Dallas Cowboys lead Eagles 20-17 at halftime; playoff push is still possible
For the Dallas Cowboys, Sunday’s action was all about two sides of the same pancake.
They needed to beat the Philadelphia Eagles and have the Washington Football Team lose to the Carolina Panthers to keep their playoffs alive.
A Cowboys win and Washington loss allows the Cowboys to head into the season finale against the New York Giants with a chance to win the NFC East title with a win and a Washington loss to the Eagles on Jan. 3.
Both games on Sunday are being played at the same time so Cowboys fans were scoreboard watching while their team was trying to take care of business on the field.
Carolina did it’s part early to help the Cowboys, jumping out to a 20-3 halftime lead over Washington.
The Cowboys, however, were slow out of the gate, falling behind 14-3 in the first quarter.
Rookie quarterback Jalen Hurts directed a 75-yard scoring drive on the opening possession of the game. Mile Saunders scored on a 4-yard run.
And then after the Cowboys got a 35-yard field goal, Hurts threw an 81-yard bomb to DeSean Jackson, who beat cornerback Chido Awuzie and then somersaulted into the end zone.
The Cowboys responded with a 21-yard touchdown pass from Andy Dalton to Michael Gallup, narrowing the score to 14-10.
The two teams then traded field goals. A 20-yard kick from Cowboys kicker Greg Zuerlein was followed by a 38-yard field goal from Jake Elliott.
However, within the last minute of the half, Dalton hit Gallup with a 19-yard strike and then a 7-yard TD toss to take the 20-17 halftime lead.
Dalton and Gallup are having a day so far.
Dalton’s 224 yards passing at halftime are more than has had in five of his seven previous starts.
Gallup has six catches 121 yards to go along with the two touchdowns.
This story was originally published December 27, 2020 at 5:05 PM.
