Party at the Death Star: Dallas Cowboys beat Philadelphia Eagles 34-14

So I was a little bit off on the score. Sue me.

Right now, I’ve got a smile on my face that I’m pretty sure is bigger than the one Miles Austin has when he scores.

That game wasn’t even as close as the 20-point final margin. If it hadn’t been for a ton of penalties and one particularly stupid decision by Mike Jenkins, there might have been 50 points scored by the good guys tonight.

A few more observations on a win 13 years in the making after the jump.The Eagles scored because of two plays. The Vick pass to Maclin where Jenkins slipped and Jenkins’ ill fated decision to lateral that interception. Other than that, the Dallas Cowboys probably would be looking at their third straight shutout. At any rate, this defense is playing as well as I’ve ever seen a Dallas defense play. I know I said that last week, but it’s still true.

Some defensive stats: 340 yards allowed, 284 through the air. Seems like a lot, but keep in mind 76 were on one play and the Eagles managed to gain about 40-50 passing yards in garbage time. 5 forced turnovers, 4 sacks, 9 (!?) passes deflected, 9 QB hits, 2/11 3rd down conversion percentage for the Eagles. McNabb also got out of what seemed like 4 other sacks. Put our pass rush up against the Vikings offensive line and the decidedly less mobile Brett Favre? That water you see is DeMarcus Ware, Jay Ratliff and Anthony Spencer salivating.

Offensively, it wasn’t so much that the Eagles stopped the Cowboys, it was that the Cowboys stopped themselves. God there were so many penalties. Sorry to see Marion Barber go out with a knee injury (kind of). I believe I would consider myself a fan of a Felix Jones-Tashard Choice combo. Which would be an understatement along the lines of it’s chilly in Chicago in the winter. I love the Jones-Choice combo.

Nothing against Marion. He’s been great. I’m not tossing him out on the street. All I’m saying is that he looks a step slow right now for whatever reason. Maybe that’s the knee injury. Hope he feels better soon.

Tony Romo got a couple of breaks tonight. The overturned interception was the biggest one, obviously. That game is a lot different if that stays as a pick. But that ends up turning into a Cowboys touchdown and the Cowboys don’t trail after that. But he was composed and made all the throws he needed to when he needed to make them. Another rating over 100. That seems to be pretty much a magic number.

Bobby Carpenter had two fumble recoveries. Roy Williams had 5 catches for 59 yards. (And no drops!) That pretty much sums up the night right there.

I could go into even more detail about how Mike Jenkins had two interceptions, Ed Hochuli doesn’t look that good in HD, Jason Witten couldn’t possibly be any faster than newest Ranger Vlad Guerrero…

But that really wouldn’t be worth your time. All that matters is this: Tony Romo and Wade Phillips have a playoff win.

And so do the Dallas Cowboys.