Cowboys Dismantle Eagles In Final Playoff Warmup: NFL Live Game Log

We live-blog your Dallas Cowboys in a Saturday Night Live special at Philly ...

The regular season finale - in an unprecedented Week 18 - is finally here.

The Dallas Cowboys are visiting the Philadelphia Eagles tonight with a chance to finish undefeated against the NFC East for the first time since 1998. A win would also potentially help the Cowboys' playoff seeding while stopping the Eagles' four-game winning streak.

There was a question, entering the day, as to whether the Cowboys and Eagles' starters will take the field in Philadelphia, as both teams have clinched playoff spots. For the Eagles, quarterback Jalen Hurts (ankle) is listed as ready but is sitting out. The Cowboys' plan is for starters to play: both quarterback Dak Prescott and running back Ezekiel Elliott have stated they will go.

A late-season surge makes the Eagles one of the hottest teams in the NFL. After falling short to the Arizona Cardinals last Sunday, the Cowboys could use some positive momentum heading into the postseason. How hard the Cowboys push for a higher seed vs. rest for key players remains to be seen.

"We are going play to win the game. That is our approach," coach Mike McCarthy said. "That is the best thing for us. We want to make sure we take care of business on our end. And playing well in the weather in Philadelphia will serve us well.”

Well, at least, that was going to be the approach ...

Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images

Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Stay with CowboysSI.com all evening as we offer constant updates on the game right here!

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FINAL: Cowboys 51, Eagles 26

FOURTH QUARTER:

TOUCHDOWN COWBOYS: Clement runs up the middle for three yards to the Eagles eight. Prescott finds Clement for eight yards for a touchdown, making this the first game in Prescott's career he has thrown five touchdown passes. Zuerlein hits the extra point making the score 37-20. The Dallas scoring drive went 84 yards in 14 plays and took 6:25 off the clock.

Philadelphia takes the ball at the 29 to start their drive. Gainwell runs for seven and Minshew is sacked again for nine yards bringing up a fourth down.

After the punt, Cooper Rush enters the game for the Cowboys, and on second-and-8, Clement runs up the middle for 38 yards to the Philadelphia 12.

TOUCHDOWN COWBOYS: Ito Smith runs up the middle for four yards for the touchdown. Zuerlein's extra point is good pushing the Dallas lead to 44-20. The scoring drive went five plays, 52 yards, and took 2:28 off the clock.

INTERCEPTION COWBOYS: Minshew passes to the left side to Arcega-Whiteside but it's off his fingers and into the hands of Leighton Vander Esch for the Cowboys' first turnover of the game.

TOUCHDOWN COWBOYS: JaQuan Hardy runs off right tackle for 22 yards for the touchdown. The Zuerlein kick is good for a score of 51-20 with 8:36 left in the game. The scoring drive went three plays and 26 yards, taking 1:32 off the clock after the turnover.

Philadelphia takes over from the 25. Minshew hits Watkins for 112 to the Eagles 34 and Gainwell carries for three. Reagor carries around the left end for seven and is pushed out of bounds at the Philadelphia 44.

On fourth-and-4 from the Dallas 47, Gainwell runs for nine for a first down. 

TOUCHDOWN EAGLES: Minshew hits Watkins in the right flat for 36 yards for a touchdown. The two-point attempt is unsuccessful, for a score of 51-26 with 1:50 left in the game. The Eagles scoring drive went 14 plays, 75 yards, and took 6: 46 off the clock.

The Cowboys take possession after the kick at their own 25 and Rush kneels to run the clock out.

THIRD QUARTER:

The Cowboys begin with the ball from the 12 after a holding call on the return.

Elliott carries for six to start the drive, before being stuffed on second down for a loss of one. On third-and-4 Prescott finds Elliott for three yards prompting the first punt of the night by Bryan Anger.

After a block in the back call on the Eagles on the punt, they'll start with the ball at their own 28. 

Gainwell carries for two, Huntley carries for six, bringing up a third-and-2 before Minshew scrambles ahead for the first down. Huntley then carries for 13, then four for a second-and-6 at the Dallas 48. Huntley again gets the carry for three yards bringing up a third-and-3. Minshew then throws incomplete to Jackson for fourth down. The Eagles attempt the conversion and are successful on a Watkins catch for 11 yards to the Cowboys 34.

Minshew finds Reagor for seven and Watkins for four moving the ball to the Dallas 22, but Minshew misses Reagor on third-and 10. 

FIELD GOAL EAGLES: Elliott kicks a 40-yard field goal capping a 15-play, 53-yard drive that took 6:41 off the clock. With 5:58 remaining in the third quarter it's 30-20 Dallas.

Dallas takes over at its own 18 on the kickoff as Cowboys reserve safety Tyler Coyle is injured on the play.

Elliott carries for four yards then five yards and on third-and-1 he carries up the middle for four yards for a first down. It's been 11 games since Elliott has run for 100 yards in a game. He's currently at 75 with 4:00 left in the third quarter.

On a third-and-7, Prescott finds Wilson for 37 yards to the Philadelphia 31.

