles Austin were enough to put the Cowboys back in the red zone. Austin caught consecutive passes of 40 and 5 yards. Crayton hauled in the 14 yarder for the 14-0 Dallas lead to close out the 80 yard drive. Dallas wasn’t finished with their first half scoring there. Shaun Suisam’s 44 yard field goal lifted the home team to a 17-0 romping of Philadelphia. The Cowboys had 291 yards by halftime in the first ever back-to-back blankings in franchise history.
Jones accounted for the only other score of the game. The two-year back out of Arkansas plowed into the end zone from 49 yards out with 5:46 left in the third quarter. Following Jones’ half-the-field run, the Dallas defense continued to pound McNabb. They sacked him for a ten yard loss and took over on downs in the waning minutes of the third. McNabb hit the turf again on the Eagles’ next possession. Romo took snaps and handed the ball off to his running backs to finish the fourth quarter. He also found Clayton and Witten to extend the Dallas drives late in the game. DeSean Jackson, the game-breaking Philadelphia receiver, was held to three receptions. Eagles tight end, Brent Celek, lead the team with 96 yards on seven catches. Crayton and Austin finished with 99 and 90 yards, respectively, and Romo threw for 311 yards. Everything seems to be clicking on offense for the Cowboys. They’ve already beaten the Eagles twice this season. Now they have to dispatch them when it counts most.

Parting Points: Happy 50th birthday to REM’s Michael Stipe!

Poem for Monday- “The Sun” by Max Eastman