ARLINGTON, Texas − Gardner Minshew, in his first game replacing Jalen Hurts, had his moments, and both he and the Eagles made more than their share of mistakes.
The most costly came with 2:07 left in the fourth quarter, the Eagles trailing by 3, when Miles Sanders fumbled the ball away at the Eagles’ 21. The Cowboys turned that into a field goal, sending the Eagles to a 40-34 loss Saturday.
But not before the Eagles had one lost chance on 4th down from the Cowboys’ 19 with 20 seconds left. Minshew, under heavy pressure, threw the ball into the end zone, toward A.J. Brown. But it was a bit too far and it fell incomplete.
Just like that, the Eagles’ chance to clinch the NFC East and the No. 1 seed throughout the NFC playoffs fell by the wayside − for now, at least.
The Eagles (13-2) can still wrap up both with one more win or one more Cowboys (11-4) loss over the final two games of the regular season.
But this one will sting after five lead changes and three ties.
The Eagles twice lost 10-point leads, mostly on mistakes. Minshew was 24-for-40 for 355 yards and 2 TDs. But he also threw two interceptions, both leading to Cowboys touchdowns.
The Eagles’ defense also had a hand in the defeat, despite Josh Sweat’s 42-yard interception return for a touchdown. That gave the Eagles a 10-0 lead early in the first quarter.
But the Eagles were leading 34-27 midway through the fourth quarter and Dallas facing a 3rd-and-30 following back-to-back sacks by Haason Reddick − he forced a fumble that the Cowboys recovered − and Sweat. But Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott aired the ball out down the sideline for T.Y. Hilton who got behind Darius Slay and Josiah Scott, for 53 yards and a first down.
The Cowboys scored on that drive to tie the game. Then Minshew was intercepted by DaRon Bland at the Cowboys 46. That led to the go-ahead field goal with 2:19 left.
Then Sanders fumbled and it appeared as if the Eagles were doomed.
But the defense held, forcing a field goal.
Then Minshew went to work. DeVonta Smith’s 22-yard catch with 33 seconds left got the ball down to the Cowboys’ 19.
Three straight incompletions brought up 4th-and-10. And the Eagles fell short.
Brown (113 yards receiving) and Smith (103 yards) each went over 100 yards in the same game for the third time.
But Dallas’ offense was just as impressive. Prescott threw for 347 yards and 3 TDs, while CeeDee Lamb had 120 yards receiving.
In the first half, Dallas racked up 210 yards and converted 6 of 8 third downs. The Eagles did get a stop on 3rd-and-goal from the 3 late in the first half, when Prescott threw incomplete into the end zone. The Cowboys settled for a field goal to tie the game at 17-all.
Then Minshew took the Eagles down to the Cowboys’ 29, where they settled for Jake Elliott’s 47-yard field goal with 11 seconds left for a 20-17 halftime lead.
Sweat gave the Eagles an early 10-0 lead. Prescott was trying to throw in the flat to a receiver, but he couldn’t get the ball over the 6-foot-5 Sweat, who picked it off then returned it for a touchdown.
But the lead didn’t last long as the Cowboys drove down the field, scoring on Ezekiel Elliott’s 1-yard TD run. Minshew then threw an interception that eventually led to Prescott’s 36-yard TD pass to Lamb and the Cowboys had the lead.
Then Minshew drove the Eagles down the field, and scored on a QB sneak from the 1.
But it was a costly first half as rookie defensive tackle Jordan Davis left to be examined for a concussion and cornerback Avonte Maddox left with a toe injury. Both were ruled out for the rest of the game. Right tackle Lane Johnson left in the fourth quarter.
Still, Dallas Goedert made his return after missing 5 games with a shoulder injury. He had 2 catches for 45 yards in the first half.
Eagles’ mistakes costly
Minshew threw an interception early and had a bad exchange with Boston Scott in the third quarter. That led to a fumble that the Cowboys recovered at the Eagles’ 31.
Dallas converted both mistakes into touchdowns as the Cowboys twice recovered from 10-point deficits.
There was a lot at stake for Minshew on Saturday, and for however much longer he’ll remain the Eagles quarterback while Hurts heals from his sprained shoulder.
Minshew, after all, can be a free agent after the season, and he has in the past expressed a desire to be a starting quarterback again.
So Minshew knows that he could be auditioning for all 32 NFL teams against the Cowboys. Minshew started two games for Hurts last season. The first was a crucial game for the Eagles’ playoff chances last Dec. 5. Minshew completed 20 of 25 passes for 242 yards and 2 TDs. He also started the season finale against the Cowboys. The Eagles had already clinched a playoff spot and decided to rest Hurts that day.
Minshew wasn’t as successful in that game, going 19-for-33 for 186 yards with 2 TDs and an interception in the Eagles’ 51-26 loss.
Eagles lose lead, take it back
The Eagles’ defense struggled early against the Cowboys.
Dallas faced a 3rd-and-5 from midfield in the first quarter when Maddox had Prescott wrapped up for a sack. Instead, Prescott broke free and completed an 11-yard pass to Michael Gallup and a first down. The Cowboys eventually scored to cut the Eagles’ lead to 10-7.
Later, Dallas converted a 4th-and-8 when Darius Slay was called for illegal contact as Prescott threw incomplete to Gallup. The Cowboys scored soon after on Prescott’s 36-yard pass to Lamb.
That gave the Cowboys a 14-10 lead with 11:34 left in the first half.
Josh Sweat hits the pick-6
Defensive end Josh Sweat is known more for sacking the quarterback than he is for scoring touchdowns.
Yet there he was, picking off Prescott’s pass and returning it 42 yards for a touchdown with 9:18 in the first quarter, giving the Eagles a 10-0 lead.. For Sweat, it’s his first career interception. Sweat did have one his freshman year at Florida State in 2015.
Sweat’s play came shortly after Minshew hit Brown for 48 yards on a perfectly-executed play-action pass down to Dallas’ 10 yard line. That led to Jake Elliott’s 25-yard field goal.
Eagles make some pregame moves
As expected, Hurts was among the Eagles’ list of inactive players on game day. Joining Hurts were RB Trey Sermon, LB Kyron Johnson, DE Janarius Robinson, G Josh Sills and G Sua Opeta.
But the Eagles did make some other adjustments leading up to the game. They signed LB Christian Elliss to the 53-man roster and placed TE Tyree Jackson on injured reserve. Jackson has a knee injury, and won’t be able to return until well into the playoffs.
In addition, S Reed Blankenship returned after missing last week’s game with a knee injury, and started next to Marcus Epps.
Elliss, a special teams ace, had received the maximum three practice-squad elevations. So the Eagles couldn’t use Elliss in a game again unless he was added to the roster. Punter Brett Kern got the practice-squad elevation for this game. It’s his second.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
