By Jennifer McGraw, Sports Talk Philly Contributor 
The Philadelphia Eagles (9-7) are at home for their season closer with long-time division rival, the Dallas Cowboys (11-5). Though this game doesn’t mean much for Philadelphia, they are still able to hold Dallas out of a higher playoff seed, should the Eagles win.
Date: January 8, 2021
Where: Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA
When: 8:15 PM/Eastern
TV: ABC/ESPN
Radio: 94.1 WIP and the Philadelphia Eagles Radio Network
Series History
The Dallas Cowboys lead the all-time series 71-54.
Last Matchup
2021: Philadelphia looked like a totally different team the first time the two matched up. Dallas secured a victory early in the season, 41-21. Jalen Hurts was 25-for-39 with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Hurts was also the leading rusher with nine carries for 35 yards.
This Game at a Glance
This matchup matters more to the Cowboys than for the Eagles, however, a win for Philadelphia can help their chances of playing against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next week in the wild card.
There are a lot of factors that go into tonight’s game. The Eagles are coming into the game with more confidence than they’ve had earlier in the season, they’re pretty much healthy, and they know their strengths and weaknesses. Tonight is the opportunity for the Eagles to make a statement going forward into the playoffs. However, the Cowboys are in the same boat as well. They’re still a strong team on both sides of the ball with very minimal weaknesses, so the team is going to stick to their strong momentum they’ve had all season going into this game and going into playoffs.
Eagles Win if…
The Eagles are not the same team they were at the beginning of the season. They have an established run game, a defense that plays cleaner football, and a quarterback who gained more confidence and skills in his throwing. Philadelphia is more than capable of winning if they can pressure the Cowboys offense. With lingering injuries on Dallas’ offense, the cold weather is not going to help the team. The Eagles need to capitalize on that and apply pressure early on to take the momentum of the game.
Cowboys Win if…
The Cowboys are still very much a competent team and contender in the playoffs. Though they have the weather and injuries working against them, they know this and will work accordingly. If the Cowboys can tweak their game plan and manage the clock wisely as well as attack some of the Eagles’ weaknesses, the Cowboys can win the game.
Prediction: Eagles 28-24
The Linc is going on to be on fire tonight, so the Eagles HAVE to be on their A-game. I don’t think the Eagles are going to start slow tonight, not with everything at stake, especially with the Cowboys. That being said, it’ll be a close game, but I think the Eagles’ offense and defense are really going to step up tonight.
