Report Card: Not a Good Grade to Be Had as Eagles Fall to Cowboys

Grading the Eagles' loss to Cowboys in Week 16 originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Eagles’ hopes of winning the NFC East were ended with a 37-17 loss to the Cowboys on Sunday.

The Eagles fell to 4-10-1 on the season.

Quarterback

Jalen Hurts: 21/39, 342 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT, 70.7 rating

Hurts did some good things early but the offense couldn’t put points on the board after the first two drives and he had three turnovers in the fourth quarter. Sure, he was trying to make something happen late, but he’s allowed to make those plays too. Overall, it was an OK day for the rookie quarterback.

Grade: C-

Running backs

Miles Sanders: 15 carries, 57 yards, 1 TD 

I probably sound like a broken record but I thought Doug Pederson got away from the run too early against an awful run defense. Sanders averaged 3.8 yards per carry, but also caught four passes for 27 yards. Meanwhile, Jordan Howard got three carries for some reason.

Grade: C-

Wide receivers

DeSean Jackson: 1 target, 1 catch, 81 yards, TD

Jackson returned to the lineup and made one major play. That was his only target. After the game, Pederson said Jackson’s ankle kept getting sorer. Despite his lack of work, Jackson led the Eagles’ receivers on Sunday. Quez Watkins had two catches for 57 yards.

Grade: C

Tight ends

Dallas Goedert: 3 catches, 38 yards

Goedert suffered a calf injury during this game but he and Zach Ertz combined for 6 catches for 71 yards. The Eagles could really have used more productive days out of their tight ends.

Grade: C-

Offensive line

Hurts was sacked just three times and the O-line did some good things in protection but the penalties were brutal. The Eagles’ OL was called for five false starts and Matt Pryor went for the hat trick. Just can’t afford to take those penalties.

Grade: D

Defensive line

Vinny Curry: 2 tackles, 1 sack, 3 QB hits, 1 TFL

The Eagles’ DL got off to a decent start but didn’t get consistent enough pressure to help mask a completely depleted back end. Without Fletcher Cox (stinger), the Eagles’ pass rush really dried up. They needed more from Javon Hargrave and Malik Jackson once Cox came out and they really didn’t get it.

Grade: D+

Linebackers

Alex Singleton: 8 tackles, 1 QB hit

The Eagles went into Sunday’s game with just four linebackers and were down to three after Shaun Bradley got hurt. That’s not ideal. They weren’t the biggest culprit on Sunday but they didn’t do enough against an offense that put up 500+ yards and 37 points.

Grade: D

Secondary

Darius Slay: 2 tackles, 1 INT, 1 PBU

Slay finally made a big play, but the Eagles’ offense unfortunately couldn’t turn it into points. Meanwhile, Michael Jacquet was roasted until the Eagles eventually benched him. Andy Dalton threw for 377 yards and 3 touchdowns. Michael Gallup and Amari Cooper each had 121 receiving yards.

Grade: F

Special teams

Jake Elliott: 1/1 on FGs, made 38-yarder 

The good news was that Elliott made a field goal but Cam Johnston had a 17-yard punt and Boston Scott was lucky his fumble on a kick return went out of bounds. Johnston ended up putting three punts inside the 20 and Jalen Reagor had a 15-yard punt return so it wasn’t the worst day. But it wasn’t a good one either.

Grade: C-

Coaching

Record: 4-10-1

I thought Pederson came out with a great game plan and the scripted plays worked exceptionally well. The Eagles established the run and then hit a shot play to Jackson. After that, the offense was completely stagnant. On defense, Jim Schwartz had an undermanned unit but he stubbornly resisted change and waited too long to move Jalen Mills to corner.

Grade: D

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