Cowboys not discouraged by loss to Eagles،
PHILADELPHIA – The end result was a 28-23 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, but the Dallas Cowboys left Lincoln Financial Field thinking it was much closer than five points.
It was a matter of centimeters. A tipped touchdown pass (via replay) to tight end Luke Schoonmaker, whose knee was on the ground before the ball crossed the goal line. Quarterback Dak Prescott’s foot lands out of bounds on a 2-point play. A fumble that passer Micah Parsons almost recovered in Philadelphia territory.
Ultimately, each of these moves worked in Philadelphia’s favor, but the outcome did not deter the Cowboys.
“If [this game was a test], we didn’t make it and it sucks,” Prescott said. “Everybody in that locker room believed it. And we still do. Do not mistake yourself. We were inches away from a different game, a different result at the end of the game with the way it was played. But we are improving. I can promise you that. We will continue to improve. We are improving and everything is going well.”
Parsons said: “I feel like we have even more confidence now. I feel like everyone has written us off and [was] praising this Eagles team. Obviously, we gave them the best possible solution. You know, I’m not even going to add fuel to the fire. We will see them again in four weeks. »
At 5-3, the Cowboys are 2.5 games behind the Eagles (8-1) in the NFC East. If the Cowboys had won on Sunday and won next week against the New York Giants, they would have been in first place in the division and potentially hold the best record in the conference.
As it stands, only the Eagles and Detroit Lions (6-2) have more NFC wins than Dallas.
“What’s the matter, November?” Coach Mike McCarthy said. “There’s still a lot of football left in my opinion.”
The atmosphere in the locker room was very different from that of the 42-10 against the San Francisco 49ers on October 8. The Cowboys were helpless in a loss to a team that knocked them out of the playoffs in each of the last two seasons. .
“It’s all about racing,” Parsons said. “We just have to click at the right time and run.”
The Dec. 10 rematch with the Eagles will take place at the end of a three-game homestand for the Cowboys. They will play four of their next five games at AT&T Stadium, where they have won 11 in a row.
The Cowboys were able to overcome a 14-0 third-quarter loss by the Eagles, turning a 17-14 halftime lead into a 28-17 fourth-quarter deficit. The game ended with receiver CeeDee Lamb being stopped at the Eagles’ 4-yard line. Maybe not inches from a touchdown, but close enough to make the final seconds tense.
“We lost, so it’s not necessarily an ‘A,’ but we definitely fought,” Lamb said. I would have liked to win, but there were different elements to this game, different momentum shifts, and for us to keep fighting back and still be in the game with a minute to go, fighting back, giving ourselves a chance, that says a lot about us and the type of team we are.”
Prescott was clear that the Cowboys weren’t happy with the loss, but they felt more like they could contend a month after that disheartening loss to San Francisco.
“You have to believe it. It’s the National Football League,” Prescott said. “You just played against the team that played in the Super Bowl last year. You have to understand who they are. Give them all the credit in the world on both sides of the ball, the coaches, the staff, their players, this atmosphere. You I have to give them all the credit and there is no moral victory in that. I can promise you that. Not at all, but being inches away we know we are doing the right things .
“We just have to keep working at it, getting better and finding a way, the same way we work to get better. It’s as simple as that. You either get better or you get worse. No one stays the same .So we will continue to improve.
