Eagles force 5 turnovers, Jalen Hurts has 4 touchdowns in blowout win over Cowboys: Key takeaways

By Brooks Kubena, Jon Machota, Saad Yousuf and Cale Clinton

What was billed as one of the top matchups of the weekend ended with a bang as the Philadelphia Eagles dismantled the Dak Prescott-less Dallas Cowboys 34-6 at AT&T Stadium on Sunday. With the win, the Eagles (7-2) overtook the Washington Commanders for first place in the NFC East, while the Cowboys (3-6) continued their downward trend with no coaching change in sight.

In the second half, Philadelphia began to differentiate itself on the scoreboard. Jalen Hurts finished the afternoon 14 of 20 through the air for 202 yards, two touchdowns and one interception and added another 56 yards and two touchdowns on seven rushing attempts. Backup quarterback Kenny Pickett took over for Hurts at the start of the fourth quarter. AJ Brown posted his first 100-yard receiving game since Week 4, while Saquon Barkley finished the afternoon with 66 rushing yards on 14 carries.

Dallas' defense initially gave the Cowboys a chance to keep the game close. The unit sacked Hurts five times and had two turnovers in the first half. A Trevon Diggs interception in the end zone set up an Eagles touchdown from the field, while a Micah Parsons strip sack two drives later gave the Cowboys offense a first-and-goal at the Eagles' 6-yard line. However, the Cowboys were unable to capitalize on either turnover, gaining just 6 yards on the two turnovers in seven plays.

The Cowboys' inability to move the ball on offense dictated their day. Dallas finished the game with 146 total yards and five turnovers between Cooper Rush and Trey Lance. It's only the fourth time in franchise history that the Cowboys have had five turnovers while gaining fewer than 150 total yards. The Cowboys only reached the red zone twice, resulting in a field goal and Ezekiel Elliott's first red zone turnover. Their best shot for a touchdown to CeeDee Lamb was missed because of the infamous sunset blinding Lamb in the end zone.

Even when Dallas had Prescott at quarterback, these offensive deficiencies were still a permanent part of the story. Dallas fell to 0-4 at home this season for the second time in franchise history and the first time since 2010. The Cowboys' deficit of minus-94 points through their first four home games is the worst by any team since the Dolphins in 2019 and the sixth-worst ever.

Eagles are getting hot at the right time

The Eagles are at their best. It's good timing. They will receive the commanders on Thursday evening. The winner takes the lead in the NFC East. The Eagles are currently No. 1. They appear to be a team that should at least secure some home-field advantage in the playoffs. They have secured an offensive identity behind Barkley. Their defense held a third team without an offensive touchdown. The team looks more dominant than it has since the 2022 season. Their 28-point win over the Cowboys is their largest margin of victory over their division rival since 2017, when the Eagles won Super Bowl LII. The struggling Cowboys were obviously an easier target without Prescott. But the Eagles did what great teams should do to bad teams. They trampled her. — Brooks Kubena, Eagles beat writer

The Philadelphia defense demands the ball back

I'll be honest. I didn't think the following stat would be so common for the Eagles. But at least one opponent has lost four fumbles in at least one game each of the last three seasons. The others: a 34-28 win over the Vikings last season; a 29-21 win over the Jaguars in 2022. After forcing just two turnovers in their first six games, the Eagles have now forced 10 turnovers in their last three games. The turnovers resulted in 13 points. The Eagles' defense had the biggest impact on the game, however, as it forced the Cowboys to kick a field goal after Hurts lost a fumble on his own 6-point pass. That left the Eagles ahead 7-6 with 1:51 left in the first half. Hurts drove down the field on the ensuing drive and hit Dallas Goedert for a 14-yard touchdown to start the offense. The Cowboys averaged 2.6 yards per play and benched Rush for Lance in the fourth quarter. — Kubena

Barkley's impact was felt without affecting the box score

Barkley's impact on this offense is clear. He may have only managed 66 yards on 14 carries, 9 yards shy of his fourth career 1,000-yard season. But his impact helped take pressure off Hurts and create one-on-one opportunities in the passing game. On one drive, Hurts hit Brown with a 44-yard bomb on a play-action pass, Barkley gained 30 yards on four straight runs and Hurts scored on an 8-yard zone read keeper. Hurts, who was sacked five times, found ways to escape the intense pressure. He dodged a free rusher and hit Goedert for a touchdown to end the first half. — Kubena

The defeat in Dallas exceeded already low expectations

Most of us assumed the Cowboys would probably lose on Sunday. But this season they were even worse than expected. It didn't matter what kind of gifts the Eagles gave them. The Cowboys didn't do anything with them. Besides DeMarvion Overshown, have you been impressed by anyone wearing a Cowboys jersey?

The quarterback situation was also worse than expected. Rush didn't seem to be anywhere near the answer in Prescott's absence. Lance wasn't feeling any better. Looking at the rest of the schedule, it's easy to wonder where there are more wins. Maybe on Thanksgiving against the Giants. Maybe Week 15 in Carolina. A team with three to five wins is emerging. The only positive: A top 5 draft pick is a realistic possibility. And this group needs all the help it can get. — Jon Machota, Cowboys beat writer

Cowboys aren't just bad, they're boring

This game showed that the Cowboys are close to owner and general manager Jerry Jones' worst nightmare: Not just a bad football team, but a boring and irrelevant team. At the end of the first half, when the Cowboys somehow managed to keep things close enough to make it a one-possession game and the Eagles led 14-6, there were boos from the AT&T Stadium crowd, after a third-down play was incomplete rushing. There were a few more noticeable boos as the Eagles pulled away in the second half – when Rush returned after Lance's first appearance of the game – but it was mostly a demoralized crowd that seemed to accept their fate.

There were a handful of bright spots – “Overshown”, “Rico Dowdle” and “Parsons' Return” – but nothing that was more than a blip on the radar in the grand scheme of things. The question is how the Cowboys can retain the fan base over the next few months. Both quarterback options seem completely unattractive, the defense has been poor all season, and an overhaul seems in order after the season, making things largely irrelevant this year. Jones can handle defeat, as the last three decades have shown, but insignificance is a scary proposition for him, and that's where the Cowboys are right now. — Saad Yousuf, Cowboys beat writer

Required reading

(Photo: Cooper Neill/Getty Images)