The Dallas Cowboys has a chance to win the NFC East on Sunday but fell flat on both sides of the ball against an undermanned Philadelphia Eagles team. The 17-9 loss displayed the issues the Cowboys have been struggling with all season and it looks like their season may come to a close after their week 17 contest.
It didn't start out well as the Cowboys struggled to stop the Eagles' no-name group of wide receivers as they marched down the field for two first quarter scores and a 10-0 lead. Players like Greg Ward Jr. and J.J. Arcega-Whiteside came up with big third down conversions early and Tight End Dallas Goedert had the best game of his career.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Cowboys wide receivers struggled with drops and Dak Prescott has the occasional miss that kept them from sustaining drives and scoring touchdowns.
Ultimately, it puts the Cowboys in a precarious position in the NFC East and all but seals the fate for much of the Cowboys coaching staff.
In the most important game of the year the Cowboys fell flat and couldn't find a rhythm throughout the game.
The result is attempting to make a last ditch comeback on a drive that saw Dak Prescott overthrow a wide open Tavon Austin on a deep ball, which likely would have resulted in a score, and Michael Gallup dropping a pass that would have put the Cowboys deep in Eagles territory.
What was an opportunity to clinch the NFC East turned out to be another in a long line of woulda, coulda, shoulda games. Seemingly every loss this season was a game the Cowboys had a chance to win or should have won but couldn't get the consistency in play from either side of the hall to pull out the victory.
This game was a lot like the Packers, Jets, Vikings, Bills, or Bears games where they got down early and couldn't get enough going quickly enough to mount an effective comeback. And that's really the story of this season.
When the offense couldn't get anything going early, the defense couldn't hang in there either allowing an early double-digit lead.
The loss in Philadelphia likely ends the season for the Dallas Cowboys. They'd need to beat the Washington Redskins and have the New York Giants beat the Eagles in week 17 to win the NFC East and get into the playoffs. Half of that scenario seems likely, while the Eagles should be able to take care of business against the Giants.
If indeed the Cowboys are eliminated from postseason contention next week, it won't take long for them to make coaching changes.
Jason Garrett doesn't have a contract beyond 2019, so week 17 will be the final game of his nine-year tenure coaching the Dallas Cowboys. It will come to an end unceremoniously as the Cowboys were never able to advance beyond the divisional round of the playoffs.
Jerry Jones, disappointed by another season of disappointment will move to get the best coach he can to come in and maximize this roster that he, Stephen Jones. Will McClay, and Jason Garrett have put together.
The Dallas Cowboys are a sloppy team that has underperformed and has failed to meet expectations in 2019. They need to take a really hard look at themselves and at the changes they've made over the years to see what, if anything, can be done to right the ship. The Dallas Cowboys can't afford to head into Dak Prescott's contract without a coach that can help them reach the next level consistently.
It's been long enough.
