Will Philadelphia Play Into Dallas' hands?

[Creeper]

The Eagles offense is almost all RPOs. The will run if the Cowboys play back and pass if the Cowboys come up to stop the run.

My fear is the off tackle runs. Sanders is really quick getting through the holes, like Pollard and if the Cowboys LBs are not ready he will run by them for some big gains. If they get their running game going the Cowboys defense will be on its heels all night.

 

[Verdict]

Their most apparent weakness is their DBs. If we can exploit that with short passes over the middle and to the outside, we have a chance to convert on third downs with the help of our running game. We need to maintain time of possession in a big way. If they tire out our defense, late in the game they'll resort to a hurry-up offense and increase their likelihood of scoring. We can't rely on Rush to put up 24+ points. The game has to remain close for us to win. Dinking and dunking could go a long way to winning. Our wide receivers can't afford to drop balls as they have recently.

One thing about the NFL is that the game oftem does not follow the expected script.

 

[nyc-cowboy]

The Eagles run the ball more than any team in the NFL. Even with a strong receiver core and a QB that is playing at a high level this year, the Eagles love to run the ball.

If they try to control the game by running the ball and Dallas also tries to control the game by running the ball, and both teams succeed as each defense struggles against the run, then this might wind up being a short game and a low score. A low scoring game is Dallas' best chance to win.

If I was Philadelphia I would use a lot of play action, bootlegs and misdirection to establish an aggressive passing game in an attempt to get an early lead and make Dallas throw the ball, playing into Philadelphia's defensive strength.

I wonder which strategy the Philly coach will choose.

With a QB that can move and how aggressive our D is - I'd run a lot of screens.