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    Jerry Jones on Cowboys' 'Disappointing' Loss: Expected to Leave NFC East Champs

    Joseph Zucker@@JosephZuckerFeatured ColumnistDecember 23, 2019

    Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones ahead of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)
    Chris Szagola/Associated Press

    Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones reflected on the team's 17-9 defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.

    The Cowboys would have clinched the NFC East title with a win. Instead, the Eagles are now sitting first place in the division heading into the final week of the regular season.

    Jones rued what was a missed opportunity for Dallas, telling reporters he thought the team would have left Philadelphia as the East champion:

    Michael Gehlken @GehlkenNFL

    Jerry Jones: “It’s very disappointing. We all expected to leave here as NFC East champs. We’re not.” https://t.co/I1NDD7BiXH

    Ed Werder @WerderEdESPN

    #Cowboys owner Jerry Jones: “When you get yourself technically in a spot to come in to a Philadelphia team that has the players they got even though they have been missing a lot of them, you give yourself a chance to be real disappointed. We are.”

    Ed Werder @WerderEdESPN

    I asked Jerry Jones what disappointed him most: “I thought we could up here and play a better game than we played. I thought right up until the very end we could come in and make some plays and get it done.” That was the only question he took.

    “I’m a little numb that we didn’t come up here and beat them,” Jones added, per Jon Machota of The Athletic. “Our team played very hard. I’m just surprised we didn’t get the deal done.”

    Dak Prescott was battling a shoulder injury that clearly limited him against the Eagles. He finished 25-of-44 for 265 yards.

    Philadelphia had an injury crisis of its own, though, a situation made worse when Nelson Agholor was reportedly ruled out Saturday. J.J. Arcega-Whiteside and Greg Ward Jr. were the team's starting wide receivers. Carson Wentz still threw for 319 yards and a touchdown, while Miles Sanders ran for 79 yards.

    Jones' comments sum up the general attitude in Dallas, with Prescott expressing a similar level of frustration.

    Jerry Jones on Cowboys' 'Disappointing' Loss: Expected to Leave NFC East Champs
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    "We're too talented," he told reporters. "And we just didn't execute the way that we're capable of. And they did."

    Dallas still was in a position to tie the game. Prescott's throw for Michael Gallup in the end zone was broken up by Sidney Jones.

    NFL @NFL

    Sidney Jones with the big pass breakup in the end zone! #FlyEaglesFly 📺: #DALvsPHI on FOX 📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app Watch free on mobile: https://t.co/csMF3GLW6Z https://t.co/9qasdDdCIg

    In general, Prescott's assessment could extend to the Cowboys' entire season. Dallas had four players on the NFC's Pro Bowl roster, a group that didn't include Prescott or Amari Cooper, both of whom are having career years.

    There's no reason a team as good as the Cowboys should be 7-8 in what is the NFL's worst division.

    The silver lining for fans is that Jones may now have no choice now but to let Jason Garrett leave when his contract expires in the offseason. Assuming Dallas misses the postseason, it's hard to see how Garrett is back in 2020.