Eagles Stop 'DiNucci Dream' & Hapless Cowboys, 23-9

The Philadelphia Eagles On Sunday Night Eagles Stall 'The DiNucci Dream' And The Hustling-But-Hapless Dallas Cowboys, 23-9

The fantasy took hold. It became a reality. Then the reality took hold. And it became a Halloween Weekend nightmare.

“This is everyone’s childhood dream, right?'' rookie QB Ben DiNucci said in the days leading up to what would be his first career NFL start Sunday night at Philadelphia. "The chance to be the starting quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. What more could you want?”

After the Eagles' weird 23-9 victory on national TV, "What more could you want for the 2-6 Cowboys?'' actually amounts to a painfully long list. For instance ...

*What Dallas could want would be Dak Prescott (out for the year) or Andy Dalton (out for the week) instead of DiNucci, who became a sort of "neighborhood legend'' at The Star last week with coaches and teammates raving about his "swagger'' and foot speed and arm velocity. 

Maybe some day we'll all look back on DiNucci's debut as a starter and giggle at the numbers because he'll have eventually grown into the "Tony Romo traits'' QB the Jones family has touted since the James Madison product was made a seventh-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

But right now? It's the Eagles—with a move to 3-4-1 and the firm grasp on the lead of the wobbly NFC East—who are laughing.

There was no "foot speed.'' There was no "arm velocity.'' And the "swagger'' never really allowed Dallas' offense to move the ball.

*What Dallas could want would be some semblance of protection for DiNucci, rather than a battered offensive line that saw the return from concussion of All-Pro Zack Martin ... but couldn't ask him to block four Eagles at once.

Dallas instead relied on offensive trickery, with triple reverses and Wildcat snaps and wide receivers playing quarterback. But not enough of the tricks resulted in any real tweets.

Cowboys breaking out the tricks early 🚨 @dallascowboys

📺 #DALvsPHI on NBC pic.twitter.com/WRgr2x5VxV

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) November 2, 2020

*What Dallas could want would be recognizable production from its touted offensive stars. Yes, the Cowboys have injury issues. But there are glitzy and gifted Cowboys who do not have injury issues. Their names are Ezekiel Elliott, Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup and CeeDee Lamb.

DiNucci (21 of 40 passing for 180 yards) really wasn't going to carry them; they would have to do it for him. Outside of Gallup, none of Dallas' "stars'' was productive on offense.

Injuries aren't their excuse. What is?

"I think like anything in life, the game of football will teach you humility,'' coach Mike McCarthy said afterward. "It's part of the course of the season. It's part of our challenge. I clearly believe we'll be better off in the future because of these hard times."

*What Dallas could want is a defense, that as with the aforementioned group, is not lacking in name value. ... and plays up to that every week. On Sunday, to its credit, the defense was good enough here (with four takeaways, a flood for Dallas) to cause us to wonder why this group waited two months into the season to show up.

"Clearly,'' said coach Mike McCarthy, "our defense took a huge step.''

Dallas sent a trio of defensive vets packing this week, and the guys left behind—led by Demarcus Lawrence, Aldon Smith, Randy Gregory, Leighton Vander Esch, Donovan Wilson, Xavier Woods, Anthony Brown and Trevon Diggs (the rookie with two interceptions)—gave great effort.

Odd decisions by Philly QB Carson Wentz helped. But Dallas's defense didn't quit. That counts for something. The Cowboys' defense did have some problems with running back Boston Scott and receiver Travis Fulgham, though, and they are second-team scrap-heap guys.

But Philly's scrap-heap guys are apparently better than Dallas' glitz-and-gifted guys.

*What Dallas could want is a McCarthy-led coaching staff, new though it is, that wins more than 25 percent of its games. Oh, there is a snake-bit aspect to this now, or as, McCarthy would put it, a "woe-is-me'' vibe. The Eagles' return of a strip-sack fumble by DiNucci that should've been ruled dead but was instead ruled a Philly touchdown is an example of that.

This play was WILD 😳 @Eagles

📺 #DALvsPHI on NBC pic.twitter.com/e0aq3WBHcg

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) November 2, 2020

But now?

"We took a step in the right direction in a number of areas,'' McCarthy said.

OK, But ... the Cowboys, as an organization, are in limbo when it comes to Tuesday's NFL trade deadline; owner Jerry Jones this week insisted, "I feel very strongly that we’ve got a core of really outstanding players. ... We’ve got some outstanding players. ... I love our core base.” At the same time, the franchise is starting to mumble the words "in transition,'' which reeks of excuse-making and certainly never was the 2020 plan.

Mid-week at The Star, Prescott happened to encounter DiNucci and offered a hug and a slice of advice.

"Go out there,'' Dak told the kid, "and do you.''

Ben DiNucci and his hustling-but-hapless Dallas Cowboys took the advice. They did exactly that. They "did them.'' ... and this version of what they are is no dream. It twists reality. It's an ugly nightmare.