Dak Prescott did not need a spectacular passing total to decide Monday night in Philadelphia. He needed to finish the possessions that reached scoring range, and his three touchdown throws helped Dallas leave Lincoln Financial Field with a 38-21 victory over the Eagles.
Three of Prescott’s 15 completions became touchdowns. He attempted 27 passes, gained 212 yards and finished without an interception. That 55.6% completion rate is hardly a portrait of aerial dominance. It was enough, though, when Dallas combined it with seven scoring possessions out of nine and avoided giving Philadelphia a turnover or a short field produced by one.
The Eagles’ defense deserves some of the credit for making that arithmetic work. Philadelphia surrendered 25 first downs and 416 yards, an average gain of 6.4 per play. During its five-game losing streak, the Eagles had permitted at least 375 yards in every game.
Prescott was not dismantling an impenetrable unit. He was taking advantage of a defense that left room for mistakes, then avoiding the mistake that could have made those yards irrelevant.
Dallas’ first touchdown showed the difference between moving the ball and finishing it. Ryan Flournoy’s 35-yard reception carried the possession to the Philadelphia 34, the first play that brought Dallas into Eagles territory. Javonte Williams followed with runs of 5 and 12 yards, and Prescott faced third-and-2 from the Philadelphia 9. His short throw to CeeDee Lamb produced the touchdown and completed an 82-yard drive.
That sequence also supplies the fair criticism. Prescott missed Lamb twice on Dallas’ opening field-goal drive, and his night never resembled a relentless passing exhibition. An Eagles defensive holding penalty preserved a third-quarter opportunity on third-and-9, giving Dallas another chance during its answering touchdown drive.
A quarterback can post a clean interception total because he is accurate, because the defense is forgiving or because both conditions happen to cooperate. Monday provided some of each, with the forgiving defense doing its share.
Prescott’s second touchdown required a more difficult conversion. On a Dallas possession in the second quarter, Williams gained 4 yards on fourth-and-1 from the Philadelphia 44 to preserve the drive. After Dallas reached the Eagles’ 21, Prescott faced third-and-3 and sent a 21-yard touchdown pass to George Pickens.
Pickens made the catch near the back corner against close coverage, but the throw gave him a realistic chance rather than demanding a rescue act from the receiver.
The best answer came after Philadelphia finally produced a possession that made Dallas uncomfortable. The Eagles spent 9:16 and 17 plays covering 84 yards in the third quarter, ending with Tanner McKee’s touchdown pass to Makai Lemon and a 21-20 Philadelphia lead. Dallas responded with a 61-yard march of its own.
