NFC East Week 11 Wrapup: Almost Perfect

The Eagles, Cowboys and Commanders win as the NFC East race tightens up at the Wild Card level.

Author:
Joe Najarian
Publish date:
Nov 21, 2022 10:00 AM EST

In this story:

New York Giants

Let's recap the NFC East action in Week 11.

Philadelphia Eagles linebacker T.J. Edwards (57) celebrates a fumble recovery Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022, during a game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Armond Feffer/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

Philadelphia Eagles (9-1), 1st Place

Eagles 16, Colts 16

The Philadelphia Eagles narrowly avoided an upset against interim head coach Jeff Saturday and the Indianapolis Colts, as QB Jalen Hurts scored the game-winning 7-yard touchdown run with just over a minute left in Philadelphia’s 17-16 win.

Emerging victorious in a hard-fought defensive struggle, Hurts had one of his best dual-threat performances. Passing-wise, he completed 18 of 25 passes for 190 yards and a touchdown. Rushing-wise, Hurts had 16 carries for 86 yards and a touchdown, which was the eventual game-winner.

The Colts struck first on a 1-yard touchdown run by Jonathan Taylor on the game’s first drive. This wound up being Indianapolis’s only touchdown, but they would hold the lead for most of the contest. Both teams would trade field goals in the second quarter, as the Colts held a 10-3 lead entering halftime.

On the first play of the second half, Yannick Ngakoue forced a fumble from Hurts, recovered by Grover Stewart, which set up a Chase McLaughlin field goal that made it 13-3 Indianapolis. Late in the 3rd quarter, McLaughlin attempted another field goal, but he missed from 50 yards.

The Eagles capitalized right away on the miscue. On the third play of the 4th quarter, Hurts scrambled for 23 yards, and two plays later, he fired a 22-yard touchdown pass to Quez Watkins. It was a one-score game, with Indianapolis still ahead, 13-10.

Both teams fumbled the ball away on their ensuing drives, and Indianapolis looked to put the game away when they drove to the Philadelphia 5-yard line. But Hasson Reddick sacked Colts QB Matt Ryan on 3rd-and-goal, forcing the Colts to settle for McLaughlin’s 37-yard field goal.

The Eagles then drove 75 yards in 11 plays for the game-winning score, converting a pair of third downs and one fourth down before Hurts ran it into the endzone.

The Colts turned the ball over on downs on their final drive; that was all she wrote.

Nov 20, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons (11) looks on following the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

Dallas Cowboys (7-3), 2nd Place

Cowboys 40, Vikings 3

The Dallas Cowboys earned a huge statement victory over the 8-1 Minnesota Vikings, ending their seven-game winning streak with a 40-3 blowout win.

Cowboys QB Dak Prescott completed 22 of 25 passes for 276 yards and two touchdowns, with a passer rating of 139.3. The game got so out of hand that Prescott was taken out of the game in favor of Cooper Rush, who completed four out of five passes for 31 yards.

Ezekiel Elliott returned from injury to rejoin Tony Pollard in the backfield and scored a pair of rushing touchdowns alongside 47 scrimmage yards. Pollard had a sensational game, with 189 scrimmage yards (80 rushing on 15 carries, 109 receiving on six catches) and two touchdowns (both receiving).

Micah Parson strip-sacked Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins on the game's first drive, effectively setting the tone for the day. The turnover would set up a 27-yard field goal by Brett Maher.

The Vikings responded with a 25-yard field goal by Greg Joseph, but they would be shut out for the rest of the game. Dallas responded with a 10-play, 75-yard drive that was finished by a 1-yard touchdown run by Elliott.

The Vikings’ next three drives ended in punts, while Dallas scored on their next three. Maher kicked field goals of 53 and 60 yards, while Pollard hauled in a 30-yard touchdown reception from Prescott, making it 23-3 at halftime.