Clement carries for four, Elliott carries for five, and then again for three for a first down, putting him over 1,000 yards for the season.

Prescott finds Clement for five yards to the Eagles 11 to end the quarter.

SECOND QUARTER:

On second-and-10 Minshew finds Jackson for 13 yards and the officials tack on another 15 yards for a roughing the passer call on Donovan Wilson making the line of scrimmage the Dallas 14.

On second-and-9 Minshew finds Gainwell on a screen but the Cowboys' defense reads it perfectly for a loss of eight yards. Minshew finds Gainwell again for one yard  on third-and-17 bringing up fourth down.

FIELD GOAL EAGLES: Jake Elliott is good from 38 ending the Eagles scoring drive that took 10-plays, 44-yards, and 4:13 off the clock. The game is tied at 10 with 12:24 remaining in the half.

Dallas takes possession from the 26 after the kickoff and Elliott runs for no gain on first down. Dallas calls a timeout to avoid a delay of game penalty after getting to the line late.

Out of the timeout, Prescott finds Lamb for 31 yards to the Eagles 43.

That was NIIIICCCCEEEEE, @_CeeDeeThree❕

📺: #DALvsPHI on ESPN/ABC pic.twitter.com/frTavXBHIT

— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) January 9, 2022

Elliott carries for six yards and Philadelphia challenges the play arguing that the ball came out before he was down, but the play was upheld on the field making it second-and-4 Dallas from the Eagles 37. The Eagles are charged with a timeout. Eagles' coach Nick Sirianni is now 5-2 in challenges this season.

TOUCHDOWN COWBOYS: On third-and-5 Prescott finds Wilson for 24 yards for a touchdown, ending a seven-play, 74-yard drive that took 4:17 off the clock. After the Zuerlein kick, Cowboys lead 17-10 with 8:07 left in the half.

Philadelphia takes the ball from its own 25 and Reagor carries for three yards, Minshew scrambles for two yards, then Minshew finds Quez Watkins for 22 yards to the Dallas 48.

Huntley then carries off the left end for 18 yards to the Dallas 30 on first-and-10. 

Minshew throws to Jackson for six yards to the Dallas 24, but on second-and-4, an Eagles holding call stalls the drive momentarily and moves the ball back to the Dallas 34.

On second-and-14 Minshew finds Richard Rodgers for nine yards to the 25, bringing up a third-and-five. Gainwell carries for 18 yards to the Cowboys seven for first-and-goal.

TOUCHDOWN EAGLES: Gainwell carries off the right end for seven yards for the touchdown. The Eagles scoring drive went 10-plays, 75-yards, and took 4:27 off the clock. The Elliott kick was good for the 17-17 tie with 3:40 left in the half. 

Dallas takes over with just 3:40 to play in the half and takes over at the 25. 

After a Prescott incompletion, Elliott carries for 26 yards to the Philadelphia 49. Clement carries for seven and seven on consecutive plays for a first down for Dallas at the Eagles 35.

Prescott connects with Cooper for seven yards at the two-minute warning.

On the first play out of the timeout Prescott finds Cooper for 26 yards to the Eagles two yard line. 

TOUCHDOWN COWBOYS: Prescott finds Dalton Schultz for two yards in the right flat for the touchdown. The Dallas scoring drive went eight plays, 75-yards, and took 1:55 off the clock. Zuerlein missed the extra point, his eighth miss of the season on extra point attempts, for a score of 23-17 with 1:45 remaining in the half.

The Cowboys have scored a touchdown in 11 straight red zone visits. 

Philadelphia takes over from their own 20 after the kick, and Gainwell runs for nine yards on first down. A Cowboys penalty moves the ball to the Philadelphia 35 before the Cowboys defense strikes again for a 13-yard sack of Minshew by Demarcus Lawrence.

The Cowboys call a timeout with 27 seconds remaining before the Eagles punt, and the Arryn Siposs punt goes just 21 yards to the Eagles 43 with 24 seconds remaining.

Prescott finds Wilson again for 28 yards to the Eagles 15 and Dallas takes its final timeout with 17 seconds in the half.

Prescott finds Blake Jarwin at the Eagles nine yard line and he goes out of bounds to stop the clock. Prescott missed Jarwin on first-and-10.

TOUCHDOWN COWBOYS: Prescott finds Schultz for nine yards for the touchdown after a short field coming off the shanked Eagles punt on the last possession. It's a four-play, 43-yard scoring drive taking 19 seconds off the clock. Zuerlein hits the extra point giving the Cowboys the 30-17 lead with just 5 seconds left in the half.

The Cowboys get the ball to start the second half.

FIRST QUARTER:

The Eagles begin their drive from the 25 after the touchback and start off with Minshew through the air for an incompletion. On third-and-9 Minshew connects with DaVonta Smith for 25 yards inside Cowboys territory.

Kenneth Gainwell rushes for 10 yards to the Dallas 10. Philadelphia is moving the ball with relative ease on the ground to start the game. First-and-10 inside the Cowboys 10, Gainwell goes for four yards, and Richard Rodgers catches a pass to the two-yard line.

