Poor ratings probably won’t be an issue for the NFL this Sunday night, when the Eagles visit the Cowboys in one of the first truly attractive divisional matchups of the season.
As well as the spice of being a longtime (and bitter) NFC East rivalry, the primetime showdown at AT&T Stadium looks even more scintillating with the teams in a dogfight atop the division after Philadelphia’s impressive — at least on defense — 21-10 throttling Sunday of the formerly unbeaten Vikings.
That victory, highlighted by six sacks of Sam Bradford, snapped a two-game skid and improved the Eagles to 4-2, one game behind idle Dallas and a half-game ahead of the Giants and Redskins.
Even with the Cowboys on a roll behind NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year favorite Ezekiel Elliott and winners of five in a row, Philadelphia has reason to feel confident this weekend.
Not only did the Birds wallop the NFL’s last remaining undefeated team while holding Minnesota’s second-ranked defense to zero sacks of Carson Wentz, but Philly practically owns Dallas in its gleaming, $1 billion stadium.
The Eagles have won five of their seven visits to AT&T Stadium since its opening in 2009, including the past three trips. The Cowboys’ last home win over Philadelphia was a 20-7 decision on Dec. 24, 2011.
Dallas also continues to be consumed by the question of whether Tony Romo gets his job back from impressive rookie Dak Prescott when Romo is cleared medically, though that situation isn’t expected to come to a head until next month, at the earliest.
But even after their clubbing of the Vikings, who turned the ball over four times, the Eagles have plenty of things to clean up on their own end.
Philly also committed four turnovers Sunday, including three in one quarter by Wentz, and their rushing defense — ranked a middling 14th in the league — isn’t a great match against the runaway freight train that is Elliott.
The No. 4 overall pick from Ohio State is out-rushing entire teams with 703 yards in six games, an average of 117.2 yards per contest that puts him on pace to break Eric Dickerson’s all-time NFL rookie rushing record.
That is a major concern for the Eagles, considering they were gouged for 230 rushing yards two weeks ago by the Redskins in a 27-20 road loss and are allowing an unsightly average of 4.5 yards per carry.
Philly also remains unsure what to expect from Wentz on a weekly basis. The No. 2 overall pick got off to a sensational start, leading the Eagles to a 3-0 bump out of the gate, but has — not surprisingly, for a rookie — leveled off during their 1-2 stretch.
Wentz calmed down after the three early turnovers against Minnesota, but has thrown for just 145 and 138 yards the past two games as he has dealt with a shuffled offensive line, and opposing defensive coordinators appeared to figure him out.
Now Wentz gets the chance to point his arrow back up against a fellow rookie quarterback in Prescott who has been practically flawless. It’s just one of several matchups and storylines that is making Eagles-Cowboys this week appointment TV.