This is it. This is our 2011 season on the line.
Maybe the better Tennessee Williams reference would be the immortal line of Blanche Dubois in A Streetcar Named Desire, which would be paraphrased: “The Eagles are depending on the kindness of strangers…”
The NFL is what happens to you while you’re making other plans. Chalk this 2011 season up to “you can’t always get what you want”… and only with the help of strangers like the New York Jets and the Dallas Cowboys will we get what we need.
We did this to ourselves. We were woefully unprepared and undisciplined this season. We gave stuff away. We left money on the table.
Still, depending on the early game in New York this Christmas Eve, we are still alive…technically speaking.
For the Eagles to repeat as East champions, they must beat the Cowboys today and then Washington at home on Jan. 1. They need the Giants to lose to the Jets today and then have the Giants beat Dallas in their last game.
That would leave all three teams at 8-8, and Philadelphia would own the tiebreaker based on a superior divisional record.
“I’m a big Jets fan this week,” Eagles coach Andy Reid said. “You control what you control. You have to play the game whether that team wins or loses.”
The Eagles’ playoff hopes remained alive after a 45-19 romp over the Jets on Sunday, their second straight victory.
The Cowboys should be eager for revenge after losing 34-7 at Philadelphia in Week 8. That was just their second loss in the last six meetings in the series since the Eagles kept them out of the playoffs with a 44-6 win in Week 17 of 2008. “We’ve got to get the wins. We’ve got to get in,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. “Best way to do it is win this thing.”
Dallas regained some momentum by beating Tampa Bay 31-15 last Saturday after blowing fourth-quarter leads in consecutive games. “We just can’t let up,” receiver Dez Bryant said. “We know where we want to go and it don’t matter who comes in here, we’re going to keep the same intensity and just play hard and hopefully we can win out. … We just got to keep focusing and keep playing hard.”
Tony Romo is doing his part to get Dallas into the postseason, completing 69.9 percent of his passes for 869 yards with eight touchdowns, no interceptions and a 121.4 passer rating over the last three games.
Romo has thrown 18 touchdown passes and just two picks in the past seven contests since struggling with a season-low 66.7 rating against the Eagles. He finished with 203 yards on 18-of-35 passing with one touchdown and one INT in that defeat.
The onus may again be on Romo and the passing game since Dallas is dealing with a rash of injuries to its backfield, with Felix Jones’ hamstring tightness the latest issue. Jones is listed as questionable after running for more than 100 yards each of the past two weeks. He may be joining rookie running backs DeMarco Murray and Phillip Tanner on the sidelines, leaving the Cowboys at RB with 12-year veteran Sammy Morris and practice squad member Chauncey Washington.
Morris made his season debut with 12 carries for 53 yards against the Buccaneers, and is expected to start if Jones can’t play. “Sammy is the most logical choice … and we have another young back on our practice roster (Washington), so he’ll get a chance to do some of that too,” coach Jason Garrett said.
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PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: |
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Status Report |
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OUT |
CB Asante Samuel (hamstring) |
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QUESTIONABLE |
DT Trevor Laws (knee) |
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PROBABLE |
RB Ronnie Brown (hamstring), T Todd Herremans (ankle), DT Cullen Jenkins (groin), WR Jeremy Maclin (hamstring, shoulder), DE Darryl Tapp (ribs), QB Michael Vick (ribs) |
Okay, Smart Phans… it’s your turn… let us know what’s shakin’ in Dallas… and tell us when we can open our eyes after whatever goes down in the Meadowlands…
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