ARLINGTON, Texas – The Dallas Cowboys’ 2025 season was on life support after falling behind 21-0 with 11:32 left in the first half on Sunday.
However, Dallas’ defense shut out the Philadelphia Eagles (8-3), who entered Week 12 as the NFC’s No. 1 seed, the rest of the way, which allowed the offense to rip off 24 consecutive points en route to a 24-21 win — tying a franchise record for the biggest comeback in the process.
How monumental was this victory? Dallas owner and general manager Jerry Jones felt it was future-altering weeks after Jones decided to be a buyer at the trade deadline by acquiring All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and veteran linebacker Logan Wilson.
That support, along with linebacker DeMarvion Overshown and cornerback Shavon Revel returning from injury, gave quarterback Dak Prescott (354 yards, two touchdowns, one interception and one rushing touchdown), wide receiver George Pickens (146 yards receiving, one touchdown, nine catches on nine targets) and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (75 yards receiving on four catches) a boost that could carry them the rest of the season and beyond.
“This day had such meaning for our season. This day had such meaning for our future. Earlier, this year, we had a chance to go down a couple of roads. We took one of the roads, and we did it because we were fortunate to have Dak [Prescott] in the future. But the other road, we needed to do some recalibrating,” Jones said postgame. “Fortunately, we were able to do that earlier than I thought after we couldn’t make the trade we wanted [trading for Williams] in training camp, but we got it [the deal for Williams] back. We got a defense, really really impressive tonight. … I think we can look forward to this kind of solidness in our defense, but … what you’re seeing on defense is different than what we would have seen coming out of training camp.”
Fresh off a 33-16 Week 11 “Monday Night Football” road win at the Las Vegas Raiders, Dallas had legitimate momentum entering Week 12. The Eagles entered Week 12 with a league-average offense (23.4 points per game, 16th in the NFL) with wide receiver A.J. Brown making sure the world knew he’s not happy with Philadelphia’s passing offense. Early on, instead of capitalizing on the Eagles zombie-walking of late, the Cowboys continuously made self-inflicted wounds that dug a hole that was near-impossible to climb out from.
“I don’t know when we’ve ever, early, worked any harder to have a team hand us a loss, but to this team’s credit, I’m so proud of that defense, and when you really look at what that defense helped overcome for us, you’ve got to be excited about what we’ve got out here,” Jones said. … “In four days, we’ll be playing again, and they [the players] can’t wait. I can’t wait to play again.”
Here’s a look at the Cowboys’ laundry list of unforced errors:
- Prescott couldn’t connect on a fourth-and-3 checkdown throw to running back Javonte Williams after he missed locating an open Jake Ferguson up the seam after Eagles linebacker Zack Baun fell down attempting to cover Dallas’ tight end.
- Cowboys wide receiver Ryan Flournoy missed blocking a punt and then linebacker Marist Liufau was called for roughing the kicker after Dallas’ defense got a stop.
- After the Liufau penalty, edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney was called offsides on a third-and-10 in which Hurts threw an incomplete pass. On the next play, Hurts hit Brown over the middle for a 21-yard gain. Hurts finished the drive with a 7-yard rushing touchdown to put Philadelphia up 14-0.
- Wide receiver KaVontae Turpin fumbled without being touched thanks to getting caught up by the turf monster, and then the Eagles marched down the field on six-play drive to tush push Hurts into the end zone to put the Eagles up 21-0.
- Prescott threw an end zone interception on a target to Lamb that Eagles safety Reed Blankenship picked off on a diving grab.
- Kicker Brandon Aubrey missed a 51-yard field goal, just his second miss (18-for-20) of the entire season.
- Dallas failed to score on third-and-goal and fourth-and-goal from the 1.
