The Philadelphia Eagles finally found an offense Monday night and still lost by 17 points. Dallas left Lincoln Financial Field with a 38-21 victory, scored the final 18 points of the game and sent Philadelphia to 2-5 with its fifth consecutive loss, the franchise’s longest skid since 2016 and the longest of Nick Sirianni’s tenure.
Our Eagles-Cowboys preview laid out the opportunity in simple terms. If the Giants lost in Houston, the winner at the Linc would finish the week one-half game out of first place. New York refused to cooperate. The Giants entered as double-digit underdogs, beat the Texans 27-21 in overtime on Devin Singletary’s 30-yard run and improved to 4-2-1. That result raised the stakes Monday night, because the winner needed the game just to stay within striking distance and the loser was about to fall well behind.
The Week 7 power rankings placed the Giants 22nd, Dallas 25th and Philadelphia 26th before the weekend began. Two of those three teams won. Dallas improved to 3-4 and 2-1 inside the division, while the Eagles now sit two and a half games behind New York.
For most of three quarters, the game looked like the shootout neither offense had produced in weeks. The lead changed hands six times. Saquon Barkley returned from his hamstring injury and scored on the opening drive, Dameon Pierce finished a 13-play march early in the second quarter and Tanner McKee opened the second half with a drive that lasted more than nine minutes and ended with Makai Lemon’s first career touchdown. Philadelphia led 21-20 with 5:49 remaining in the third quarter.
Dallas answered immediately. Jonathan Mingo returned a short kickoff to the Dallas 39, Dak Prescott found CeeDee Lamb behind Riq Woolen for a 16-yard touchdown and Prescott walked into the end zone untouched on a delayed draw for the two-point conversion. Elijah Mitchell muffed the ensuing kickoff, McKee took a sack and the Eagles went three-and-out. The Cowboys added a 24-yard Brandon Aubrey field goal after a red-zone stop, McKee threw his first interception of the season to DeMarvion Overshown, a fourth-and-9 throw to Hollywood Brown fell incomplete and Javonte Williams finished the night with a 2-yard touchdown run.
Dallas gained 416 yards, a season high against this defense, and ran the ball 38 times for 204 yards. Williams carried 25 times for a career-high 155 yards, the most any running back has gained against a Vic Fangio-led Eagles defense. Prescott needed only 15 completions, finishing 15 of 27 for 212 yards and three touchdowns without a turnover. Philadelphia finished with zero sacks, zero tackles for loss and zero quarterback hits. (Eagles game recap)
The offense earned a different description than the one it received after Carolina. The Eagles gained 321 yards, rushed for 121, produced 23 first downs and converted five of 12 third downs. They scored touchdowns on three of their first five possessions against the league’s worst rushing defense, then came away empty on their final four as the running back room emptied out around them.
The collapse followed a familiar order. The offense finally produced a lead, the defense surrendered it in a little more than four minutes and the return game handed Dallas field position for the rest of the night. Jeffrey Lurie entered the Eagles Hall of Fame at halftime with his team trailing by six, and large sections of the stadium were empty by the time Williams reached the end zone.
Team Grade: D
The Eagles produced their most functional offensive performance in a month and lost by three possessions at home to a division rival. A team grade has to account for both facts, and the second one carries far more weight in the standings.
The defense failed in every measurable way. Dallas scored on four of its five first-half possessions, out-gained Philadelphia 275-154 before halftime and controlled the line of scrimmage for four quarters. The Cowboys entered as one of the league’s least productive rushing teams and ran through every level of the defense. On a 12-yard Williams run during the second drive, six Eagles defenders had a chance to make the tackle and none of them brought him down.
The offense carried the game into the third quarter. Sean Mannion finally paired the run game with play action, the line protected McKee while the score remained close and the Eagles reached the red zone with something other than desperation. That unit then lost Barkley, lost Pierce and finished the night with a practice-squad running back as its only option in the backfield.
A D reflects an offense that did enough to compete and a defense that did nothing to win. Philadelphia had a third-quarter lead, a crowd waiting for a reason to believe and an opponent that had scored 29 points across its previous two games combined. The lead lasted 4:13.
