Cowboys Throttle Eagles on National Stage: Sunday Night Football Live Updates, Highlights
This week, the NFL world really has been waiting all day for Sunday night, with the Dallas Cowboys set to host the Philadelphia Eagles at AT&T Stadium in a primetime matchup with a ton of postseason implications.
This is the second matchup this season between the two NFC East foes, with the Eagles having defeated the Cowboys 28-23 back in early November. If Philadelphia (10-2) is victorious in Week 14, they will essentially have a three-game lead in the NFC East over Dallas (9-3), considering they'll be two games ahead record wise and own the tiebreaker. A victory by the Cowboys, however, would pull the two teams even in the NFC East with a month remaining in the regular season.
DeVonta Smith and the Philadelphia Eagles will face off with Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football.
Kevin Jairaj/USA Today
The Eagles are aiming to become the first team in a generation to win the NFC East in back-to-back seasons. Since the Eagles won four consecutive NFC East titles from 2001-2004, there hasn't been a repeat winner in the division. Philadelphia won the NFC East a year ago with a 14-3 record, and currently leads the division again this season.
Of course, both teams have their eyes on a bigger prize -- the No. 1 seed in the NFC, which comes with a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the postseason. For the Cowboys, a team that's undefeated at home this season, they need to leapfrog the Eagles to have a chance at the top spot in the conference. The Eagles need a win to hang onto the top spot in the NFC, as the San Francisco 49ers improved to 10-3 with a victory over the Seattle Seahawks this afternoon. The 49ers, by virtue of their throttling of the Eagles a week ago, would own the tiebreaker.
Follow along for live updates and highlights throughout the Sunday Night Football tilt between the Eagles and Cowboys.
First Quarter
Defensive Drive 1
The Eagles won the coin toss and deferred. Quarterback Dak Prescott and the Cowboys proceeded to go on a 10-play, 75-yard drive, with receiver CeeDee Lamb catching a 13-yard touchdown pass.
Offensive Drive 1
Quarterback Jalen Hurts fumbled the ball on a designed quarterback run, with safety Donovan Wilson recovering it at the Dallas 21-yard line.
Defensive Drive 2
The Eagles defense was able to bend but not break on their second defensive drive, but Dallas' excellent rookie kicker Brandon Aubrey nailed a 60-yard field goal to extend the Cowboys lead to 10-0.
Second Quarter
Offensive Drive 2
Hurts threw to receiver DeVonta Smith on an RPO on third-and-two, but the pair weren't able to connect. However, punter Braden Mann pulled off a successful fake, connecting with Olamide Zaccheaus for a 28-yard gain to extend the drive.
Philadelphia would ultimately have to settle for a 52-yard field goal from Jake Elliott after A.J. Brown wasn't able to haul in a perfect pass from Hurts on third-and-five.
Defensive Drive 3
Running back Rico Dowdle extended Dallas' lead to two touchdowns with a one-yard rushing score. While he was initially ruled short on the field, coach Mike McCarthy successfully challenged the call and it was ruled a touchdown rush for Dowdle.
Offensive Drive 3
After consecutive plays were muddled by Dallas' pass rush, the Eagles again had to settle for a field goal, a 44-yarder from Elliott. It's better to come up with points than not, but the Eagles aren't going to get back into this game settling for field goals.
Defensive Drive 4
Dallas added another touchdown with less than 30 seconds remaining in the first half, with Prescott connecting with receiver Michael Gallup for a one-yard touchdown after a well-executed pick play.
Third Quarter
Offensive Drive 5 (Offensive Drive 4 was a three-play drive before the end of the first half)
Former Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore forced a fumble from receiver A.J. Brown, an abrupt ending to the opening drive of the second half.
Defensive Drive 5
To their credit, the Eagles forced a three-and-out after the fumble, with Lamb dropping what may have been a nail in the coffin of Philadelphia.
Offensive Drive 6
Hurts failed to connect with Smith on two of three plays on this drive, and the Eagles quickly had to punt the ball back to the Cowboys.
Defensive Drive 6
Fletcher Cox stripped the ball from Prescott, and his fellow defensive linemen Jalen Carter scooped it up and returned it 42 yards for a touchdown. Perhaps this will be a turning point for the Eagles, who have felt lifeless for much of the night.
Defensive Drive 7
Dallas had to settle for another long field goal attempt, but it was the star rookie Aubrey who once again added points for the Cowboys on a 59-yard field goal. According to the NBC telecast, he's the first player in NFL history with two field goals 59 yards or longer in the same game.
Offensive Drive 7
Two plays after Smith got his fingers on a Hurts pass in the end zone, Hurts again threw the ball to Smith on fourth-and-eight. Smith was only able to gain a yard before being tackled by Gilmore, turning the ball over on downs.
Fourth Quarter
Defensive Drive 8
Stop us if you've heard this before -- Aubrey connected on a field goal, this one a mere 45-yarder, extending the Dallas lead to 30-13.
Offensive Drive 8
A difficult night for Eagles receivers continued on this drive, with Smith fumbling the ball, and Dallas recovering.
