DeMarco Murray finds no room to run against Cowboys

DeMarco Murray’s first appearance for his new team vs. his old team turned into a certified disaster in Philadelphia’s 20-10 loss to Dallas on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field.

The Cowboys swarmed Murray every time he touched the ball. He finished with 13 carries for 2 yards. In the season opener last week against Atlanta, he had eight carries for 9 yards.

“I’m not frustrated [with lack of carries],” Murray said. “I’m frustrated with losing.”

The Cowboy made Murray and the entire Eagles’ offense a nonfactor.

“They did a good job stopping the run today,” said Murray. “The offense wasn’t in sync.

“We made a couple of mistakes and they just played a better game. But I’ve got to do a better job running the ball. I’m the first one to look in the mirror. Individually and collectively, we’ve got to get better.”

Murray said Dallas’ familiarity with his running style from his four years with the Cowboys was not an issue.

“It’s a different offense. I don’t think they knew anything,” he said.

When it was over, Murray dressed slowly, knotting his tie and putting on his deep not-quite-Cowboys-colored blue suit, taking a moment to duck between a media horde to freshen up. It was the biggest hole he’d seen all day.

“It’s two games within the season. There’s a lot of games left. We have to look in the mirror and be critical of ourselves,” Murray said. “I think we have the right guys, the right coaching staff. To be successful, we have to hold each other accountable as players and fix it.”’

At one point in the game, Murray’s statistics were eight carries for minus-15 yards before he added a late 9-yard run long after the outcome had been decided.

Only when Murray got the ball in the short passing game did he exhibit the power and elusiveness that made him so dominant last season when led the league in scrimmage yards (2,261) and rushing (1,845 yards). He caught five passes for 53 yards with a long of 22 yards.

“All I’m worried about is winning,” said Murray. “I’m not worried about rushing yards and touchdowns.

“We have to find a way to get it done. We have to play better offensively.”

His best play came when he hurdled Jeff Heath on a 22-yard swing pass. The Eagles got 15 more yards when kicker Dan Bailey was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct.

“He grabbed my arm,” Murray said.

Coach Chip Kelly, who signed Murray in free agency for $42 million over five years, said the running game as a whole wasn’t good.

“There was too much penetration up front. I don’t think any of our running backs had a chance to get anything started,” Kelly said.

Murray said he wished Tony Romo the best after watching the Dallas quarterback go down with a broken left collarbone.

“Obviously, you want him to be all right,” said Murray, “He’s a great player.”

This story was originally published September 20, 2015 at 9:29 PM with the headline "DeMarco Murray finds no room to run against Cowboys."