Offensive Player Grades
Tanner McKee: C+
McKee entered Monday needing to show command, and for most of three quarters he did. He opened with a play-action completion to Barkley on the first snap, pumped a linebacker out of position before finding Lemon on a 21-yard crosser and led touchdown drives on each of Philadelphia’s first two possessions. The Eagles reached halftime with 14 points, clearing the 10-point first-half threshold our preview set for keeping him on the field.
His best stretch as a starter came after halftime. McKee completed seven of nine passes on the 84-yard opening drive, converted a third down to Brown, found Lemon on fourth-and-1 off play action and finished the possession with a slant into traffic for the go-ahead score. That drive gave Philadelphia its first touchdown on an opening second-half possession this season.
The misses decided the grade. With the Eagles trailing 17-14 late in the second quarter, McKee threw low to a wide-open Darius Cooper and slightly behind Lemon on consecutive plays, and the possession ended in a 15-second three-and-out. After Dallas retook the lead, he held the ball too long on the sack that followed the muffed kickoff. Trailing by 10 with nearly eight minutes left, he threw an out route to Dallas Goedert with Overshown waiting underneath.
Monday Night Should Be Tanner McKee’s Last Chance argued that he needed quicker decisions, functional pocket movement and an offense capable of threatening the entire field. He delivered the first item in spurts and the third almost never. His 23-of-35 line for 211 yards, one touchdown and one interception produced 6.0 yards per attempt and a 79.6 passer rating, a modest improvement over Carolina that left the ceiling of the offense unchanged.
A C+ reflects a quarterback who kept the offense on schedule for three quarters and then made the two most damaging throws of the night once the margin disappeared.
Saquon Barkley: B+
Barkley touched the ball on all nine of his snaps and turned those touches into 71 yards. His 29-yard run on the opening drive was longer than any Eagles carry across the previous two games, and three plays later he bounced an 8-yard run outside and beat DaRon Bland to the pylon untouched.
He pulled up after that first carry and again after a 12-yard run to open the third quarter, then left with a back injury layered on top of the hamstring that had cost him two games. A healthy Barkley could have delivered the controlled, run-first game the preview called for. The limited version still gave Philadelphia its only explosive threat on the ground.
Dameon Pierce: C+
Pierce absorbed the workload after Barkley exited and finished with 14 carries for 47 yards. He cut back left and powered into the end zone on his 5-yard touchdown, broke contact for a 12-yard gain during the second quarter and added a 22-yard kickoff return in the fourth.
He also missed a blitz pickup that produced a batted pass, and his 3.4 yards per carry lacked any explosive element. Pierce left with an injury in the fourth quarter before Philadelphia’s final two possessions.
Makai Lemon: B+
Lemon became the lead receiver Monday night and played the role well. He caught seven of eight targets for 67 yards, converted the fourth-and-1 with a 15-yard catch-and-run and absorbed Overshown’s hit on the slant before spinning into the end zone.
Two weeks after the sideline mistake in London, the rookie made the most important situational plays on the offense. The grade stops short of an A because a catchable ball bounced off his hands during the failed series before halftime and because he let two short punts bounce and roll after taking over return duties.
Dallas Goedert: C+
Goedert spent much of the week limited by his knee and still caught five of seven targets for 48 yards. His 18-yard grab up the seam moved Philadelphia into Dallas territory in the fourth quarter, and his 6-yard catch through contact from Joey Porter Jr. converted a third down on the touchdown drive.
He also lost his block on a third-quarter outside run that went backward.
Hollywood Brown: C-
Brown recorded his first catch of the season on an 11-yard comeback and turned a third-down crosser into 19 yards to start the third-quarter drive. His final target was the fourth-and-9 corner route that fell incomplete, leaving him with two catches on five targets.
Darius Cooper: D+
Cooper’s only reception came on a third-and-10 bubble screen that he turned into 17 yards with a cutback against the grain. He also dropped an early pass and never had a chance on the open look before halftime because the throw arrived at his shoelaces.
A receiver who scored three touchdowns across consecutive games earlier this month has now gone two weeks as an afterthought. Cooper owns the drop, while Mannion owns the distribution.
