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- The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Dallas Cowboys 24-20 in the opening game of the NFL season.
- Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter was kicked out by spitting out before his first play from scrimmage.
- The game was delayed over an hour due to lightning in this area.
Philadelphia – The start of the 2025 NFL season.
Thursday night’s meeting with the reigning champion Philadelphia Eagles and NFC East Rivals at Lincoln Financial Field included an hour-plus weather delay that pushed the final result through Friday morning, with the announcement of the championship banner, Pro Bowlers being discharged before the first play from the scrimmage. One of the league’s biggest stars, the iconic Cowboys star was stripped of Mika Parsons after being shocked by the Green Bay Packers last week.
What is the above result? The Eagles won 24-20 in what unfolds as an incredibly tough outcome, and Philadelphia was favoured to the game for more than a touchdown.
This is just the first of the league’s 272 regular season games. But this unique and expected expected deserves a unique breakdown of winners and losers, so we’re going here.
winner
Jalen Hurts and Dak Prescott
Despite being quarterbacks for two of the league’s most prominent franchises, the duo has been largely out of headlines in recent months. Hurts essentially does more guys, saying less – and the Super Bowl 59 MVP is delivered efficiently in the air, running through pairs of scores. His steady influence was evident even on a scattered night.
Dallas’ summer Parson’s Saga largely masked Prescott’s return from a serious hamstring injury that cost him the final nine games of the 2024 season. However, he made a comfortable appearance on Dallas’ attack. Dallas’ offense didn’t struggle to move the ball on the defense of Philadelphia, which ranked in the league’s best position in 2024… DT Jalen Carter is on the field (more on later). And while he managed to ding Prescott because he didn’t come up with a key sequence in the fourth quarter, those who were supposed to play for him didn’t.
It’s obviously one game, but it’s always a good sign when the first week is adjacent to the postseason.
The Cowboys Run the Game
Ranked 27th a year ago, Dallas averaged 100.3 yards on the ground per game, showing signs of encouragement with 119 yards and 5.4 clips on Thursday. Recently signed Javonte Williams has only run through multiple TDs for the second time in his five-year career. However, RB Miles Sanders’ third quarter fumble was a murderer.
Mother Nature
And you thought soccer was an all-weather sport. A lightning strike delayed the game for 63 minutes proximal to Lincoln’s financial field at 4:44 to play in the third quarter. In particular, no points have been recorded after a halt. Coincidentally, when the Eagles last opened their NFL season seven years ago following their Super Bowl 52 victory, the start of their Week 1 game against the Atlanta Falcons was almost an hour late due to bad weather. Even crazy? When the Cowboys were in Pennsylvania a year ago, kickoffs in their fifth week of game against the Steelers, albeit in Pittsburgh, were pushed until 10pm ET due to bad weather.
Boyz II Men
The men in Philadelphia singing the national anthem, so that they alone can do it? And let go of Eagles legends Brian Dawkins, Jerome Brown and Reggie White? perfection.
loser
Jalen Carter
The Eagles’ best defensive player didn’t even last a single snap. Dallas was kicked out following a kickoff to lean in during the injury timeout and spit out Prescott’s jersey. Carter was immediately escorted from the field by Eagles security chief “Big Dom” disandro. Whatever benefit Philly had been that he didn’t have to play against Parsons, with De Brandon Graham’s retirement, the loss of an anchor for a unit that lost several players from the front seven during free agency was offset by at least a large portion. It’s also worth wondering if Carter might miss out on more time if the league decides to stop further.
The Cowboys perform defense
Not only did Dallas move the ball to the ground, it was ploughed to the other side of the ball – and it had to be concerned with owner Jerry Jones given his fair desire to stop the run. The Eagles stacked 158 yards and all three TDs on the ground.
Georgia Bulldog
The only ‘Daugue’ that had a rough night was not Carter. Eagles GM Howie Roseman has collected football players from Athens and has eight former UGA players on the roster, including six active in a 53-man unit. And, without a doubt, the championship DNA has definitely been carried over. This is clear from the Georgia man’s responsibilities for the Philadelphia Super Bowl 59 crown. But not only did Carter get kicked out Thursday night, but Orb Nolan Smith received a 15-yard penalty for provocation and rampage. DT Jordan Davis and CB Kelee Ringo had negligible influences, while Olb Azeez Ojulari was inactive.
Man wipe
The newly announced “presentation sponsor” of “Tush Push” did not offer much. The Eagles didn’t use play until the fourth quarter and didn’t need it to enter the end zone.
Seriously Smith
The Dallas defensive tackle, the first round pick in 2023, was essentially a healthy scratch. It’s a pretty bad development given Jones’ new obsession with stopping the run in the aftermath of the Parsons trade. During the broadcast, NBC analyst Chris Collinsworth said “it’s as close to being cut as possible.” And if it’s a fateful Smith who had little impact in his first two seasons, don’t be surprised if he’s facing him right away.
Philadelphia Secondary
Apparently suffering from Carter’s absence, he was found guilty of multiple pass interference violations, and S Reed Blankenship almost beheaded Cowboys Te Jake Ferguson in the end zone.
AJ Brown
Is there only one star receiver in Philadelphia? Eagles manager Nick Cirianni believed in Dallas’ defense and game flow to limit Dallas’ defense and Brown’s stat line, but we have to wonder how healthy his hamstrings are in fact. Still, Brown’s 8-yard grab in the final two minutes helped the Eagles absorb the victory.
Cedee Rum
Unlike Brown, his fantasy owner is pretty pleased after Dallas’ top pass catcher gets caught up in seven balls for 110 yards. However, his multiple drops really cost Prescott and the Cowboys stretching.
Jerry Jones
After stealing a considerable number of LS from fans to handle Parsons’ contract negotiations before throwing the towel, it was Jones to take another in the game his team stole in the debut of rookie head coach Brian Schottenheimer.
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