Let’s get to the Philadelphia Eagles news and links …
Data-backed NFL bets: The numbers back the Cowboys at -2.5 – PFF
But even if the market is assigning Philadelphia a “No. 1 defense” label that isn’t fully supported by their production — even when accounting for Nolan Smith’s health and the addition of Jalen Phillips — this particular matchup still tilts toward Dak Prescott mitigating what the Eagles do best. Philadelphia leads the NFL in tight-window throws forced and in defensive EPA generated on those throws, but this is exactly the kind of matchup where Dak Prescott tends to thrive. The Cowboys quarterback has consistently been one of the league’s best quarterbacks on tight-window throws — top five in EPA on those attempts — and he’s been nearly five times more efficient than the baseline the Eagles have faced this season. […] This matchup also comes against a Dallas defense that has quietly become one of the league’s better disruption units, generating pressure at the sixth-highest rate in the NFL over the last month. Hurts has managed only -0.4 EPA per play under pressure this season. Add it all up, and this looks like a spot where the Dallas offense is being mispriced relative to the matchup, particularly given Prescott’s ability to attack tight-window looks — where the Eagles derive most of their defensive value — and the fact that Philadelphia’s offense faces a tougher test than the market suggests without Lane Johnson and against an improving Cowboys defense. As actual points in actual games, this sets up as a spot where Dallas can score and win with margin.
Lane Johnson injury news: Eagles tackle could return sooner than originally expected – BGN
The original reporting about Lane Johnson’s Lisfranc injury indicated that the Philadelphia Eagles’ All-Pro right tackle could miss “four-to-six weeks.” Now that he will not require surgery, there is hope he might only miss three games … thus explaining why the team did not place him on the injured reserve list on Saturday. This much according to the Inquirer’s Jeff McLane.
4 things the Cowboys should do to beat the Eagles – Blogging The Boys
Well hello there. I’m Dave Mangels from Bleeding Green Nation. No, I didn’t get lost. As many already know, this week across SB Nation we are having writers cross enemy lines. RJ Ochoa, who is secretly, or maybe not so secretly an Eagles fan, came over to BGN, and Brandon Gowton popped over here. Then on Thursday David Halprin came over to our turf and wrote about 4 things the Eagles should do to beat the Cowboys. Turnabout is fair play, so we sent our Dave–hey wait, that’s me–to highlight 4 things the Cowboys should do to beat the Eagles. The Eagles are due a loss. A bad loss. They’ve been outgained in eight of their games. The biggest plays AJ Brown has made this year have been on social media. The head vibes coach has seen two players retire shortly after joining the team, and they dragged another guy out of retirement to help the locker room vibes. Two weeks ago in a close prime time game they pooped their pants in late game management, and then the next week they did it again. Things are going great.
Eagles locker room notes: How will Jalen Hurts respond to the ‘friendly fire’ from this week? – PHLY
How has Hurts handled things internally this week? “While people talk, he just keeps working,” Eagles veteran defensive end Brandon Graham said. “That’s the only way things are going to change is if you keep working, and you have to work together. We all know it can be frustrating in this league and this game, but we’re all professionals.” “Heavy is the head that wears the crown and people don’t know how heavy that shit is until it’s their turn,” Graham added. “It’s cool, though. … People are going to think how they’re going to think about him, but one thing you can’t say is he isn’t going to work and he isn’t going to fix it. But we all have to fix it together, we can’t just cry about it.” There have been a few examples of Hurts answering past spells of scrutiny with improved play, especially when that scrutiny originates from his teammates. The Cowboys, who rank 31st in points allowed, EPA/drive and total DVOA, will present an opportunity for Hurts and the offense to make an emphatic response, but it will likely require a more decisive, aggressive version of the quarterback against a zone-heavy secondary.
Jalyx Hunt will honor the memory of his late friend, Marshawn Kneeland, who tragically passed away on November 6, through the My Cause My Cleats initiative. Hunt will wear the custom-designed cleats during Sunday’s game in Dallas, the Cowboys’ first home game since Kneeland’s death. Hunt trained with Kneeland during the pre-draft process in 2024. The two became close, working out every day. “Seems like I’ve known him all my life,” Hunt said. The two connected throughout their rookie season during each other’s milestone moments, all the way through Hunt’s preparation for Super Bowl LIX.