Offensive Line: C+
Landon Dickerson and Drew Kendall returned, giving Philadelphia its fifth different line combination of the season with Mailata, Dickerson, Kendall, Tyler Steen and Bell. The improvement showed immediately. Kendall won at the point of attack on Barkley’s touchdown, Mailata drove a defender five yards backward on Pierce’s score and the Eagles ran for 86 yards before halftime, more than they had produced across the previous two games combined.
Steen and Dickerson struggled with Quinnen Williams, and Steen’s holding penalty erased a Barkley run. Protection held while Philadelphia stayed on schedule, then broke down once the Eagles trailed and had to drop back. Both sacks arrived after Dallas retook the lead, and Dallas still generated five tackles for loss. The C+ recognizes the most productive rushing night this group has delivered in a month.
Defensive Player Grades
Quinyon Mitchell: B+
Mitchell was the only Eagles defender who consistently won his matchup. Dallas targeted him eight times and completed three passes for 24 yards. His pass breakup on a slant helped force the three-and-out after a punt pinned the Cowboys at their own 2.
Mitchell went down on the final drive of the first half after Ryan Flournoy caught a 13-yard pass in front of him, and Dallas moved into field-goal range while he was off the field. He returned after a brief absence and kept winning his reps, which pushed Prescott toward the other side of the field for the rest of the night.
Zack Baun: D+
Baun led the defense with nine tackles and broke up a pass. A linebacker piles up that kind of total when runners reach him with a full head of steam, and Baun missed his share of those chances, including the 12-yard Williams run that slipped through six defenders.
Baun remains the defense’s most reliable communicator. Monday required a linebacker who could shed blocks and finish, and he rarely did either against Williams once the back reached the second level.
Jalen Carter: F
Carter jumped the snap count for one run stop at the line in the second quarter. Outside of that snap, his most noticeable moment came when he slapped a Dallas lineman after the whistle and avoided a personal foul.
The preview identified Carter as the player who could disrupt Prescott without forcing Fangio to sacrifice coverage help on Lamb and Pickens. He finished without a sack, a quarterback hit or a tackle for loss, and Williams and Tyler Goodson repeatedly ran through the gaps he was supposed to control. A player paid to wreck games barely appeared in this one.
Jordan Davis: F
Davis never became a factor against the run or the pass. Dallas lined up under center, ran directly at the middle of the defense and gained yardage on the ground for four quarters without Davis consistently holding the point of attack.
He also provided nothing as a pass rusher, allowing Prescott to step up into clean pockets on early downs. Davis helped control the interior during the first half against Carolina. Against Dallas, his name rarely came up.
Riq Woolen: F
Woolen started well, breaking up an early pass and staying tight on a deep shot before halftime. Dallas then turned his side of the field into its preferred route to the end zone, completing five of seven throws against him for 111 yards, the most he has allowed in a game according to Next Gen Stats. (NBC Sports Philadelphia grades)
He slipped and misread Lamb on the deep completion that set up the first-half field goal, committed a third-down holding penalty after the break and allowed Lamb to get behind him on the touchdown that put Dallas ahead for good. Ryan Flournoy also beat him for 16 yards earlier on that same drive. Cornerbacks rarely survive a night without a pass rush, and Woolen received none, but he still lost too many of the reps that decided the game.
Cooper DeJean: D
DeJean lost Lamb on a corner route for the 9-yard touchdown in the first quarter. His fourth-quarter pass interference against Jake Ferguson moved Dallas from its own 16 to the 33 on the drive that produced a 10-point lead, and he was among the six defenders who failed to finish Williams on the second drive.
DeJean’s open-field tackling has carried this defense in previous seasons. Against Dallas, he lost in coverage, lost in pursuit and handed the Cowboys free yardage at the worst possible moment.
Andrew Mukuba: D
Mukuba was sharper in coverage than in recent weeks, although Pickens still got behind him for the 21-yard toe-tap touchdown in the second quarter. The larger problem came in run support, where he rarely came downhill with conviction and too often got blocked by receivers. His most visible play was chasing down the 34-yard run at the Philadelphia 25, a run he was supposed to help prevent.
