Cowboys 29, Eagles 23

Doug Pederson made bad play calls in the fourth quarter.

Wendell Smallwood fumbled in the fourth quarter.

Carson Wentz threw it to Trey Burton on a crucial third down in the fourth quarter.

The Eagles allowed a 90-yard touchdown drive — from a quarterback who, to that point in the game, had looked like a rookie in the worst way — in the fourth quarter.

For three-plus quarters, it looked like the Eagles had done enough to keep the high-flying Cowboys in check and roll to a fifth win on the season.

Instead, a brutal fourth quarter from Pederson in the play-calling department, and the Eagles writ large in the playmaking department, doomed the Eagles in a crucial matchup against the best team in the NFC East.

The Eagles lost to the Cowboys, 29-23, in overtime on Sunday. The Cowboys scored a touchdown on the opening drive of the extra period.

It was a very bad end of the game for Pederson, who stuck to throwing passes behind the line of scrimmage and handcuffing his gunslinger of a quarterback. He decided not to go for a field goal from the 36-yard line in the fourth quarter, despite the fact that Caleb Sturgis had already booted a 55-yard field goal earlier in the evening. And he repeatedly put the offense in situations to stall out, a trait you’d rather your head coach not have.

And Jim Schwartz’s defense, stout for the majority of the evening, failed to stop Prescott and the Cowboys’ offense in a crucial spot late in the fourth quarter. He had plenty of time in the pocket, and the Eagles’ secondary couldn’t contain Cole Beasley or eventual touchdown-scorer Dez Bryant.

In short, the Eagles deserved what they ended up with Sunday night. They made enough mistakes to span two outings, but amassed them all in one very, very important game.

A quick stat recap of Carson Wentz vs. Dak Prescott, I:

CARSON WENTZ
33 of 42, 203 yards, 1 TD

DAK PRESCOTT
19 of 39, 287 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT