Eagles vs. Cowboys: 3 things you need to know
The Philadelphia Eagles will make the trip out to AT&T Stadium to take on the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday in the second game of the Thanksgiving Day slate. The two teams currently sit atop the NFC East standings with matching 8-3 records.
Here's what you need to know:
The Eagles' D-line wants at the Cowboys' O-line
The Cowboys' offensive line has been silly good this season. Anchored by left tackle Tyron Smith, the unit has helped DeMarco Murray to a league-leading 1,354 rushing yards on the season, 403 more than any other player.
The Eagles aren't going to back down on Thursday. They believe they have one of the better defensive lines in football.
"I think we have a great defensive line, and they do fly under the radar," defensive coordinator Bill Davis said, according to the Eagles' official website. "But a lot of times when you two-gap, it's not a glorified position to two-gap and stop the inside run. Nobody writes articles about that, so you don't hear about them much, but boy, they're playing well in the run game."
The Eagles players concur and they believe they can neutralize one of the Cowboys' greatest strengths.
"People don't give us the credit that we deserve," defensive end Fletcher Cox said. "But we put it on tape and we show the world that we can stop the run.
"If anybody that watches football knows what our D-line is known for, it's stopping the run."
Anything you can do, Dez can do better
While most players would have faded into the background with New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. going off on Sunday night, Cowboys star Dez Bryant wasn't about to let the rookie's performance affect his game.
“Not at all. You cannot get personal,” Bryant said, according to Brandon George of The Dallas Morning News. “That’s one thing I had to learn. It’s worked out well for me. I stay focused because I know my chance will come.”
Beckham had a breakout game on Sunday night, racking up 146 yards and two touchdowns on 10 receptions, one of which will go down as arguably the best catch in league history. Bryant answered right back with seven receptions for 86 yards and a pair of touchdowns, including the game-winning score with 1:01 to play.
This week, Bryant will surely be keeping a close eye on Eagles wideout Jeremy Maclin, who enters the game one score back of Bryant's wide receiver-leading 10 touchdowns, a mark the Cowboys' receiver shares with Randall Cobb of the Green Bay Packers.
Philadelphia's getting its running game going
Many would be shocked to learn that Eagles running back LeSean McCoy has run for 95.3 yards per game over his last seven games.
A year after winning the rushing crown, McCoy has been plagued by inconsistency this season. Many have pointed to the play of the Eagles' offensive line as a contributing factor in McCoy's decrease in production and Shady has also appeared to have trouble finding the extra gear that made him so successful a year ago.
Both facets have improved of late and McCoy enters the Thanksgiving game coming off one of his best performances of the season, running for 130 yards and a score on 21 carries against the Tennessee Titans.
McCoy has been keeping a close eye on his likely successor as rushing champion – Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray – who will serve as Shady's counterpart on Thanksgiving Day.
“Everybody always wants to be the top player at their position,” McCoy said, according to Bob Grotz of the Delaware County Daily Times. “You want to be one of those guys. I think we compete as a team and we compete as individuals with the guy across from you. I think every player does that. I'm sure (Jeremy Maclin) is kind of eyeing up (Dez Bryant). You know, they have that thing going on. The quarterbacks, it’s the same way. But the main focus is getting a win.”