Special Teams Grade: D+
Mann delivered the best kicking performance of the night. He punted three times for a 50.0-yard average and placed all three inside the 20, including a punt that bounced straight up for Cooper to down at the Dallas 2 and a 61-yarder that Kelee Ringo met as soon as the ball arrived.
The return game wasted that work. Covey hurt his knee on his first return and never came back. Mitchell muffed two Aubrey kickoffs, and his holding penalty on the late first-half punt moved Philadelphia’s starting point from the Dallas 49 back to its own 41. Lemon fielded punts after Covey’s injury and let both short kicks bounce.
Coverage contributed to the turning point as well. Jake Elliott’s short kickoff after Lemon’s touchdown allowed Mingo to return the ball 24 yards to the Dallas 39, giving Prescott a short field for the drive that ended Philadelphia’s only second-half lead.
Mann’s performance keeps the unit out of the F range.
Sean Mannion: C+
Mannion called his best game as Philadelphia’s offensive coordinator. The opening script mixed under-center play action, quick timing throws and outside zone runs aimed at the edges of a defense that entered last in the league against the run. The Eagles scored on their first two drives, and the 17-play march to open the third quarter combined a third-down conversion, a fourth-down conversion and a red-zone finish into the most complete possession of the season.
The preview asked Mannion to prove his system could produce answers before the snap and counters after the defense adjusted. He supplied the first part for the first time this season. The second part remained absent, because Dallas stopped the outside zone after halftime and Philadelphia had no alternative running plan once Barkley left.
The fourth quarter needs context. Barkley and Pierce were gone, Mitchell was the only available back and Dallas knew the Eagles had to throw. Those conditions explain the final three empty possessions more than any individual call does.
Dallas entered having allowed at least 20 points in 13 consecutive games, and Philadelphia scored 21. A C+ credits Mannion for finally building a coherent plan and holds back because the Eagles reached that number against the weakest rushing defense in football and stopped scoring the moment the opponent adjusted.
Vic Fangio: F
The preview said Fangio’s defense needed to be great. It allowed the most yards of the season instead. Dallas entered averaging 76 rushing yards per game, nearly tripled that total, scored on four of its five first-half possessions and converted eight of 13 third downs.
Prescott’s pressure splits were the invitation. He had completed 43.1 percent of his passes under pressure this season, and his passer rating against the blitz had dropped sharply over the previous two weeks. Fangio dialed up early blitzes and simulated pressures, then repeatedly settled into four-man rushes that allowed Prescott to wait for Lamb and Pickens to separate. Dallas never had to account for the kind of pressure that wrecked its previous two games.
Injuries thinned the edge, and Mitchell’s brief absence exposed the depth at corner. Fangio still had Carter, Davis, Baun, DeJean, Mitchell and Woolen available for most of the night. A defense built around that core cannot finish a home game against a struggling offense without producing a single negative play.
Nick Sirianni: C-
Sirianni now owns the longest losing streak of his tenure and the Eagles’ first five-game skid in a decade. His team has matched the 2-5 start from his first season in 2021, when Philadelphia won seven of its final 10 games to reach the playoffs. That memory represents the most optimistic case anyone can make about the rest of this season.
His offense functioned for three quarters, and the defense collapsed regardless of anything the head coach called. The end of the first half still belongs on his record. Philadelphia trailed 17-14, took over near midfield with 1:39 left and chose to attack through the air. Two incompletions stopped the clock, the series lasted 15 seconds and Dallas received 1:14 to drive for the field goal that sent the Cowboys into halftime with a six-point lead.
Aggression in that spot is defensible. Handing a rested Dallas offense more than a minute after a three-and-out repeated the London pattern, when Philadelphia’s late-game management gave Jacksonville the seconds it needed. Sirianni’s teams keep returning time to opponents at the end of halves and games.
Sirianni said afterward that the coaches have to do a better job against the run. He is correct, and he is the person responsible for those coaches. A C- reflects an offense that finally showed organization and a team that still came apart in every phase once Dallas regained the lead.
Player of the Game: Makai Lemon
Lemon gave the Eagles a lead receiver on a night when Smith and Wicks watched from the sideline. His fourth-down conversion and his touchdown both came on the drive that gave Philadelphia its last lead, and the touchdown required him to absorb a hit from Overshown, the same linebacker who later ended the comeback with an interception.
