Texas-Sized Beatdown: Eagles Dominate Cowboys in Sunday Night Football Showdown

For a while, it looked like the Eagles' winning streak might come to an end in North Texas.

It didn't come close.

In the first half, Carson Wentz didn't quite look himself, the run defense wasn't playing to form and the kicker went down with a concussion.

Didn't matter.

Eventually Wentz pulled through, the defense tightened up enough and a backup linebacker showed he can actually kick off.

The Eagles beat the Cowboys 37-9 on Sunday night at AT&T Stadium to remain the top team in the entire NFC. They were just the better team.

The Eagles have now won eight straight games.

With the win, the Eagles improved to 9-1 on the season for fifth time in team history. The Cowboys fell to 5-5 on the season. The Eagles are now 4-0 in the division.

This is the fifth time in team history the Eagles are 9-1 after 10 games (2004, 1980, 1960, 1949). They are just the 51st team in the Super Bowl era to start with nine wins in their first 10 games. Of those previous 50, all made the playoffs, 23 went to the Super Bowl and 11 won it.

The Eagles started off the game with a brilliant first drive after a Cowboys field goal. They cruised down the field to score a touchdown without even facing a third down. But then the offense sputtered the rest of the half.

The Cowboys took a 9-7 lead into halftime. It was the first halftime deficit the Eagles had faced since Week 2 in Kansas City.

Turning point
After a bizarre first half, the Eagles came out on the first drive of the second half and went 75 yards on eight plays to take the lead. The Eagles converted two huge third downs on the drive. The first came on a screen pass to Brent Celek, the next came on a beautiful pass from Wentz to Alshon Jeffery.

Key stat
This is the first time the Eagles have scored 30-plus points in four consecutive games since the 1953 season.

Offensive stud
Wentz didn't have his best performance, but when it mattered, the Eagles' franchise quarterback made plays. Forget the stat line, Wentz did his job and made some tremendous plays in the process.

The Eagles' running game was also great on Sunday. They rushed for a season-high 215 yards.

Offensive dud
Zach Ertz's first catch didn't come until very late in the first half and it went for just two yards. He wasn’t a very big factor.

Defensive stud
Ronald Darby had a great return to action. He started at right corner back, made a few big plays and even grabbed an interception.

Defensive dud
The Eagles' run defense, which has been the best unit in the NFL, gave up plenty of yards on the ground Sunday. After giving up an average of 66.4 rushing yards per game coming into Sunday, the Cowboys rushed for 112.

Key plays
•Chris Long got a strip sack in the fourth quarter. Nigel Bradham picked up the ball and ran it into the end zone to put the Eagles up 35-9. The two-point conversion made it 37-9.

•Wentz completed a 17-yard touchdown pass to Jeffery on 4th-and-5 in the fourth quarter to put the Eagles up 29-9. The Eagles didn't convert the two-point conversion.

•Wentz hit Torrey Smith for an 11-yard touchdown in the third quarter and then hit Jeffery for the two-point conversion to put the Eagles up 23-9.

•Jay Ajayi broke off a 71-yard run in the third quarter. It was the longest of his career. It was the longest run from an Eagle since Brian Westbrook had a 71-yarder in 2006.

•Wentz delivered a huge third down pass to Jeffery on the first drive of the second half. Corey Clement scored a touchdown and then caught a pass for the two-point conversion. The Eagles had to go for two without kicker Jake Elliott.

•After starting the game 0-for-5 on third downs, the Cowboys converted three in a row before Mike Nugent hit a 47-yard field goal to give the Cowboys a 9-7 lead with 55 seconds left in the first half.

•Near the end of the first quarter, Malcolm Jenkins tipped a pass and Darby hit the receiver as the ball got there. That's when Rodney McLeod picked off the pass and took it down to the Dallas 15-yard line. But then Elliott missed a 34-yard field goal.

A little later, Darby got a pick and the Eagles' drive resulted in a punt.

•Darby had a big pass breakup against Dez Bryant in the end zone late in the first quarter. It forced the Cowboys to settle with another field goal, cutting into the lead 7-6.

•Kenjon Barner made a spectacular catch on the sideline for a 22-yard gain and then finished off the 75-yard drive with a touchdown run to put the Eagles up 7-3 in the first quarter.

•Ryan Switzer returned the opening kick 61 yards, which led to a 48-yard field goal from Mike Nugent to put the Cowboys up 3-0. The Eagles' defense shut down the Cowboys' offense to minimize the damage.

Injuries
Jeffery (ankle) was active after being listed as questionable heading into the weekend.

The Eagles lost Elliott in the first half to a concussion (see story).

Up next
The Eagles return home for a matchup against the Bears (3-7) next Sunday at 1 p.m. After that, the Eagles head to Seattle for a game on Dec. 3, before staying in California for the week leading into the game against the Rams.