Rapid fire reactions, in no particular order:
No matter what you hear from the talking heads, Philly missed Lane Johnson more than Dallas missed Dak Prescott in this game, especially since they had to figure it out on the fly. Philly scored seven points more than any other team did against the Cowboys (a group that includes competent offenses like Tampa, Cincinnati and LA), and it would have been more had Johnson played.
Dallas had the edge in most box score stats, but much of that came on the last drive, which was essentially garbage time.
Like Carson Wentz before him, Jalen Hurts is not the same QB without Lane. He wasn't bad, and made some gutsy runs to help close it out, but he was in trouble at times without Johnson. The case could be made that he's had three straight mediocre games after his three monster games to start the year.
Much will be made of the missed spot that forced Dallas into a failed fourth-and-one attempt. Don't buy it. Dallas could have easily challenged that call (they had the full forty second play clock to figure that out), but they felt the pressure, panicked into rushing to the line and screwed up on the play. Had they played it cool they would have retained possession. I'm not apologizing for that “break”.
A similar coaching gaffe happened to Philly in the fourth quarter; taking the penalty (and 2nd-and-14) instead of third and nine. Of course, we can't say for sure but that goof may have led to Dallas' second score.
The refs picking up the flag on that block in the back also contributed to that score.
CJGJ getting back into the game to make his second pick was clutch.
Beating Dallas under any circumstances will always feel good. Great job, boys.
The bye comes at a good time for Lane Johnson, not to mention Hurts and Landon Dickerson, who were also nicked up.
It's wild how wide open the NFC is (or perhaps, how mediocre the conference is). Philly is one of only four teams currently above .500 (Minnesota, New York, Dallas); they have head to head wins over two of the other three. The forthcoming home-and-home with the Giants now looms larger.
The six games that follow the bye: Steelers, @Texans, Commanders, @Colts, Packers, Titans. The law of averages says they won't win them all, but where's the loss?
Philly has been tied or leading for all but 35 minutes of game time so far this year. That represents 90% of the season to date. Their +56 point differential is second to Buffalo this year.
There are things to work on, and the first third of the season has not been perfect, but this is a very good team and deserves their designation as a serious title contender.
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