The Cowboys were in total control from then on, and their dominance continued in the second half. Pollard scored a 68-yard touchdown on the first drive of the second half, while a 1-yard touchdown run by Elliott and a 50-yard field goal by Maher concluded the scoring. Meanwhile, the defense continued to pin down the Vikings, forcing punts on all of the Vikings’ remaining drives except the last, which saw time expiring in the game.

Nov 20, 2022; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones (8) celebrates his touchdown with wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins (18) during the first half against the Detroit Lions at MetLife Stadium.
Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

New York Giants (7-3), 3rd Place

Lions 31, Giants 18

The New York Giants played their sloppiest game of the season as they fell to the Detroit Lions at home, 31-18.

Giants QB Daniel Jones completed 27 of 44 passes for 341 yards and a touchdown, with 50 rushing yards and another touchdown, but was intercepted twice. Running back Saquon Barkley was completely shut down, rushing for only 22 yards on 15 carries. Although receiver Wan’Dale Robinson became the Giants’ first 100-yard receiver this season, he was one of many Giants to leave the game due to injury.

The Lions struck first on a Michael Badgley field goal after a drive to New York’s 6-yard line. The Giants responded with an 11-play, 75-yard touchdown drive capped off by Jones’s 3-yard touchdown run, making it 6-3 after Graham Gano had the first of two PAT’s fail.

But the Lions took control of the game in the second quarter. No. 2 overall pick Aidan Hutchinson intercepted Jones to put Detroit in the red zone, and they scored three plays later on the first of three rushing touchdowns by Jamaal Williams. Detroit was up 10-6, and they wouldn’t trail again.

After a terrible 25-yard punt by Giants punter Jamie Gillan, the Lions moved 68 yards in seven plays, which Williams finished with his second touchdown run to make it 17-6 Lions at halftime.

On the second half's opening drive, the Lions marched 56 yards in nine plays, and Williams scored his third touchdown run to make it 24-6 Detroit. The Giants made it interesting early in the fourth quarter when Matt Breida scored on a 3-yard touchdown run, and the defense forced a Lions punt, but Isaiah Hodgins fumbled the ball away, and Hutchinson recovered for Detroit.

The Lions then delivered the dagger with a 4-yard touchdown run by D’Andre Swift; all that laid ahead for the Giants was a meaningless touchdown pass from Jones to Richie James on their final drive to make it 31-18 after the two-point conversion failed.

Nov 20, 2022; Houston, Texas, USA; Washington Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr. (8) runs with the ball as Houston Texans linebacker Ogbonnia Okoronkwo (45) attempts to make a tackle during the fourth quarter at NRG Stadium.
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Washington Commanders (6-5), 4th Place

Commanders 23, Texans 10

The Washington Commanders dominated the Houston Texans, building a 20-0 at halftime and cruising to a 23-10 win that wasn’t nearly as close as the score indicated. With Washington’s record now at 6-5, every team in the NFC East now has a winning record.

Commanders QB Taylor Heinicke named the starter indefinitely for the team, completed 15 of 27 passes for 191 yards. While Washington didn’t have a particularly impressive offensive performance on the day, they racked up 344 yards of offense (191 passing, 153 rushing) while holding Houston to only 148 total yards, including only 21 rushing yards.

The Commanders set the tone early as Kendall Fuller intercepted Texans QB Davis Mills and returned it 37 yards for a touchdown, putting Washington up 7-0 on the game’s second drive.

After the next five drives ended in punts, Washington made it 14-0 when a 10-yard touchdown run by Curtis Samuel finished a 9-play, 85-yard drive. The Commanders pushed their lead to 20-0 by halftime, thanks to a pair of field goals from Joey Slye.

The Texans got on the board on the opening drive of the second half with a Ka’imi Fairbairn field goal, but the Commanders ate up six and a half minutes of clock in the fourth quarter before another field goal by Slye made it 23-3. Houston finally found the end zone on Mills’ 4-yard touchdown run, but by then, only 3:19 remained in the game, and Washington used their next drive to run out the clock.