This game looked all too familiar. The Eagles fell behind their opponent quickly. Less than 2 minutes into the game, the Cowboys scored their first TD on just 4 plays and only had to go 51 total yards. Bledsoe connected 3 times to wideout Terry Glenn for 18, 17 and 15 yards right off the bat. In fact, Glenn took Lito Sheppard to school all game long finishing the day with 7 receptions and 118 yards with 2 TD’s. The only play Lito made came with the score already out of hand at 30-3 halfway through the third quarter. Sheppard was covering Keyshawn Johnson on a short out pattern. On the play, Lito hit Johnson as he turned to gain some extra yards. The play happened so fast; Lito caused a fumble, which was caught in midair by Sheldon Brown, who returned it for an 80-yard TD return. It would be the only TD the Eagles score. Final score: Dallas 33; Eagles 10. But it really felt like 55-10.

Last year in Pittsburgh, the Eagles took one on the chin. This game in Dallas felt worse as the Eagles defense could not stop Drew Bledsoe and that potent Cowboys offense. REALLY?? This game was a complete travesty and a complete defensive meltdown. Special teams also had a huge hand in the Eagles poor play and made the Dallas victory look all that more easy. At least last year, the Steelers had to earn the win. Special teams, excluding the fine punting by Dirk Johnson (8 punts – 47.3 avg.) gave Dallas great field position all day long. The Cowboys started the game at their own 49-yard line then they possessions at the Eagles 43, 38 and 49 yard lines in that order, ending in 17 straight points. It could have been at least 20, if not 24, but the defense stopped Dallas on 4th-and-1 on the 1-yard line. Conversely, the Eagles never started past their own 28-yard line and only crossed mid-field once, which led to the offense’s only 3 points of the game.

QB Drew Bledsoe simply torched the Eagles secondary with a QB rating of 122.0 that included 289 passing yards. The Dallas running game also racked up 167 yards. In the end, the Cowboys outgained the Birds 456-129. They also held the ball for over 40 minutes of the game. There was no Eagles pass rush to be found and on the other side of the ball, McNabb was sacked 4 times and hit another dozen or so times. Looks like the Eagles are starting to miss Corey Simon and Derrick Burgess now. I just hope the cheap Eagles don’t let T.O. and Brian Westbrook fly the coop too. It won’t be long before both the Giants and Cowboys pass the Eagles for good. Granted, the Eagles should prevail in the end, but if they suffer any more injuries, it could spell the end of the Eagles run as East Champions. The most important player is Donovan McNabb. Maybe he is too hurt to continue playing at this level and should get the necessary surgery so he can be back in time for the playoffs.

On the positive side, Andy Reid hardly ever wins going into the bye week. They are now 2-5 under Reid. They are 6-0 on the week following the bye, but have a real challenge in playing the San Diego Chargers. This was not a great team that destroyed the Eagles in this game. But Dallas had a 27-3 lead at the half, quickly adding a FG at the start of the second half and another FG after the Eagles only TD on defense. You sensed that this game was over once Dallas scored that third TD immediately after the Eagles cut the lead to 17-3. Dallas scored their last TD with one of their worst field positions of the game at their own 30-yard line. They quickly moved the ball on 11 plays in just 5 minutes to extend the lead to 24-3. We’ll see what happens after the bye week.