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Dallas Cowboys 3 Biggest Concerns Entering Week 7 Showdown Against Eagles

What are three of the biggest concerns for the Dallas Cowboys as they prepare to face the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football in Week 7?
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott looks to pass against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott looks to pass against the Philadelphia Eagles. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Another week brought us another embarrasing loss for the Dallas Cowboys.

In Week 6, it was the Green Bay Packers who defeated the Cowboys, handing them a 23-13 loss on Sunday Night Football. That score is misleading since a late touchdown from the Cowboys made it seem closer than it actually was.

In reality, the Cowboys were outplayed from the opening drive and enter a Week 7 showdown with the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football with several concerns to address. Here we look at three of the more pressing issues that need attention.

Lack of a competent ground game

Dallas Cowboys running back Javonte Williams runs the ball against the Green Bay Packers.
Dallas Cowboys running back Javonte Williams runs the ball against the Green Bay Packers. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Last year, Javonte Williams ran for 1,201 yards and averaged 4.8 yards per attempt. Through six games in 2026, he has just 317 yards while averaging 3.7 yards per carry and is still looking for his first 100-yard outing of the season.

Dallas was supposed to have an explosive offense with a running game capable of carrying the load. As they prepare for Monday Night Football in Week 7, that rushing attack has been non-existent making this one of the primary concerns against the Eagles. If they can get Williams going, everything will become easier on offense. If not, Dak Prescott might be asked to throw it 50-plus times again, which isn't typically a recipe for success.

Dak Prescott struggling with the blitz

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is hit as he passes by Green Bay Packers linebacker Zaire Franklin.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is hit as he passes by Green Bay Packers linebacker Zaire Franklin. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Dak Prescott has feasted historically when blitzed. He's been phenomonal at identifying where the rush is coming from and finding the open player. Over the past two weeks, that hasn't been the case.

Prescott has put together his two worst performances of the season as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Green Bay Packers made life difficult on him with their pressure. In Week 5, Tampa Bay blitzed on 43% of of the plays and as Jon Ledyard writes, that led to a major drop in Expected Points Per Play.

"On non-blitzed dropbacks, Prescott had a +0.09 EPA/play, a number that fell to -0.31 EPA/play on blitzed dropbacks. That means the Cowboys were losing about a third of a point on every Bowles blitz," Ledyard wrote.

Green Bay blitzed 35.71% of the time and Prescott again struggled as he finished with two interceptions and just one touchdown in each game. Following those two games, Cowboys insider Bryan Broaddus expressed concern about Prescott's current struggles with the blitz.

In Week 7, the Cowboys will face a Philly team that doesn't blitz often under Vic Fangio. That said, he's an experienced defensive coordinator who will switch things up if needed. Expect Fangio to use more blitzes than typical as he tests whether Dak has fixed the issue. If he hasn't, it could be disastrous for this offense.

The entire defense

Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker at training camp at River Ridge Playing Fields.
Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker at training camp at River Ridge Playing Fields. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

At this point, there's no phase of the defense that Dallas should have faith in. They're struggling in coverage, struggling against the run, and absolutely abysmal on third downs. On Sunday, the Packers were 11-of-18 and are now surrendering a first down 54.67 percent of the time on third downs.

Those conversions are one of many reasons the Cowboys have given up at least 20 points in 13 consecutive games. That's the longest active streak in the NFL and the longest in franchise history.

Dallas still has a chance in the NFC East since the division is a mess as a whole, but they have to start winning to take advantage. That begins with the defense figuring out how to play at a higher level.

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Randy Gurzi
RANDY GURZI

Randy Gurzi is a graduate of Arizona State and has focused on NFL coverage since 2014.