Hunt, 24, picked up odd jobs to pay for those expenses integral to attaining his NFL dream, especially his training. He delivered takeout for DoorDash. He and his friends signed up to work as overnight security guards at the 24-hour library on campus, even when they had to lift in the morning. In high school in Orlando, Fla., the zero-star recruit worked nights as a janitor at the urgent care where his father, James, served as a physician’s assistant. The experiences that shaped Jalyx didn’t magically evaporate after the Eagles selected him in the third round of the 2024 draft. “I got a chip on my shoulder to a certain degree,” Hunt said on Wednesday. “But I also just appreciate things a lot more, because a lot of these people were able to be blessed coming out of high school. … I was like, ‘Should I be paying for training? If I have to do this, is it really that feasible?’”
‘It never gets easier:’ How big-play WR Jahan Dotson deals with lack of targets – NBCSP
How sporadically has Dotson been targeted? He’s played 329 offensive snaps. Has 17 targets. No other NFL wide receiver this year has played more and been targeted less. And when you only get about 1 ½ passes thrown your way per game, you do everything that’s humanly possible to make a play. Because it might be another week or two until you get another chance. So when Dotson got clobbered as hard as he’s ever been clobbered in the third quarter of the Lions game after catching a 17-yard pass from Jalen Hurts, there’s no way he was going to drop the ball.
Vic Fangio’s defense holds opponent to single-digit points for third straight week. The Cowboys have one of the NFL’s best scoring offenses, ranking second in that category, with Dak Prescott playing some of the best football of his career — but much of that success has come against lesser competition. Of their five 30-point games this season, four were against teams with losing records, which also happen to be the four games Dallas has won this season. This week, the Cowboys run into a stingy Eagles defense. Philly has held consecutive opponents to single-digit points and will do it again Sunday.
Brandon Graham’s powerful advice to Eagles teammate shows why he truly is a ‘good guy’ – NJ.com
“I’ve been trying to stay on (Uche),” Graham said. “I told him exactly what I just said. I tell him, ‘Don’t forget who you are.’ I know he might be thinking, ‘Damn, if (Graham) didn’t come back and I was like, ‘Man, I don’t want to step on nobody’s toes or take food out of somebody’s mouth. But we are all here together and we are here because they believe in all of us. “I’m not in competition with him. We compete out there and we’re all having fun, but I want to make sure that you as a man is cool because outside of football it’s love in here. Sometimes people can’t separate the business from the personal and you’ll have a guy mad at you when they’re really mad at the situation. I always tell Josh, ‘I’m with you and I want to help you.’ ” Graham’s message every day to his teammates is “let’s go have fun” and “enjoy the journey.” “This ain’t an easy league,” Graham said. “The really hard part is that people are so quick to throw people away once they don’t need them. I just want people to know I am still here for them. Whenever somebody new came in to take my job, I was always welcoming. I’d be like, ‘You want to know something, I can help you with a bunch of stuff. I am where I’m at from the people in my journey before me and I want to help you get to where you’re going.’ ”
The Washington Commanders are officially headed back overseas, as team president Mark Clouse confirmed the Commanders will be the designated home team in an international game next year.
Giants-Lions pre-game analysis: Jaxson’s Dart well-being is top priority – Big Blue View
There is part of me that is bummed Jaxson Dart is not playing on Sunday. He is the Giants’ best quarterback, and as much fun as Winston he is not as good as Dart. He also is not the team’s future. There is, though, a bigger part of me that is thrilled that the NFL’s concussion protocol is working and that Dart won’t be on the field taking hits until he is 100% ready to do so. For years, even as concussions have become a bigger and bigger focus and the NFL has taken them more seriously, I have wondered how NFL players consistently get a concussion one week and magically clear the protocol by the following Friday and never miss a game. This is a brain injury we’re talking about.
Chiefs playoff odds: What a loss to the Colts would mean for their postseason chances – SB Nation
What a loss means for Chiefs’ playoff odds: Here is where the rubber meets the road. A loss to Indianapolis on Sunday would not doom Kansas City, but their playoff chances would take a substantial hit. According to NFL.com, Kansas City’s playoff chances would drop to 35% with a loss to the Colts. Pro Football Focus simulations drop the Chiefs’ playoff odds to that same mark. And looking at the standings, you can see why. Houston’s win on Thursday night moved the Texans to 6-5 on the season, and a Chiefs’ loss on Sunday would drop Kansas City to a full game behind the Texans in the standings.
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