Cowboys studs and duds: Cooper Rush falters in Week 6 defeat

The Dallas Cowboys fell to 4-2 on the season as they were unable to beat the Philadelphia Eagles on the road. It was a game full of highs and lows that included a 20-0 start for Philly, a 17-point run by Dallas to get back into the game, and several miscues from the offense including a late pick and missed field goal that sealed their fate.

Surely the Cowboys would have taken a 4-2 start if asked following the debacle we saw in Week 1 but they still have to be frustrated knowing they had a shot to upset the Eagles at their own stadium. Now, the ‘Boys are third in the suddenly tight NFC East and hopeful to get Dak Prescott back for their Week 7 showdown against the Detroit Lions.

Before looking ahead to that one, let’s take some time to highlight the studs and duds from the Cowboys’ second loss of the year.

Dallas Cowboys studs and duds from Week 6 loss to the Eagles

Stud: Jake Ferguson, TE

With Dalton Schultz out, the Cowboys have been leaning heavily on Jake Ferguson who has been playing well for a mid-round rookie. On Sunday Night Football, however, he stepped up his game another notch.

Ferguson made several catches in the game but the most impressive came early in the fourth quarter when he took a short pass to the house after making a nifty move in the open field.

The seven-yard touchdown made it a 20-17 game as the Cowboys were making it a contest. For Ferguson, it was his first career touchdown. In all, he had four receptions for 40 yards as one of the few bright spots in the defeat.

Dud: Dante Fowler Jr., EDGE

The Dallas defense had been on the field for a while as the Eagles had covered 70 yards on 14 plays, but they appeared to have been stopped at the 10-yard line. Facing a fourth-and-four with the first quarter ending, Philadelphia lined up as if they were going to go for it. Chances were high that they were just trying to get the Cowboys to jump, and it worked.

Dante Fowler Jr. fell for a hard count and moved across the line, getting flagged for a neutral zone infraction. That gave Philly a fresh set of downs, and Miles Sanders ran it in for a touchdown to put his team up 7-0. It was a four-point swing early, and it fell on Fowler’s shoulders since his gaffe allowed it to happen.

As we saw later, those four points were huge and might have changed how the Cowboys approached things, especially when it came to their terrible decision to throw it on fourth-and-one deep in their own territory.