TOUCHDOWN EAGLES: On 3rd-and-goal, Minshew connects with Tyree Jackson for three yards for the touchdown capping off an 11-play, 75-yard drive that took 5:19 off the clock. After the Jake Elliott extra point, the Eagles lead 7-0 with 9:41 left in the first quarter.

Dallas starts its first drive from the 25 and Ezekiel Elliott carries for four yards before a false start penalty by Tyler Biadasz. Dak Prescott then connects with Amari Cooper for six yards to the Cowboys 30.

Cedrick Wilson catches a Prescott pass for 16 yards to the Dallas 46 and Prescott finds CeeDee Lamb for 13 yards to the Philadelphia 41.

On First-and-10 Elliott carries four yards. Prescott misses Wilson on an inside slant and threw dangerously behind Wilson as the ball was tipped in the air but fell to the ground incomplete.

Prescott picks up 14 yards on a pass to Cooper to the Eagles 20. Corey Clement then picks up five to the Eagles 15.

TOUCHDOWN COWBOYS: Prescott passes to Wilson for 15 yards for the touchdown. The scoring drive was 10-plays, 75-yards, and took 4:33 off the clock. The Greg Zuerlein extra point was good for the 7-7 tie. 

With 486 points this season, this is now the highest-scoring Cowboys team ever.

Philadelphia's second possession starts at the 25 and Minshew gets sacked on the first play by Dorrance Armstrong and Trysten Hill. On third-and-11 Minshew throws incomplete to Jackson for the Cowboys' defense's first three-and-out of the game.

The Cowboys take the ball from their own 44 and Prescott finds Cooper for 27 yards to the Eagles 29. On first-and-10 Prescott gets sacked for 2 yards before a Connor Williams holding call takes the ball back to the 40 yard line for 2nd-and-21.

Prescott gets the penalty yardage back on a pass to Dalton Schultz to the 30. On 3rd-and 11 Prescott is under pressure and has to throw the ball away causing fourth down from the Eagles 30.

FIELD GOAL COWBOYS: Greg Zuerlein is good from 48 giving the Cowboys a 10-7 lead with 1:37 left in the first quarter. The Dallas scoring drive was five plays, 26-yards, and took 1:57 off the clock.

The Eagles' Jason Huntley returns the kickoff 35 yards to the Eagles 36. Minshew finds Smith for 12 yards to the Philadelphia 48, then on second down, it's  Minshew to Smith for four more yards to the Dallas 48.

On third-and-six Minshew completes to Gainwell for seven yards to the Cowboys 41, ending the first quarter.

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The Cowboys won the toss and deferred to the second half.

7:05 p.m. CT: Dallas takes the field to a shower of boos from the Philly faithful.

6:45 p.m. CT: The receivers and running backs are ready!

Receivers & RBs Ready 🙌#DALvsPHI | #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/oOaSvHP3iN

— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) January 9, 2022

5:55 CT: HURTS INACTIVE - Cowboys QB Dak Prescott is active tonight vs. the Eagles. The Dallas players not in uniform are CB Trevon Diggs, RB Tony Pollard, NT Quinton Bohanna, WR Simi Fehoko, and No. 3 QB Will Grier.

And not playing tonight for Philly? Healthy scratch Jalen Hurts. Gardner Minshew will be Philly's QB of record.

Other Eagles missing include DT Fletcher Cox and TE Dallas Goedert, RB Miles Sanders, OT Lane Johnson, and CB Darius Slay.

Also, Cowboys captains for tonight at Eagles: WR Noah Brown (offense), LB Keanu Neal (defense), and TE Sean McKeon (special teams).

Today's quick facts at the Philadelphia Eagles: pic.twitter.com/W4Coo1lGxQ

— Dallas Cowboys Public Relations (@DallasCowboysPR) January 9, 2022

4P RB ADDS - Ezekiel Elliott hint? The Cowboys called up two RBs from the Jayvee. Story here.

IMPORTANT INJURY UPDATE: Gigantic news as Dallas’ tremendous rookie linebacker Micah Parsons has been moved off the roster due to COVID and will miss the final regular-season game. Fellow starters Tyron Smith and Anthony Brown were also moved to the COVID list on Thursday.

Oh, and starting corners Trevon Diggs and Anthony Brown are sick and not on the trip. Tony Pollard and Jayron Kearse are not on the trip. And ... we suspect the Cowboys are re-thinking their initial "play-to-win'' plan.

FUN FACT: Prescott (21,788) needs 172 passing yards to pass Danny White (21,959) for the fourth-most career passing yards in Cowboys history.

RECORDS: The Dallas Cowboys (11-5) at Philadelphia Eagles (9-7)

ODDS: With the latest COVID news, the Cowboys entered as 5-point favorites vs. the Eagles. The over/under total is 43 points.

BETTING TRENDS: In Dallas' 16 games this year, it has 12 wins against the spread. Philadelphia's 16 games have gone over the point total nine times (56 percent).

GAME TIME: Saturday, Jan. 8, 7:10 p.m. CT

LOCATION: Lincoln Financial Field - Philadelphia, PA.