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By Jon Machota Dec 22, 2019
PHILADELPHIA — Jason Garrett likes to praise his teams for how they respond to adversity. The 2019 Cowboys will be remembered for how poorly they performed in that department. It will likely end up costing the head coach his job.
Sure, Dallas had a chance to tie things up late in the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. The Cowboys were only a touchdown and two-point conversion away from extending the game. But if you watched the game leading up to that final offensive possession, you knew it wasn’t happening.
Dak Prescott struggled with his accuracy. Amari Cooper played as poorly as he has at any point since being traded to the Cowboys. Ezekiel Elliott was bottled up for most of the day. The league’s No. 1 total offense was held 123 yards under their average. The fifth-best scoring offense was held to nine points.
A defense that is very talented on paper allowed an offense filled with backups and practice-squad players to score two touchdowns. It should have been three; Eagles running back Miles Sanders slid after a 38-yard run in the final minute so Philadelphia could run out the clock.
Instead of putting on NFC East championship hats and shirts Sunday night, the Cowboys boarded their team buses like they have five of their last seven road games — with a loss.
“I’m very disappointed,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. “We all expected to leave here as NFC East champs. This is a disappointing setback for that locker room and for all of us, and I know it is for the fans.”
Jones conducted one of his shortest post-game interview sessions outside of the Cowboys locker room. He made a statement that lasted roughly two minutes. Then he walked away before stopping again after being chased by reporters.
“I’m a little numb that we didn’t come up here and beat them,” Jones added. “Our team played very hard. I’m just surprised we didn’t get the deal done.”
As disappointing as the Cowboys have been all season, this was supposed to be the game that could redeem so much of it. They were coming off their most impressive win of the year and were facing an Eagles team decimated by injuries.
Instead, miscues did them in. If it wasn’t a dropped interception opportunity by Xavier Woods, it was Prescott over-throwing a receiver. If it wasn’t a poor punt from Chris Jones, it was Tony Pollard fumbling on a 3rd-and-1 carry.
“It’s frustrating,” Prescott said. “I’ve sat here after every game pretty much, win or loss, and said the good part about it is that we control our own destiny. But that’s gone. That’s out of our hands now. That’s unfortunate. It’s very disappointing. We had the chance. We had the chance to control our destiny and be where we wanted to be. But now that it’s out of our hands, we’ve got to control what we can control, and that’s getting a win next week.”
Photo by Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
The Cowboys have not technically been eliminated from playoff contention. Dallas can still win the division if they win their season finale next Sunday against the three-win Redskins and the Eagles lose to the four-win Giants.
But the Cowboys don’t deserve that. They’ve only played like a team that wants to be in the playoffs twice in the last three months.
“We all have to own it,” said Garrett, who entered the game with a 7-2 record at Lincoln Financial Field. “I have to own it. The coaching staff has to own it. All the players and staff members have to own it.”
Garrett was then asked about coaching for his job security next week.
“The biggest thing we have to do is to try and process this game, learn from it and move forward,” he responded. “Go and have a great practice on Wednesday and preparation for Sunday.”
The head coach wasn’t the only one who went into Philadelphia with a strong track record. Prescott was 5-2 against the Eagles. Elliott was 5-0, and Cooper was 3-0. None of them played to their standard — or, for that matter, very well at all.
Prescott completed 25 of 44 passes for 265 yards, no touchdowns and a 74.5 passer rating that was his third-worst mark of the season. He came into the game nursing a right shoulder injury that forced him to be limited in practice all week for the first time in his career, but went through his normal pregame warmup after throwing very little during the week. He said the injury did not impact his play.
“I missed some throws,” he added. “I can’t say I have pain or felt it in my shoulder. It could’ve been a lack of reps this week; who knows? It definitely wasn’t my shoulder. It wasn’t anything I was feeling. I felt great.”
After answering a few questions, Prescott stepped away from the podium because had something in his right eye, causing it to water.
“Trust me, I’m not crying yet,” he joked. “Yet.”
