Cowboys vs. Eagles: Breaking Down Philadelphia's Game Plan

The Philadelphia Eagles had little trouble marching up and down the field against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day, racking up 464 yards of total offense in the 33-10 victory over the division rival. It was finishing what they started that caused the Birds to run into some problems.

The Eagles went 1-for-5 in the red zone in the win, a figure they may not get away with again if the Cowboys have a better showing in Week 15.

In fact, Philly’s offense has struggled within 20 yards of the end zone all season long. The unit’s 44.6 percent conversion rate in this area is good for 28th in the NFL.

Finish drives. Finish Dallas.

GM	ATT	MADE	%
Wk 11 @ GB	2	4	50.0
Wk 12 vs. TEN	3	7	42.9
Wk 13 @ DAL	1	5	20.0
Wk 14 vs. SEA	1	1	100.0

Another "W" over the Cowboys would all but assure the Eagles a second straight NFC East title, but they can’t count on the defense to limit a familiar opponent to 10 or fewer points for a second time in two weeks. Philadelphia’s offense must finish what it starts this time around.

The unit has been especially inefficient when the field shrinks since Mark Sanchez has been under center.

Over the past four weeks, including the previous Dallas tilt, the Eagles are 6-for-17 in the red area with Sanchez at the helm—a lowly 35.3 percent conversion rate.

Unfortunately, pinning down any one reason for the lack of execution in that part of that field has proven difficult. Sanchez has completed just 50 percent of his pass attempts from inside the 20. All-Pro running back LeSean McCoy is averaging 1.3 yards per carry from 10 yards or closer. There have been dropped passes and blown assignments along the offensive line.

The failures in the red zone have been a total team effort.

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One way or another, the Eagles have to figure it out—and not just for the sake of knocking off the Cowboys. They’ll continue experiencing trouble beating any playoff team if they’re constantly settling for three points instead of six

Versus Dallas would be a good place to begin. The Cowboys defense ranks 26th in the red zone, so there’s no reason the Eagles can’t show some signs of improvement this week.

Frankly, they may need to. The Cowboys offense may not let the Birds off the hook so easily this time.

Make Tony Romo Beat You

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In their first meeting, the Eagles held DeMarco Murray to his worst production of the season, limiting the NFL’s leading rusher to 73 yards on 20 carries for a 3.7 average.

When the Cowboys fell behind, they were forced to put the game in Tony Romo’s hands in a somewhat predictable finish.

Romo threw two ugly interceptions while completing 18 of 29 passes for just 199 yards, erasing any chance of a Dallas comeback. It’s nothing we haven’t seen before from the 12-year veteran when asked to put the offense on his back.

	YDS/GM	YDS/ATT	TD	1ST%
Stats	113.8	3.9	8	19.0
Rank	18th	t-6th	t-10th	t-7th

We could see it once again on Sunday, assuming Philadelphia’s run defense can continue to contain the league’s most prolific back.

Technically, Philly's defense is ranked 18th on the ground in 2014, but fans know that doesn’t tell the whole story. Actually, the Eagles are tied for sixth with 3.9 yards per attempt allowed, and over the past two seasons, only two backs have eclipsed the century mark in a game.

That doesn’t necessarily mean they will shut down Murray for the second time in three weeks, yet you wouldn’t expect him to run all over Lincoln Financial Field, either.

As long as the Eagles keep Murray in check, the Cowboys will again be forced to turn to their quarterback.

While Pro-Football-Reference.com indicates Romo is tied for sixth among active passers with 27 game-winning drives—including four this year alone—part of the reason Dallas has had so much success is because they’ve been able to lean on the ground attack.

YR	CMP%	YDS/ATT	TD%	RATING
2012	65.6	7.6	4.3	90.5
2013	63.9	7.2	5.8	96.7
2014	69.1	8.4	7.1	108.8

Romo is averaging 29.2 pass attempts per game this season, and the Cowboys have a 9-3 record in his starts. Last season, he averaged 35.7, and the club went 8-7. In 2012, that figure reached its peak at 40.5, and the club finished 8-8.

It was simply too much to ask of Romo, whose moments of brilliance have always been overshadowed by his epic failures—especially during the month of December.

Zach Berman for The Philadelphia Inquirer reports the Eagles are expecting to see a sharper quarterback than the Romo they saw two weeks ago in Dallas. The four-time Pro Bowler has been playing through a back injury, and with the previous tilt being on a Thursday, he didn’t have a full week of treatment leading up to it.

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He looked hurt, to be honest. His passes fluttered, and the 34-year-old hit the deck at the very first sign of pressure a couple of times, clearly trying to avoid taking a big hit.

Romo won’t play scared this time around, but the Eagles still want the game resting on his right arm. It all begins by containing Murray, an area their defense has excelled in.

Philadelphia is one of two teams all year to hold Murray under 100 yards rushing on the ground. If it can do it a second time in two weeks, the Eagles will be one win away from capturing a second straight division crown—and the playoff berth that comes with it.

Unless otherwise noted, statistics courtesy of ESPN.com and Team Rankings.