The Dallas Cowboys are walking into a familiar kind of trouble in Week 7, and the Philadelphia Eagles have several ways to make it worse.
This is the first of two meetings between the NFC East rivals this season, and both teams arrive with the same ugly 2-4 record. That leaves them staring up at the New York Giants, who sit in first place in the division at 3-2-1 after six games. It is not how anybody drew this up, especially not in Dallas or Philadelphia.
For the Cowboys, the most obvious concern is what happens if Saquon Barkley is back in the lineup. Barkley has missed the last two games with a hamstring injury, but the Eagles cutting Jaydon Blue off the 53-man roster and carrying only three running backs total - Dameon Pierce on the active roster and Elijah Mitchell on the practice squad - points toward an expectation that Barkley returns this week.
Even with Philadelphia’s ground game struggling overall, Barkley still brings the kind of burst that can change a game in a hurry. He is averaging 5.5 yards per carry, and the Eagles will need that kind of punch with Jalen Hurts out for the season because of his scary blood clot situation.
That should set off alarms for a Cowboys defense that has been gashed all year on the ground. Dallas is allowing 149.8 rushing yards per game, which is the most in the NFL. That makes this look like exactly the kind of matchup the Eagles want when it comes to getting their run game back on track.
Dallas cannot let Barkley take over. The path for the Cowboys is simple on paper: force Tanner McKee to beat them throwing the ball. The problem is that confidence level in Dallas is not exactly high.
The secondary may be another headache. Philadelphia has one of the better cornerback groups in the league, with Cooper DeJean working in the slot and Quinyon Mitchell and Riq Woolen on the outside. Each has a Pro Bowl selection, and all three have allowed completion rates below 60% and passer ratings of 100 or less in 2026.
That matters because Dallas needs its passing game to carry more of the load than usual. The Cowboys’ run game has been dreadful, ranking 31st through six weeks, so a lot falls on Dak Prescott and the air attack. But that part of the offense has not exactly been humming either.
CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens could be staring at rough individual matchups, and there is no guarantee the passing game finds a clean rhythm against this Philadelphia defense.
The Eagles may not look dominant against the run at first glance, since they rank 19th in run defense. But the surface number hides a tougher picture. Philadelphia is allowing four yards per carry and ranks fifth in run stop win rate, according to ESPN.
Jalen Carter adds another layer of difficulty. He ranks seventh in run stop win rate, which gives Philadelphia a disruptive presence capable of wrecking plays at the line and making life difficult for Javonte Williams.
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