If he could have one throw back, it would be the deep ball to Tavon Austin along the left sideline with 4:04 remaining. Prescott knew it would have been a touchdown if he threw a better pass.
Elliott, meanwhile, had never rushed for less than 96 yards against the Eagles before Sunday. He totaled 47 yards on 13 carries. His longest run went for only 10 yards.
“We didn’t let him do his little signature eat move, whatever he does,” Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham said. “We said we wouldn’t let him do that on this field today. That was our main goal, stopping the run.”
Elliott took exception to a postgame question when a reporter attempted to say the Cowboys were a better team than the Eagles.
“How can you say we’re a better team if we didn’t go out there and beat them when it was time to do it in crunch time, and we needed one win to solidify the division, and we couldn’t do it?” Elliott questioned. “You can’t just say we’re a better team because we may have better players on the roster. I do believe we’re a better team, but the team that goes out there and plays the best is the one that’s going to win, and that’s what happened tonight.”
Cooper and Prescott never seemed to be on the same page, and the receiver only caught four passes for 24 yards despite being targeted 12 times. He wasn’t even on the field for a key fourth-down play in the fourth quarter. He was not injured or benched for poor play. “I’m good,” Cooper said. “My body is OK. I’m healthy.”
Instead, he ran a go-route on the previous play, and the coaches wanted to get him some rest.
“I know I didn’t play my best game at all. It was terrible,” he added. “When you play important games like this, everybody has to bring their A-game if we really want to win, and I don’t think we did that tonight.”
To make matters worse, the Cowboys’ team charter plane had issues, forcing the group to remain on their buses at the stadium for a few extra hours.
Defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence attempted to be positive when asked what he tells his teammates after this loss.
“Don’t fold,” he said. “Everyone is gonna want to divide us. Don’t fold. We’re going out to play this last game, and we’re gonna win this motherfucker.”
But even if they beat a bad Washington team and the Eagles lose to the Giants, it would just delay the inevitable. This was supposed to be a team built to make a deep playoff run. Instead, they’re an average team that doesn’t deserve an opportunity to compete with the NFL’s elite.
PHILADELPHIA — Jason Garrett likes to praise his teams for how they respond to adversity. The 2019 Cowboys will be remembered for how poorly they performed in that department. It will likely end up costing the head coach his job.
Sure, Dallas had a chance to tie things up late in the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. The Cowboys were only a touchdown and two-point conversion away from extending the game. But if you watched the game leading up to that final offensive possession, you knew it wasn’t happening.
Dak Prescott struggled with his accuracy. Amari Cooper played as poorly as he has at any point since being traded to the Cowboys. Ezekiel Elliott was bottled up for most of the day. The league’s No. 1 total offense was held 123 yards under their average. The fifth-best scoring offense was held to nine points.
A defense that is very talented on paper allowed an offense filled with backups and practice-squad players to score two touchdowns. It should have been three; Eagles running back Miles Sanders slid after a 38-yard run in the final minute so Philadelphia could run out the clock.
Instead of putting on NFC East championship hats and shirts Sunday night, the Cowboys boarded their team buses like they have five of their last seven road games — with a loss.
“I’m very disappointed,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. “We all expected to leave here as NFC East champs. This is a disappointing setback for that locker room and for all of us, and I know it is for the fans.”
Jones conducted one of his shortest post-game interview sessions outside of the Cowboys locker room. He made a statement that lasted roughly two minutes. Then he walked away before stopping again after being chased by reporters.
“I’m a little numb that we didn’t come up here and beat them,” Jones added. “Our team played very hard. I’m just surprised we didn’t get the deal done.”
As disappointing as the Cowboys have been all season, this was supposed to be the game that could redeem so much of it. They were coming off their most impressive win of the year and were facing an Eagles team decimated by injuries.
Instead, miscues did them in. If it wasn’t a dropped interception opportunity by Xavier Woods, it was Prescott over-throwing a receiver. If it wasn’t a poor punt from Chris Jones, it was Tony Pollard fumbling on a 3rd-and-1 carry.
