For some reason, I thought that tonight’s game could have been a tough one. Instead, Dallas dominated for most of the game and cruised to a 38-17 win. This is the type of performance that we expected from Terrell Owens last season when Dallas signed him. Some items to note:
* Jason Witten is the man. I could try to describe it, but I might as well show the clip. It is worth watching a few times:
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* Owens finished with 10 receptions for 174 yards and a touchdown. Three of his catches came on third down. He caught passes over the middle and made huge gains after the catch. Altogether, very impressive.
* DeMarcus Ware, Greg Ellis, and Marcus Spears had very good games, combining for three sacks.
* Bradie James also had a very good game, recovering a fumble and getting a big tackle for a loss in the second quarter.
* Tony Curtis made a Randy Moss-like (or maybe a Tony Gonzalez-like) touchdown grab in the first quarter, giving Dallas a 14-7 lead.
* Marion Barber and Julius Jones both looked very good, combining for 113 yards on the ground and 72 yards in the air.
* Eagles defensive lineman LaJuan Ramsey nailed Jones with a cheap shot. A big fine awaits.
* Anthony Henry played quite a bit and had an interception late in the fourth quarter.
* This was only the second time since 1998 that Dallas has won at Philadelphia. In 1998, Dallas destroyed the Eagles 34-0.
* Isaiah Stanback did not look bad returning kickoffs in place of Tyson Thompson. He had a very good 35-yarder to open the second half.
The Bottom Line
* The bottom line is that Dallas has a one-game lead over the Giants as the Cowboys travel to New York next week. A win gives Dallas a two-game lead and two wins over the Giants.
* The Eagles are now four-games out at 3-5. Washington pulled out a win against the Jets to improve to 5-3.
Looking back on my predictions on Sports Projections.com, I was more than a little bit off:
| Place | Team | Record |
| 1 | Eagles | 10-6 |
| 2 | Cowboys | 10-6 |
| 3 | Redskins | 7-9 |
| 4 | Giants | 6-10 |
I could still be right if Dallas finishes 3-5, Philadelphia finishes 7-1, Washington finishes 2-6, and the Giants finish 0-8. That said…looks like my career as a projector is over.
Oh, and don’t look now, but Cleveland improved to 5-3 today. Damn.
Just taking a moment to pat myself on the pack. I did predict 12-4 for the Cowboys. What a sweet, sweet victory that was, kicking the crap out of Philadelphia in their won back yard. The forlorn, utterly despairing looks on the faces of the Philly faithful just warmed my heart.
Melonball, I was thinking closer to 8-8 when I predicted 10-6, so I have to give you all of the credit for the foresight. We’ve had some big wins against the Eagles– 1991, 1992 in the playoffs, 1995 in the playoffs– but it has been a long time since I’ve been so satisfied from a win.