The Dallas Cowboys are still tinkering with their defense. And Stephen Jones remains confident in the coaching staff. But the Cowboys face a make-or-break prime-time game against Tanner McKee’s disheveled Eagles.
These struggling 2-4 teams meet on Monday Night Football. It’s a do-or-forget-the-season game for the Eagles, too. However, they could win and still have little chance of winning the division. Their offense is that bad.
But for the Cowboys, they can’t afford another division loss. It’s not so much a numbers game. Even at 2-5, they’re still in the NFC East title chase, believe it or not. However, this would be a confidence-zapping loss.
What’s going on with the Cowboys?
They just haven’t been able to mesh defense with offense. However, edge rusher Rashan Gary said he sees light at the end of the tunnel, according to a post on X by Jon Machota.
Cowboys OLB Rashan Gary is not frustrated or angry. He believes the defense is headed in the right direction.
“I’m excited, man,” Gary said. “Can’t be angry. This game of football teaches a whole lot of life lessons. Another great thing about this game is you can lose one week and you come back to the next week and be on top of the world. So, just trying to chase that feeling, chase consistency once again, but no reason to be mad.”
Head coach Brian Schottenheimer is also fighting through the frustrating start to the season, according to another Machota post.
“I'm focusing on the process of turning this around for myself and the players,” Schottenheimer said. “Certainly not good enough. We're disappointed with where we're at. We know we need to play better. We know we can play better. I think we have the right guys to do that.”
The best thing right now for the Cowboys is the wretchedly bad NFC East, according to The Athletic.
“It gives me a lot of promise,” co-owner Jerry Jones said. “I see opportunity, and I see it legitimately because I know the things that we have the potential to do, both with our talent, both with our schemes, adjustments. I’ve seen us do (it) in the spring. The kinds of adjustments that you might want to do between the halves.
“I’m frustrated. And I’m disappointed that we’re sitting here with this record. But I sure know (what) we have in place. It’s not internal, it’s from within the (looking in the) mirror, is what everybody’s got to look for. And I’m not just talking about mentality. … I’m talking about technical, and it’s all those coaching terms. You want to talk about all the terms you heard during training camp. It’s not a cliché.”
What does the matchup against the Eagles look like?
First, the Cowboys defense has a chance to look really good on Monday night. The Eagles offense doesn’t scare anybody. But offensive coordinator Sean Mannion said it’s not because of McKee, according to The Athletic. The young quarterback had a shaky 2026 debut against a below-average Panthers defense.
“Tanner’s a good fit for us,” Mannion said. “I think he’s gotten better and better really going back from April to now. I think he’s really sharp mentally. He’s accurate, (and) he gets the ball out of his hands quickly. I think he does all the things that you ask of a quarterback in terms of his pre-snap operation, and being able to use his cadence [and] being able to handle things at the line of scrimmage if you need adjustments.
“I think Tanner has done everything that you can do in that backup capacity to be as prepared as possible. He’s super engaged at practice, super engaged in the meetings. I think having the full slate of reps will help him grow more and more comfortable going into each week.”
The Eagles could get running back Saquon Barkley back in the mix against the Cowboys. That would help some. But there are other issues, according to delawareonline.com.
Article Continues Below“You look at a lot of the things that we need to improve, and I think they're totally fixable,” Mannion said. “It's a double-edged sword, right? You look at [the results], and you can get frustrated by it. You can also look at that and put a silver lining on it and say, ‘Man, if we just handle our simple stuff, we're going to yield a better result.”
What must the Cowboys do to win?
It’s a pretty simple formula. The Cowboys need to run the ball first. They need to establish five-plus-yard gains early. That will keep the Eagles from going whole hog on the passing game. It wouldn’t hurt for the Cowboys to run the ball in an early third-and-four-type situation.
If they convert, they’ve planted a game-long seed in the Eagles' defense. If they fail, fourth down might still be an option depending on field position. Maybe the best time for it would be in field goal range. If the run play fails, you still get an automatic three from Brandon Aubrey.
Second, the Cowboys need to establish George Pickens with a deep ball. They need to gun it with two shot plays in the first quarter. Make the Eagles defend deep. In fact, the Cowboys’ first play from scrimmage should be a home run ball to Pickens.
And thirdly, the Cowboys need to get after McKee. They need to blitz him hard. Cover the receivers man to man and pressure McKee into oblivion. They might give up a 30-yard play or even a touchdown. But they’ve got to get after him.