PLAYER NOTES
–RB Darren Sproles is on track to playing his first game since injuring a hamstring on Sept. 6 in the season opener. “I can’t tell you we’re going to feature Darren, I can’t tell you that we’re going to feature Josh (Adams) or any of those (running backs), but Darren will be a big part of the game,” said head coach Doug Pederson.
–RT Lane Johnson is expected to play on Sunday night despite reports coming out of the Eagles’ pre bye-week game in London that he had suffered an MCL sprain in his left knee and would likely miss a few weeks.
–S Corey Graham, who missed the previous three games with a hamstring injury, is on track to play. Whether or not he starts at safety remains to be seen after rookie Avonte Maddox has stepped in and played very well. Maddox, though, could have to move back to his more familiar slot cornerback spot because Sidney Jones may not be ready to return after missing the last two games with a hamstring injury.
–DT Tim Jernigan could be close to returning to the lineup after being cleared to practice on Monday. He remains on reserve/non-football injury while practicing for a maximum of 21 days. Jernigan had offseason back surgery and hasn’t played a snap yet this season.
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: WR Golden Tate. The newly acquired receiver will take his first snaps as an Eagle, and it will be interesting to see not only the impact he makes as a pass catcher, but as a presence that could prevent double teams of any of the other Eagles weapons, such as Alshon Jeffery, Zach Ertz, and Nelson Agholor. Accounting for Tate may also make a defense a bit more vulnerable to the run, as well. Tate already played the Cowboys once this year. When he was with the Lions, he made eight catches for 132 yards and two touchdowns, but Detroit lost, 26-24. “I think that’s to my advantage,” said Tate. “They run the same defense, and I’m on a different team with different concepts, so I think that’s to my advantage.”
GAME PLAN: Limit Ezekiel Elliott’s legs and make Dak Prescott beat you with his arm. That’s the formula to beating the Cowboys. Of course, it’s easier said than done. In two career games against the Eagles, Elliott has averaged 144 yards from scrimmage. He did a lot of damage last year in the meaningless regular-season finale, but stopping Elliott will be the focal point.
“I think their entire offense stems from the running game,” said linebacker Jordan Hicks. “Stop him and get after the quarterback. It’s great for linebackers. It’s what you want to hear and we take a lot of pride in stopping the run as a defense, so this is a great opportunity for us.”
The Eagles’ run defense is ranked second in the NFL, but teams have not stayed committed to the run against them. The Eagles have the second fewest rushes against them in the league.
On offense, the Eagles will need to find a way to score points against a Cowboys defense that is giving up an average of just 18.5 points per game. “They’ve done a good job in holding points down,” said offensive coordinator Mike Groh. “They’ve got some talented players up there. They’re good up front. They can create some pressure, particularly on the edges with their D-line. They’ve got speed at linebacker and they’re covering well on the perimeter. We’re going to have to put a good plan together to get ready to beat these guys. They’re definitely having a good season.”
MATCHUPS TO WATCH
–Eagles Ts Lane Johnson (right) and Jason Peters (left) vs. Cowboys DEs DeMarcus Lawrence and Tyrone Crawford. Both Eagles tackles are banged up, with Peters coming off offseason knee surgery, battling a quad injury and torn biceps, and Johnson struggling with an MCL strain and high ankle sprain. Lawrence is tied for 13th in the league in sacks with 6.5 while Crawford has contributed 2.5. “We know No. 90 (Lawrence) this week is a really good pass rusher, so we’ve got to be careful with the amount of spread sets and empty sets that we do,” said head coach Doug Pederson.
–Eagles DT Fletcher Cox vs. Cowboys LG. Cox is the Eagles’ top sacker with four of them and the Cowboys have typically double-teamed Cox with center Travis Frederick. Frederick, however, is out with an injury and Joe Looney is filling in. If the Cowboys can’t successfully double Cox, he could add to his sack total. With rookie Connor Williams out with a knee injury, Xavier Su’a-Filo and Adam Redmond are competing in practice to start. It’s possible Looney could slide to left guard with Redmond playing center.