“It’s frustrating,” Prescott said. “I’ve sat here after every game pretty much, win or loss, and said the good part about it is that we control our own destiny. But that’s gone. That’s out of our hands now. That’s unfortunate. It’s very disappointing. We had the chance. We had the chance to control our destiny and be where we wanted to be. But now that it’s out of our hands, we’ve got to control what we can control, and that’s getting a win next week.”
Photo by Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
The Cowboys have not technically been eliminated from playoff contention. Dallas can still win the division if they win their season finale next Sunday against the three-win Redskins and the Eagles lose to the four-win Giants.
But the Cowboys don’t deserve that. They’ve only played like a team that wants to be in the playoffs twice in the last three months.
“We all have to own it,” said Garrett, who entered the game with a 7-2 record at Lincoln Financial Field. “I have to own it. The coaching staff has to own it. All the players and staff members have to own it.”
Garrett was then asked about coaching for his job security next week.
“The biggest thing we have to do is to try and process this game, learn from it and move forward,” he responded. “Go and have a great practice on Wednesday and preparation for Sunday.”
The head coach wasn’t the only one who went into Philadelphia with a strong track record. Prescott was 5-2 against the Eagles. Elliott was 5-0, and Cooper was 3-0. None of them played to their standard — or, for that matter, very well at all.
Prescott completed 25 of 44 passes for 265 yards, no touchdowns and a 74.5 passer rating that was his third-worst mark of the season. He came into the game nursing a right shoulder injury that forced him to be limited in practice all week for the first time in his career, but went through his normal pregame warmup after throwing very little during the week. He said the injury did not impact his play.
“I missed some throws,” he added. “I can’t say I have pain or felt it in my shoulder. It could’ve been a lack of reps this week; who knows? It definitely wasn’t my shoulder. It wasn’t anything I was feeling. I felt great.”
After answering a few questions, Prescott stepped away from the podium because had something in his right eye, causing it to water.
“Trust me, I’m not crying yet,” he joked. “Yet.”
If he could have one throw back, it would be the deep ball to Tavon Austin along the left sideline with 4:04 remaining. Prescott knew it would have been a touchdown if he threw a better pass.
Elliott, meanwhile, had never rushed for less than 96 yards against the Eagles before Sunday. He totaled 47 yards on 13 carries. His longest run went for only 10 yards.
“We didn’t let him do his little signature eat move, whatever he does,” Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham said. “We said we wouldn’t let him do that on this field today. That was our main goal, stopping the run.”
Elliott took exception to a postgame question when a reporter attempted to say the Cowboys were a better team than the Eagles.
“How can you say we’re a better team if we didn’t go out there and beat them when it was time to do it in crunch time, and we needed one win to solidify the division, and we couldn’t do it?” Elliott questioned. “You can’t just say we’re a better team because we may have better players on the roster. I do believe we’re a better team, but the team that goes out there and plays the best is the one that’s going to win, and that’s what happened tonight.”
Cooper and Prescott never seemed to be on the same page, and the receiver only caught four passes for 24 yards despite being targeted 12 times. He wasn’t even on the field for a key fourth-down play in the fourth quarter. He was not injured or benched for poor play. “I’m good,” Cooper said. “My body is OK. I’m healthy.”
Instead, he ran a go-route on the previous play, and the coaches wanted to get him some rest.
“I know I didn’t play my best game at all. It was terrible,” he added. “When you play important games like this, everybody has to bring their A-game if we really want to win, and I don’t think we did that tonight.”
To make matters worse, the Cowboys’ team charter plane had issues, forcing the group to remain on their buses at the stadium for a few extra hours.
Defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence attempted to be positive when asked what he tells his teammates after this loss.
“Don’t fold,” he said. “Everyone is gonna want to divide us. Don’t fold. We’re going out to play this last game, and we’re gonna win this motherfucker.”
But even if they beat a bad Washington team and the Eagles lose to the Giants, it would just delay the inevitable. This was supposed to be a team built to make a deep playoff run. Instead, they’re an average team that doesn’t deserve an opportunity to compete with the NFL’s elite.
