The loss to the Baltimore Ravens hardly ended the Dallas Cowboys' season. It did, however, put them in a 1-2 hole to climb out of. Ideally, you don't want to spend most of the campaign treading water.
But that's why we have the Philadelphia Eagles, who lost to the Case Keenum-led Chicago Bears with the entire country watching on Monday Night Football.
The Eagles didn't just lose. They got bludgeoned to the tune of a 27-7 final score. With Chicago starting its third-string quarterback. With Philly welcoming back edge rusher Jonathan Greenard from a pec injury. With a healthy Jalen Hurts.
This Philadelphia team does not scare anyone, meaning the Cowboys have a clear path to the NFC East crown despite sitting in third place in the division through as many weeks.
The Eagles are not as good as they were made out to be before the season
Keep in mind that the Eagles narrowly escaped being upset by the 0-3 Tennessee Titans a week ago. Of course, they would have the luxury of avoiding Caleb Williams in their next matchup. A good team would have capitalized, proving Week 2 was a mirage. But that's not who Philly is.
Moreover, the Eagles barely got by Washington in Week 1. The Commanders were a two-point conversion away from sending the game to overtime. Granted, Washington has been a tough out, but our point is that Philly's 2-0 record going into last night was very misleading.
There's not a Cowboys fan out there who's surprised by the Eagles' offensive woes.
According to Sheil Kapadia of The Ringer, Monday night was Philadelphia's worst offensive performance of the last four seasons based on EPA per drive. On nine possessions, they punted four times, committed three turnovers, and scored one touchdown.
That's brutal, but what's been more alarming is the Eagles' defense, a unit that was touted as one of football's elite before the season.
Through three games, they are 23rd in EPA per play and total EPA, and 20th in success rate, per Sumer Sports. They're struggling just as much defending the pass (23rd in dropback EPA) as they are stopping the run (27th in EPA per rush).
Against the Commanders, Titans, and the Bears with their third-string quarterback. Not exactly a murderer's row of offenses. They still have to play Dallas twice, the Rams, Seahawks, 49ers, and Jaguars. Maybe they find their footing along the way, but the schedule is only going to get harder.
The Cowboys just have to say within striking distance
Nobody is saying the Eagles are a bad team. They'll be a tough side to beat more weeks than not. But are they as good as their talent would indicate? Absolutely not. The NFC East might just be a slopfest week-to-week, with the division ultimately coming down to which team can best survive its own flaws.
Enter the Dallas Cowboys.
The Cowboys gifted away a victory on Sunday afternoon, but the loss left the season with a positive outlook. As long as the defense keeps improving slightly each week, the offense will be good enough to keep them competitive against anyone.
A lot of folks predicted the Baltimore Ravens would run roughshod in Rio. Even with a first-time head coach and a 30-year-old offensive coordinator, the game proved that Baltimore is one of the better teams in the NFL. And Dallas was two yards away from winning the game after crawling back from a two-score deficit in the second half.
Beating Philly at least once will be crucial to the Cowboys' division hopes. They'll also have to learn to win close games, and Brian Schottenheimer cannot have a repeat of Sunday.
But if the first three weeks have taught us anything, it's that there's not much, if anything, separating the Cowboys and Eagles.
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