The first-round pick showed the toughness and timing this passing game has lacked all season. His development has become one of the few storylines in 2026 with clear long-term value.
Scapegoat of the Game: Vic Fangio
Fangio received a healthy core and an opponent whose run game had been among the league’s weakest. His defense finished without a takeaway and allowed Dallas to score on three of its four possessions after the Eagles took the lead.
The offense scored more points than it managed in either of the previous two games. The defense gave up 38 to a team that had scored 29 across its previous two games combined, and that gap belongs to the coordinator.
Top Five Eagles
Makai Lemon: B+
Lemon led the team in receiving and made the two biggest plays on the go-ahead drive. He looked like a receiver ready for a larger role over the final 10 games.
Quinyon Mitchell: B+
Mitchell allowed three catches for 24 yards on eight targets and broke up the slant that helped force a three-and-out. Dallas only found success on his side of the field when he was off it.
Braden Mann: B+
Mann placed all three punts inside the 20 and pinned Dallas at its own 2 with a perfectly bounced kick. He was the only member of special teams who helped Philadelphia win the field-position battle.
Saquon Barkley: B+
Barkley produced the longest run of the night for Philadelphia and scored the opening touchdown on nine total snaps. His injury removed the one element Dallas could not stop.
Dameon Pierce: C+
Pierce scored, ran hard after contact and handled kickoff returns after Covey’s injury.
Honorable Mention: Landon Dickerson and Drew Kendall. Both returned from injury and immediately improved the interior run game. Their presence gave Mannion the foundation for the best first half the offense has produced this season.
Bottom Five Eagles
Vic Fangio: F
Fangio’s defense allowed the most yards of the season and never produced a negative play. His plan never found an answer for a running game that entered among the league’s worst.
Riq Woolen: F
Woolen surrendered the go-ahead touchdown, the deep completion before halftime and a costly third-down penalty. Dallas targeted him because the results kept arriving.
Jalen Carter: F
Carter disappeared on a night when the defense needed its best player to wreck the interior. Dallas ran directly at him with success throughout the game.
Jordan Davis: F
Davis never controlled his gap and never threatened Prescott. The run defense he anchored in previous seasons collapsed in front of him.
Nick Sirianni: C-
Sirianni’s team gave away the end of the first half and fell apart after taking a third-quarter lead. The losing streak and the 2-5 record now define his season.
Final Word
McKee did enough to keep the job for Sunday night in Washington. He cleared the halftime standard, led three touchdown drives and gave the offense a structure it had not shown since September. He also threw the interception that ended the comeback and continued missing open receivers once the pocket collapsed, so the evaluation remains on a short clock.
The standings make the stakes clear. The Giants handled their business in Houston, Dallas handled its business in Philadelphia and the Eagles sit two and a half games out of first place heading into consecutive division games against Washington and New York before the bye. This division remains bad enough to keep any team alive mathematically, although the Eagles have now spent five weeks proving they cannot take advantage of that weakness.
Our preview picked Philadelphia to win 24-20 and stay under the total. Dallas covered, the game cleared the total by more than 14 points and BGS falls to 4-3 against the spread, 3-4 on the moneyline and 3-4 on totals through seven Eagles games.
The case that Jalen Hurts is done in Philadelphia was built before the season on contract and organizational grounds. His medical situation and this five-game slide have accelerated the conversation, and his health and recovery still matter far more than anything happening on the field. Everyone at Bleed Green Sports continues to wish Jalen a full recovery.
Each loss also pushes Philadelphia further up a draft order with a quarterback class worth studying. Our latest 2027 NFL Draft QB tiers have Darian Mensah alone at the top, with CJ Carr, Trinidad Chambliss, Dante Moore and Julian Sayin forming the next group. The front office and Howie Roseman will watch those names more closely after Monday.
Lurie received his Hall of Fame honor at halftime and then watched the team he built surrender 18 straight points to the Cowboys. The offense finally gave Philadelphia a reason to keep watching, and the defense spent the second half giving everyone a reason to leave early.