Plus, the Cowboys’ defense functioned as quarterback Jalen Hurts’ and the Eagles’ offense’s slumpbuster early. Brown had spoken about how people who have him in fantasy football should get rid of him because of year-long struggles for Hurts and the Eagles offense to find him. Hurts had no problem finding Brown early, hitting him for three completions, 31 yards and a touchdown on his first three targets on the opening drive. He finished the game with 110 yards and a touchdown on eight catches. Hurts was also able to connect deep with wide receiver DeVonta Smith on a 41-yard bomb down the right sideline, and Smith finished with 89 yards receiving on six catches.
What really made the difference defensively was how Dallas was able to bottle up 2024 NFL Offensive Player of the Year running back Saquon Barkley. Barkley had just 22 yards rushing on 10 carries, including just 11 yards after Philadelphia went up 21-0. That’s why Jones made the trade for Williams: he entered Week 12 with a 47% run stop win rate, which led all NFL defensive tacklers per Next Gen Stats. Williams himself said postgame that one person can’t change everything, but that’s exactly what’s happened since his arrival.
“We had to have something at this level of excellence on run stopping that he brought to the table. We had to have that,” Jones said. “We didn’t need to give up pass rush to get it, and we knew since before we left training camp that he could do that.”
“Just appreciating the way he’s [Williams] coming in with the energy and confidence, speaking life into the defense, into the D-line room,” Cowboys defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa said. “It’s very much needed and very much appreciated.”
The Cowboys overcame all of the errors to steal a victory from the jaws of defeat because their offense was able to get going once their defense began slowing things down on the other side of the ball. Both Pickens and Lamb made catches of over 40 yards to reignite Dallas’ offense. Pickens caught the first Cowboys touchdown of the day, a 1-yarder in the front of the end zone off a play-action pass, at the end of the first half. Prescott then followed up that score with a 4-yard play-action touchdown pass on a play-action rollout to tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford, the first touchdown of his career, before scrambling and diving in for the game-tying score from 8 yards out with 11:40 left to play.
Cowboys edge rusher Sam Williams forced a Barkley fumble at the end of a checkdown catch-and-run, and Dallas linebacker Kenneth Murray recovered the loose ball for the takeaway. Dallas had an opportunity to take their first lead of the day with 7:38 left to play. However, a holding penalty by rookie right guard Tyler Booker derailed the drive.
Then, Dallas was immediately gifted another shot with a first-and-goal from the 7 after a fumble on the Eagles’ ensuing punt return was recovered by Cowboys long snapper Trent Sieg. After reaching the 1, the Cowboys turned it over on downs following Prescott’s consecutive incompletions to Lamb and Ferguson. The third-and-goal pass to Lamb could have and should have been a catch as he had the ball on his forearm before it popped up and fell harmlessly to the turf. Instead of kicking a chip shot field goal for the lead, coach Brian Schottenheimer went for the touchdown, and his decision backfired.
Yet, the Cowboys still got the football back with a chance to win the game after Odighizuwa came up with a third-down sack of Hurts. They got the football back on their own 27 in a 21-21 game with 1:35 left to play and two timeouts. Pickens’ catch-and-run of 24 yards down to the Eagles’ 22 put Dallas in a prime position to line up Aubrey for the game-winning field goal from 42 yards out, which he drilled through the uprights.
Dallas has the offensive firepower with Prescott, Williams, Lamb and Pickens to move the football up and down the field. Defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus’ zone-heavy scheme is taking hold with the Cowboys’ personnel being upgraded. The Cowboys find themselves in the hunt for postseason football for another week.
“It was needed. Never blinked, never had any doubts and 1000% believed from the beginning. … We believed long enough and got ourselves back in this game and now you have to know. That’s just a testimony to this brotherhood, sticking together,” Prescott said. “Going down 21 to the defending Super Bowl champs in a division game is tough. I’m sure there were fans thinking this game was over, and they’re [the Eagles] were going to run off.
“Defense, I can’t give them enough credit. We wouldn’t have won this game without the opportunities they gave us over and over again. … It was just a continuation of what we did last week and just sticking together. Like I said, it’s about the brotherhood. Once again, we’re always going to do it for Marshawn Kneeland and he was felt tonight. I’m sure he was right there playing alongside with us.”
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