Cowboys To Start Dak Prescott Against Eagles In Week 8, Per Report
Dak Prescott and Tony Romo. (USA Today Sports)
The Eagles are set to face Sam Bradford and the Minnsota Vikings this Sunday, but there’s already some significant news regarding Philadelphia’s Week 8 opponent: the Dallas Cowboys. NFL insider Ian Rapoport reports the Cowboys will start Dak Prescott, and not Tony Romo, against the Birds.
This news isn’t shocking given how well Prescott has played. The 23-year-old quarterback set the NFL record for most pass attempts without throwing an interception during the Cowboys’ win over the Packers in Week 6. (Prescott later went on to throw a pick after setting the record.)
Still, it was originally reported the Cowboys were hoping to have Tony Romo back by Week 8. Just a few weeks ago, ESPN reported the Cowboys “still believe Romo gives them the best chance to make the playoffs and to have postseason success.” Given Prescott’s success, however, things have apparently changed. The Cowboys are in no rush to hand Romo his job back.
Of course, Dallas isn’t the only NFC East team with an impressive rookie quarterback. Carson Wentz is off to a very strong start. Wentz has already taken home three NFL Rookie of the Week awards as he’s helped guide the Birds to a 3-2 record.
The Wentz versus Prescott battle will surely be an interesting one. The Eagles’ Week 8 game will take place on Sunday Night Football with the whole nation watching. Here’s a statistical look at each player so far. Note Wentz has only played five games while Prescott has played six.
Wentz – 102/157 (65% completion), 1,186 yards, 7 touchdowns, 1 interception, 99.9 passer rating
Prescott – 125/182 (68.7% completion), 1,486 yards, 7 touchdowns, 1 interception, 103.9 passer rating
And now a look at some other Eagles news and notes …
EAGLES-VIKINGS INJURY UPDATE
Pederson ruled out four Eagles players for Wednesday’s practice: Ron Brooks, Jason Kelce, Bennie Logan, and Marcus Smith. Earlier this week, Pederson said he’s not worried about Kelce missing Sunday’s game.
Pederson also described Logan as “week-to-week,” which probably isn’t a good sign for the Eagles’ starting defensive tackle. Howard Eskin reports Logan will at least be out this week and “likely more.” If Logan can’t play, the Eagles will likely start Beau Allen in his place.
Starting cornerback Leodis McKelvin is set to practice after sitting out in Week 6 due to a hamstring injury.
BIG BEN’S INJURY COULD IMPACT THE NFC EAST
Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger reportedly could be out four to six weeks while recovering from knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus, per ESPN. Pittsburgh will have to rely on Landry Jones in his absence. Going from Roethsliberger to Jones is obviously a big drop-off. The Steelers lost to an unimpressive Dolphins team by a final score of 30 to 15 with Jones taking over late in the first quarter.
Roethlisberger’s injury is not good news for the Eagles because the Steelers are set to play the Cowboys in three weeks on Nov. 13. Pittsburgh will play the Giants in seven weeks so Big Ben should be back for that game if the current injury timeline holds true.
JON DORENBOS APPEARS ON THE ELLEN DEGENERES SHOW
Eagles long snapper and America’s Got Talent finalist Jon Dorenbos made a television appearance on Tuesday. Watch the magician’s entire performance in the video below.
PRACTICE SQUAD UPDATE
The Eagles released rookie Darrell Greene for the fifth time since originally signing him as an undrafted free agent in May. The team once again signed Don Cherry to take his place. The Eagles will probably flip this transaction yet again in a few days.
FORMER BIRDS
The Browns promoted former Eagles 2014 fifth round pick Ed Reynolds from the practice squad to the 53-man roster. Former Eagles cornerback Denzel Rice signed with the Texans’ practice squad.