Amari Cooper’s huge game leads Cowboys to OT win over Eagles and in control of NFC East

The Dallas Cowboys traded for receiver Amari Cooper at 3-4 during the bye, giving up a first-round pick to the Oakland Raiders because they were trying to save the season and win now.

Thanks to Cooper, the Cowboys are one victory away from clinching the NFC East title.

He had 13 catches for 217 yards and three touchdowns, including a 15-yard game winner in overtime to lead the Cowboys to a 29-23 victory Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Cowboys (8-5) are now 5-1 since Cooper arrived, extending their winning streak to five games while giving them the season sweep of the Eagles (6-7) and seemingly an insurmountable two-game lead with three games to play.

A giddy owner Jerry Jones compared Cooper’s impact that of defensive end Charles Haley and cornerback Deion Sanders on Super Bowl title teams of the 1990s.

“Well of course,” said Jones when asked winning now was one of the reasons behind the trade. “And we would have wanted him with the pick in the spring. But yes, we could get him now. That was the foundation of causing us to act.

“You could have him now. Have him for the season. We thought he was a dynamic player. Make no question about it. You don’t give up your 1 if you don’t. Anybody tells you that they are not looking at the reality of it.

“And not that any one guy is a difference maker. But I remember when we brought in Deion Sanders. Deion Sanders was a difference maker. Some time that skill can be a difference. I get in trouble making comparisons. All I am saying is Charles Haley, Deion Sanders and whatever you want to say (about Cooper). I am not going to make a comparison. Those difference makers can be the difference.”

Cooper also caught passes of 28 and 75 yards in the final seven minutes of the fourth quarter to rescue the offense andstruggling quarterback Dak Prescott, who had two interceptions and a lost fumble through the first three quarters but ended completing a career-high 42 of 54 passes for a career-high 455 yards and three touchdowns.

It was also the 12th-game winning drive in the fourth quarter or overtime for Prescott since 2016 and the third in the last five games.

“We’ve never wavered and we’ve never blinked,” Prescott said. “We knew the team we had in training camp, and we knew the team we had when we were 3-5. We didn’t stop. We’re never going to stop. Our backs are against the wall, and our backs are still against the wall.

“Regardless of whatever lead we have, this is a team with the mindset and mentality that wants to go one way, and that’s forward. We’re going to do that, no matter what we have to do.”

Now the Cowboys can focus on playing positioning and seeding after being left for dead at 3-5.

But that was before Cooper came to the rescue.

“I feel like that’s who I am,” Cooper said. ”I feel l can make those plays to help my team win. My goal is to be consistent and provide that type of play for my team every week. This is really a dream come true.”

Five thoughts from the game:

Dak Prescott’s bad to great day

Cowboys fans continue to have a love-hate relationship with Prescott because of his inaccuracy, inconsistency and now a penchant for turnovers. They love his competitiveness and leadership but question whether he has the tools to be a championship quarterback.

Prescott gave his doubters fuel for the fire on Sunday with arguably his worst game in the biggest of moments.

Prescott’s inefficiency as a passer is partially why the Cowboys continue to struggle in the red zone, which they did again on Sunday. The Cowboys had to settle field goals on three trips to the red zone in the first three quarters. Prescott also threw an interception in the end zone after a trip to the 23-yard line.

Then in the third quarter, he had an awful interception and a fumble that led directly to nine points by the Eagles and a tie game.

So, what does Prescott do when the house is burning down around him with first place in the NFC East on the line?

He led the Cowboys 75 yards on nine plays, largely without an injured Ezekiel Elliott and threw a perfect 28-yard touchdown pass to Amari Cooper to make the score 16-9.

Of course, Prescott had a chance to ice the game on the ensuing drive but overthrew a wide-open Michael Gallup down the right sideline.

That just set the stage for the big bomb.

After the Eagles tied the game with a touchdown pass, Prescott tossed a 75-yard touchdowns pass to Cooper with 3:01 left.

And he saved the best for last in overtime leading the Cowboys down the field and winning the game with a 15-yard pass to Cooper.

Prescott fumbled with 2:14 left in the third quarter, his third turnover of the game.

In the fourth quarter and overtime, he completed 17 of 20 passes for 234 yards and three touchdowns with a quarterback rating of 156.8.

“I just say true to myself, stay true to what I was doing and I didn’t get down on myself,” Prescott said. “I am never going to give up. I am never going to stop. When you have coaches and teammates that believe in you then no matter what goes on, no mater the fumbles or the interceptions, they have got your back. It allows me to keep my eyes forward and focus on my goal and I have been able to to that. It’s important for me to go out there and do my best.”

“He’s a warrior,” said running back Ezekiel Elliott, who had 28 carries for 113 yards and a team-high 12 catches for 79 yards. “I don’t think there’s any other way to describe him. Just the way he bounced back from the adversity, three turnovers, and the fact he still sat in the pocket, was very confident, confident in his receivers and made big plays when we needed him.”

