NFC East Champions — Eagles Beat Cowboys 41-7
Kiel Leggere / Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles have won the NFC East!
After their 41-7 blowout win against the Cowboys, the Eagles are NFC East champions and can finish with no worse than the number 2 seed in the playoffs. For the 20th straight season, there will not be a repeat champion in the NFC East.
With Jalen Hurts being out with a concussion, the Eagles needed a big game from Saquon Barkley, and he delivered. Barkley also made history today as he became just the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000-plus yards. After a 167-yard performance today, he has now racked up 2,005 on the season and is just 101 yards away from the NFL single-season record. The Eagles will likely have nothing to play for in week 18, so it will be an interesting decision to see if they decide to play Saquon to go for the record or rest him for the playoff run.
Without Hurts, Kenny Pickett was turned to and he did everything he was asked and more. Pickett finished today’s game 10/15 for 143 yards and 2 total touchdowns. Pickett left today’s game early with an injury, but up until that point, he played very well. The Eagles have done a great job of bringing in quality backup quarterbacks since Nick Foles in 2017, and Pickett proved today to be another quality backup.
After Pickett’s injury, it was Tanner McKee’s turn. The former 6th-round pick kept the scoring going with two touchdown passes of his own. McKee finished the game 3/4 with 2 touchdowns. In his first career action, McKee mostly handed the ball off, but in his very limited throwing attempts, he showed some flashes.
After a tough week last week in Washington, the Eagles’ defense came into play again. They were able to shut the Cowboys to just 7 points, with no points after the first quarter. The Eagles’ defense also continued to turn the ball over, forcing 4 today. The turnovers started early with a pick 6 from C.J. Gardner-Johnson. He set the tone for the game early with that pick-six and ended up getting another one during the game. While yes the Cowboys were missing Lamb, it was encouraging to see the Eagles’ defense have a massive bounce-back game.
Now with the division locked up, the Eagles will turn to the TVs. The Eagles’ hopes of being the number one seed are slim, but not impossible. They need a Minnesota and Detroit loss to have a shot at getting the top spot.
Going into this week it will be an interesting discussion on whether or not to play Jalen Hurts in week 18 if he passes the concussion protocol. While it would be great to get the starters some extra rest, that would mean Hurts would miss essentially three straight weeks going into the playoffs. Of course, if Hurts plays at all that means the whole offensive starters will play as well. Last season the Eagles played the starters in a meaningless half of football in week 18 and it got A.J. Brown hurt and he missed the playoff game. Because of that, I think the Eagles will rest everyone, but there will be thought to get Saquon the record and have Jalen get some game action before the playoffs start. If the Eagles are locked into the number two seed, they will have nothing to play for besides the rushing record. While I want Saquon to get the record, I would rest all the starters for the playoffs if the 2 seed is locked up. This Eagles team has a real chance at a Super Bowl, and I’m not risking that by playing my starters in week 18.
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Sam Heine
Sam has been with Philly Sports Reports since 2022. He is a contributor for both the Eagles and the 76ers. Sam is hoping to pursue a full-time job in sports in the future.
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