JUST CHILL: 10 thoughts from the Cowboys-Eagles game

1. Jerry Jones made the quote of the year following the Cowboys’ 20-10 victory against the Philadelphia Eagles. While describing the feelings when quarterback Tony Romo went down with a fractured collarbone, Jones said “I felt lower than a crippled cricket’s (butt).” One question. Who spends time analyzing the depth of a cricket’s bottom let alone that of crippled cricket? But that’s simile likely never heard before.

2. Tony Romo’s injury is devastating. There is no getting around it. The Cowboys making a Super Bowl run hinged on Romo staying healthy and productive for 16 games. Now the Cowboys’ season and playoff hopes will be determined by the play of Brandon Weeden in his absence for at least 8 weeks.

3. Romo’s return after eight week is pegged for the Nov. 22 game against the Miami Dolphins. It’s eight weeks, but just seven games because the Cowboys have a bye week thrown in. If Romo is not ready for the Dolphins game, there is a good chance he could be out until Dec. 7 against the Washington Redskins. The Thanksgiving Day matchup against the Carolina Panthers is set for Nov. 26 and the Cowboys might not want to bring him back in a short week.

4. The Cowboys have faith in Brandon Weeden as the backup quarterback. The question is can he win games. A bust after being the No. 22 overall pick of the Cleveland Browns in 2012, Weeden is 5-16 as a starter in his career. He has an eight-game losing streak, with his most recent victory coming in a 30-7 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Dec. 9, 2012. The Cowboys are 6-9 in the 15 games they have played without Romo since he became the starter in 2006.

5. If I would have told you before that the Cowboys defense was the strength of the team and big reason they were going to start 2-0, you would not have believed me. But such is the case. And that run defense against the Eagles was a thing of beauty. The defense held the Eagles rushing offense to 7 yards on 17 rushes to mark the second-lowest rushing yards allowed in a game in team history since 1991 – the furthest back this statistic can be tracked – and the lowest amount since the 1 yard the defense held the Colts to against Indianapolis on Dec. 21, 2014. The defense also held DeMarco Murray to 2 yards on 13 carries, a 0.15 yard-per-carry average, the second-worst yard-per-carry average on a minimum of 10 rush attempts forced by a Dallas defense in team history. The lowest came on Nov. 4, 1985 against the St. Louis Cardinals running back Ottis Anderson, who averaged minus-0.91 yards-per-carry, rushing 11 times for minus–10 yards.

6. Watching linebacker Sean Lee run to the football is a thing of beauty. He has been everything the Cowboys envisioned when they moved him from middle linebacker to weakside linebacker. He was sorely missed last season. His game against the Eagles was the finest performance by a Cowboys defensive player since Jason Garrett took over as head coach. He had 14 tackles and an interception. The Cowboys are salivating at the thought of watching Lee play alongside Rolando McClain when he returns in two weeks.

7. It’s easy to pick on DeMarco Murray and his horrible start with the Eagles after leaving the Cowboys for more money in the off-season. The Cowboys are not tearing it up on the ground themselves. The Cowboys have 189 yards rushing in the first games combined and leader Joseph Randle has 116 yards and averages just 3.4 yards per carry. Murray is running to nowhere with the Eagles. But the Cowboys are not better on the ground without him.

8. The Cowboys came into the season worried about the loss of their best cornerback Orlando Scandrick and wondering if Tyler Patmon could replace him in the slot. Two games into the season, Patmon has been the best defensive back on the team. He completely shut down Eagles star receiver Jordan Matthews in Sunday’s 20-10 victory. Patmon is a fighter and competitor. But he also can cover.

9. Kicker Dan Bailey getting a personal foul for supposedly being too rough with Eagles running back DeMarco Murray is a joke. Murray ran into Bailey on the sideline after a play. Bailey grabbed him slightly more so to keep his balance and Murray took umbrage, pushing Bailey and throwing the ball at him. But it was Bailey who drew the flag. The Cowboys are not happy and will most certainly turn the play in for the league to review.

10. Maybe Jerry Jones did make a deal with the devil to that last Super Bowl victory in 1995. There is no other explanation for the continued disappointments and string of bad luck over the past 20 years. Even now with the Cowboys seemingly getting it right with Stephen Jones making the decisions and Will McClay picking the players, the Cowboys can’t escape heartbreak. A season that was supposed to result in a Super Bowl berth for the first time since 1995 is now on the brink of disaster because of injuries to the Cowboys two best players the first two weeks of the season. First, Dez Bryant is out six to eight weeks with a fractured bone in his foot and now quarterback Tony Romo is out eight to 10 weeks with a fractured collar bone. Maybe Jerry Jones is Schleprock.

This story was originally published September 22, 2015 at 11:03 AM.