The Eagles took care of business on Sunday, beating the Cowboys 41-7 to win the NFC East title.
They entered the game with their backup quarterback and finished with their third down but that didn’t matter. The Eagles dominated on Sunday and swept their arch-enemy.
They won the division with the No. 1 seed. 2 in NFC.
Let’s get to the grades:
Quarterback
Kenny Pickett: 10/15, 143 yards, 1 TD
The Eagles were without Jalen Hurts (concussion) for this game so they started Kenny Pickett despite a major rib injury. Pickett battled the injury, with some rags in his flak jacket, until he took two hits in the second half and had to come out. But then third-stringer Tanner McKee stepped in and finished strong, completing 3 of 4 passes for 54 yards and 2 touchdowns. It’s hard to ask more than your backups and third-string quarterbacks in the game to find a role. The last two times the Eagles had to start a quarterback, they missed the 2022 season. So this was a long haul from Pickett and McKee.
Grade: A
Running back
Saquon Barkley: 31 carries, 167 yards
At halftime, Barkley had just 13 carries for 40 yards and it looked like he would finish this game well shy of 2,000 yards on the season. But he ended up having a big third quarter and finished the game with 31 carries for 167 yards and now sits at 2,005 for the season, just 100 behind Eric Dickerson’s all-time record. Barkley is just the ninth player in NFL history to pass for more than 2,000 yards in a season.
Grade: A
Host
DeVonta Smith: 6 catches on 7 targets for 120 yards, 2 TDs
As has been the case, the only receivers to watch in this game were DeVonta Smith and AJ Brown. In this game, that was not the case. Smith had his best performance of the season and was able to catch touchdowns from both Pickett and McKee. AJ Brown finished with 3 catches on 5 targets for 36 yards and a touchdown. The biggest mistake the receiver made in this game was when Brown put the ball in the end zone. But Brown made up his mind; he exchanged a signed game jersey to return McKee’s first ball.
Grade: A
A solid finish
Grant Calcaterra: 1 catch on 2 targets for 34 yards
Dallas Goedert will be eligible to return next week against the Giants although that game may not be meaningful. Calcaterra had just one drive in the game but it was a surprise 3rd and 8 in the second quarter. A few plays later, Pickett hit Smith on third down for a 22-yard touchdown to go up 14-7. Great play from Calcaterra in what was still a close game.
Grade: A-
An annoying phone call
By the third quarter, some of the offensive linemen knew Barkley was close to 2,000 yards and told him to press on. Although Barkley gets credit for a big season, the offensive line has been leading the way for him all season and they consider all of his accomplishments to be a team success. They also gave Pickett and McKee clean pockets, keeping Micah Parsons and the Cowboys without a sack.
Grade: A
Security line
Nolan Smith: 2 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 FF
Cowboys running back Rico Dowdle rushed for over 100 yards and Cooper Rush had just one sack in the game and it came late on a kickoff return. But Nolan Smith forced a fumble and the Eagles finally limited the damage from Dowdle and made plays on the Rush. Jalen Carter had a big touchdown pass that Smith almost intercepted. Bryce Huff returned after missing five games, left with a shoulder injury but was able to return. The Eagles didn’t get much pressure throughout the game but it was enough.
Grade: A-
Linebacker
Oren Burks: 8 tackles, 1 FF
Without Nakobe Dean, the Eagles started veteran Oren Burks in his place and replaced Jeremiah Trotter Jr. as the game progresses. Burks ended up leading the team in tackles with 8 and forced one of the Eagles’ two fumbles. Zack Baun had 7 tackles and a pass breakup. Trotter had 3 tackles, a QB hit and half a sack.
Grade: A-
The latter
CJ Gardner-Johnson: 1 tackle, 2 INTs, 2 PBUs
There was a time of passing for the secondary and there were several passes given by Darius Slay and Quinyon Mitchell. But Gardner-Johnson had his second INT of the game and returned the first 69 yards for his first career touchdown. He now leads the team with 6 touchdowns. Rush completed 15 of 28 passes for 147 yards with 1 catch and 2 interceptions.
Grade: A
Special teams
Jake Elliott: 2/2 on FGs, 5/5 on PATs, 5 touchbacks on kickoffs
In addition to making all of his field goals, Elliott also took over the kicking duties and did a good job of keeping the ball away from dangerous return man KaVontae Turpin.
Grade: A
Training
Record: 13-3
I didn’t like Nick Sirianni’s decision to punt on 4th-and-1 from their 46-yard line in the first quarter but let’s not get too picky after a 41-7 win. The Eagles’ offense was highly effective with third-string quarterbacks. And the defense did settle for a 70-yard drive in the first quarter. Again, the decision to go to Elliott as the kicker paid off.
Grade: A
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