Amari Cooper is for real

Is anyone questioning the trade for Cooper now?

The Cowboys might as well sign Cooper to a contract extension tomorrow. He has more than proved his worth after coming over in a bye week trade with the Oakland Raiders for a first-round pick.

Cooper has simply transformed the Cowboys offense and Prescott since his arrival. But his performance on Sunday against the Eagles was one for the ages.

Cooper caught 13 passes for a career-high 217 yards and three touchdowns, including touchdowns of 28 and 75 yards in the final seven minutes off the game to rescue a struggling offense and a mistake-prone Prescott and had a 15-yard game winner with 1:55 left in overtime.

It topped the eight-catch, 180-yard performance he had in a 31-23 victory against the Washington Redskins on Thanksgiving Day.

Can’t blame the Cowboys defense

The Cowboys defense did its job and lived up to its billing at the league’s fifth-ranked defense, including second in points allowed. They should surpass the Baltimore Ravens for first when the stats are compiled for this week.

The Cowboys allowed Eagles just 70 yards and four first downs in the first half. They also forced a fumble. The defense seemingly was on the verge of pitching a shutout.

However, the Cowboys offense proved to be its worst enemy. An interception and fumble by Prescott led to short field scores by the Eagles.

The Eagles tied the game with 3:12 left to go thanks to a missed touchdown pass by Prescott, who overthrew a wide-open Michael Gallup and then got a short field after the punt.

Carson Wentz, who tossed a 2-yard touchdown pass to Alshon Jeffrey in the third quarter, hit tight end Dallas Goedert for a 3-yard score.

Then things got interesting.

Following a 75-yard touchdowns pass from Prescott to Amari Cooper, Wentz hit Goedert for a seemingly matching 75-yard score and another tie.

But he was flagged for offensive pass interference for pushing off on safety Jeff Heath.

The Eagles ended up tying the game again on a pass from the Wentz to running back Darren Sproles against a tired Cowboys defense that played with its backs against the wall all night.

The Eagles rushed for just 34 yards in the game and had 222 yards passing.

Think about how good this Cowboys defense played considering all the turnovers on offense. Think about what they did to hold Wentz and the Eagles offense that featured Golden Tate and Alshon Jeffery under control.

“I thought the defense did a great job throughout the game,” Garrett said. “There are a couple of drives at the end of the game that the they’d like to have back. But give Philadelphia credit. I thought our guys scratched and clawed and made plenty of plays.”

Red Zone woes

The Cowboys simply must find a way to be better and more efficient in the red zone. It has been a problem all season and it raised its ugly head against the Eagles.

The Cowboys had a first-and-goal at the 9 in the first quarter and had to settle for a 28-yard field goal. They got as close as the 23 early in the second quarter andPrescott tossed an interception in the end zone.

Then on first-and-10 at the Eagles 15 after a beautiful 27-yard pass from Prescott to Cooper became first-and-20 thanks to holding penalty on center Joe Looney. It was compounded by another holding penalty on tackle Tyron Smith following a 15-yard by Prescott. The Cowboys to settle for a 45-yard field goal that kicker Brett Maher missed wide right.

And right on cue, the Cowboys opened the third quarter with a drive that netted a first and goal at the 5. Three plays later, Maher kicked a 21-yard goal.

If the Cowboys are truly going to make this a special season they need to improve their touchdown percentage in the red zone.

Of course, the game-winner came on a 15-yard touchdown pass from Prescott to Cooper so they won the game with a red zone score.

But that doesn’t change the larger point of what needs to be fixed going forward.

The Cowboys entered the game 26th in the league with a 48.6 percent conversion rate on scoring touchdowns in the red zone.

Looking ahead

The Cowboys are riding a five-game winning streak into the final three games of the season. It starts with a tough matchup at the Indianapolis Colts next Sunday, followed by a home game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Dec. 22 and then the season finale at the New York Giants on Dec. 30.

The Colts (7-6) are coming off a victory at the Houston Texans, ending their nine-game winning streak, while keeping their own playoff hopes alive.

The Cowboys can clinch the division title with a victory against the Colts and an Eagles loss to the Los Angeles Rams. Then they can start working on playoff seeding, possibly improving from fourth to third if they win out and surpass the Chicago Bears.

“This one statistically, logistically this one was a big thing to end up here where we are with three games to go,” Jerry Jones said. “This is a wonderful feeling. Our fans, we don’t have it at all, but this is a big step towards us winning the East and getting a shot at the playoffs.”

Who would have thought when the Cowboys were 3-5 there would be talking about them not just getting to the playoffs but worrying about seeding and positioning?

A lot has changed in five weeks.

“It means everything,” Elliott said. “Shows how tough this team is, how resilient we are and seems like right now we won’t back down, we’re going to step up to every challenge we get. That’s what we’ve done.

“It’s great we went and got this win today, but we still have three games left in the regular season and got to finish this regular season strong. I think the sky’s the limit for this team.”

This story was originally published December 9, 2018 at 7:31 PM.