ARLINGTON, Texas -- Doug Pederson had to downplay some trash talk from one of his linebackers the previous time Philadelphia visited Dallas for a crucial NFC East meeting.
Now the coach of the Eagles is having to explain how he ended up on the bulletin board while the Cowboys respond the way they always have under stoic Coach Jason Garrett. That is, by not responding.
Pederson said on his radio show that his Eagles were going to win tonight with the division lead on the line in a matchup of 3-3 teams coming off losses. He had to clarify to reporters that he never used the word "guarantee."
"For me it was about standing up, kind of taking ownership of where we are as a football team," Pederson said Wednesday. "And just showing confidence in my guys and kind of instilling that into the players, that everything's going to be OK.
"Just like the Cowboys. Just like what Jason Garrett's going through right now. I'm assuming he's doing the same thing."
Perhaps, but certainly not for public consumption with Dallas on a three-game losing streak after a 3-0 start.
"My response is we're excited about the challenge," Garrett said Monday. "Obviously they're a great football team and we're going to focus on ourselves and what we need to do to prepare to play our best football on Sunday night."
Before the Eagles' visit to the Cowboys last December, linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill told a television reporter the Cowboys "always choke. So we'll go down there and make them choke."
Dallas won 29-23 in overtime and went on to take the division title, beat Seattle in the wild-card round and lost to the Los Angeles Rams in a divisional game. The responses then from Cowboys echoed those now.
"I wouldn't want him to be coaching me if he wouldn't say that," Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott said. "Just because he voiced it doesn't mean that's not what he's thinking and just because we're not voicing it doesn't mean we don't have our own thoughts and opinions on how this game is going to go. That's words."
Carson Wentz and Prescott are probably going to measure themselves against each other for years after coming into the league together in 2016.
Wentz was the No. 2 overall pick expected to be the future of the Philadelphia franchise. Prescott was the overlooked fourth-round choice who ended up starting all season and won NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors after Tony Romo injured his back.
So here are the latest numbers: Prescott has the head-to-head edge 3-2 and the only playoff victory for either player. Wentz has the second contract after signing a four-year extension worth $128 million during the summer.
Prescott is still waiting for a megadeal that should come eventually.
"Something that's always fun," Prescott said of the comparison. "Something we'll be able to always, every matchup, look back and say what's our record against each other or this versus that. Something that will always be cool to track. Credit him for what he's doing, what he's done."
Eagles at Cowboys
7:20 p.m. (NBC)
LINE — Cowboys by 21/2
SERIES — Cowboys lead 68-52-0;
Cowboys beat Eagles 29-23 (OT), Dec.
9, 2018
ON OFFENSE
(RK) EAGLES VS. COWBOYS (RK)
(15) 111.2 RUSH 138.8 (7)
(16) 238.2 PASS 305.0 (3)
(20) 349.3 YARDS 443.8 (2)
(9) 26.8 POINTS 25.5 (10)
ON DEFENSE
(RK) EAGLES VS. COWBOYS (RK)
(2) 72.8 RUSH 93.8 (12)
(29) 280.2 PASS 238.0 (12)
(14) 353.0 YARDS 331.8 (9)
(23) 24.8 POINTS 19.0 (8)
WHAT TO WATCH The Eagles are the only NFC East rival with a winning record at AT&T Stadium in Arlington (6-4), and they are 13-5 in prime-time games since Doug Pederson became coach in 2016. The Eagles haven’t allowed a 100-yard rusher in nine consecutive regular-season games. The last RB to do it was the Cowboys’ Ezekiel Elliott with 113 in previous meeting.
Sports on 10/20/2019