Birds will take a bite out of bumbling ’Boys
The soap opera in Dallas never ends. The drama has shifted from running back Ezekiel Elliott’s training-camp holdout to quarterback Dak Prescott’s contract talks to coach Jason Garrett’s job status, with the latter being an annual theme.
A three-game losing streak has put Garrett in trouble again. Prescott has two touchdown passes and four interceptions during the skid, cooling off considerably since his hot start against the soft defenses of the Giants, Redskins and Dolphins.
The Cowboys’ problems have had a lot to do with injuries on the offensive line. But the Dallas defense has been surprisingly vulnerable and was just shredded by Sam Darnold in his return from mono. Darnold passed for 338 yards and two touchdowns in the Jets’ 24-22 win. Carson Wentz and the Eagles, who rank ninth in scoring offense (26.8 ppg), are capable of doing similar damage Sunday night.
Road underdogs are 41-20-1 ATS (67.2 percent) through Week 6, and divisional ’dogs are 18-11 ATS. Trends are sometimes meaningless or random, but here’s an eyeopener: Dallas is 1-18-1 ATS as a home favorite when coming off a SU and ATS loss, with Garrett responsible for 13 of those spread losses.
On the downside for the ’dog, the injury report for the Eagles is a mess, with wideout DeSean Jackson and offensive tackle Jason Peters among five key players ruled out.
THE PLAY: Eagles, +2½. (This line might move back to 3 with the Eagles’ negative injury news.)