America’s Team, Resurrected?

Saturday night’s game between NFC East rivals ended with perennial choke artist, Dallas Cowboys, winning their first playoff game since 1996. Anyone who may have thought that a Week 17 stomping would prove in favor of the losing team, Philadelphia Eagles, was sorely mistaken. This wild card matchup was flashing like a re-run in the eyes of disappointed Eagle fans. After being embarrassed 24-0, Philly went out and performed just as lack luster this time as they did in last week’s regular season finale.

A mental overhaul for NFL fans may have been set into place after Tony Romo and the Cowboys posted a 34-14 victory, to erase past nightmarish finishes in both regular season and playoff games.

One player, not so expected to be an impact, was Eagle quarterback Michael Vick. Vick threw a 76-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Maclin early in the second quarter to tie the game at 7-7, but then had a miscue during a handoff, allowing Dallas to recover a fumble inside Philadelphia territory. Resulting in a Cowboys touchdown and 24-7 lead, sealing a sure victory.

For the second straight week the Eagles were outplayed and outcoached in every aspect of the game. Huge disparities in plays, yards, and time of possession were posted once again in favor of the Cowboys.

The NFL’s #7 rush offense ripped through the Philly defense. After rushing for 179 yards in Week 17, Dallas ran for another 198 yards Saturday night. Running the ball effectively allows a team to control the clock. 198 yards allowed the Cowboys to control 39:34 of the play clock, to the Eagles 20:26 of possession. The ball control numbers reflect directly in Dallas’ ability to convert on third down and pick up 27 first downs, compared to Philly’s 17.

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Philadelphia’s first round loss is their first under Andy Reid (7-1), as well as their first with Donovan McNabb under center (6-1).

Although Dallas cannot be crowned Super Bowl champs just yet, they have answered a lot of critics. Back to back strong performances against their division rival shows a team that is on a mission. If the ‘boy’s continue to dominate the rest of the NFC throughout the 2009 playoffs, you could see a six title franchise in back to back seasons.

DAL (12-5)

PHI (11-6)

Impressive Numbers

DAL - PHI

YARDS - 426 - 340

PASSING YDS - 228 - 284

RUSHING YDS - 198 - 56

1ST DOWNS - 27 - 17

3RD DOWN - 9/16 - 2/11

T.O.P. - 39:24 - 20:26

Passing Comp/Att Yards TD Int

Romo (DAL) 23/25 244 2 0

McNabb (PHI) 19/37 230 1 0

Vick (PHI) 1/2 76 1 0

Rushing Att Yards TD Fumb

Jones (DAL) 16 148 1 0

Choice (DAL) 14 42 1 0

McCoy (PHI) 5 24 0 0

Weaver (PHI) 5 19 0 1

Vick (PHI) 1 0 0 1

McNabb (PHI) 2 13 0 1

Receiving Rec Yards TD

Austin (DAL) 7 82 1

Williams (DAL) 5 59 0

Maclin (PHI) 7 146 1

Celek (PHI) 3 59 0

By: Josh McElwee
ProFootball-fans.com Staff Writer