DEAR ABBY: I had a child with “Richard,” whom I met 10 years ago. I was married at the time but had been separated from my husband, “Eddy,” for nine months. Richard and I hit it off well; I was very attracted to him. Five months after we met, I accidentally became pregnant. When Richard found out, he bolted. We stayed in contact, and he met our son, “Brady,” twice.
Eddy and I reunited when Brady was 3, and since Richard was out of the picture, we requested to sever his rights so Eddy could adopt him. Richard didn’t show up, so legally we were able to proceed.
When we found out Richard had never told his family about Brady, I reached out to them. They want nothing to do with us! They don’t believe my son is a part of their family because rights were severed and they never knew about him, even though I have pictures of Brady and Richard together and Brady knows who he is.
Eddy and I have now been divorced for four years. I feel terrible for the way my son is being treated. Should I leave them all alone and close that chapter?
— TANGLED WEB IN ARIZONA
DEAR TANGLED WEB: Continuing to pursue Richard’s family will get you nowhere. That chapter closed when Richard gave up his parental rights to Brady and Eddy adopted the little boy. Until your son is no longer a minor, Eddy may have a financial responsibility for him. I hope he is acting more responsibly than Brady’s biological father did and that their relationship will continue in spite of the divorce.
** ** **
DEAR ABBY: I have been married for almost 40 years. I’m recently retired, in great shape and very active. I hike, bike, walk, play golf and do strength training. My wife will retire soon. She’s 100% sedentary and does none of these activities with me. She has mobility issues that could be corrected with surgery, but she refuses to have the surgery, which means her mobility issues will worsen. She’ll need a caregiver to help her in the not-too-distant future — which will be me.
This may sound selfish, but I didn’t sign up for this. I feel the enjoyment of my retirement will never happen because she refuses to help herself. Is it wrong for me to think about divorcing her because she takes no responsibility for herself and expects me to take care of her, which will prevent me from enjoying my golden years?
— END OF MY ROPE IN NEW YORK
DEAR END: You stated that you “didn’t sign up for this.” Well, nobody does. When you and your wife took your wedding vows, “… in sickness and in health …” this IS what you signed up for. That your wife is so frightened of surgery to correct her issues that she’s refusing to have it is sad for both of you. Perhaps if you tell her what you have written to me, it might motivate her to assume more responsibility for her health. A way to start would be to consult her doctor about a prudent path forward.
LAS VEGAS — Las Vegas Raiders offensive coordinator Chip Kelly was fired Sunday night after yet another rough offensive performance.
Kelly’s dismissal came less than four hours after the Raiders were beaten 24-10 by Cleveland. Las Vegas allowed the Browns to sack Geno Smith 10 times.
“I spoke with Chip Kelly earlier this evening and informed him of his release as offensive coordinator of the Raiders,” coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. “I would like to thank Chip for his service and wish him all the best in the future.”
Kelly was the biggest-name assistant hired by Carroll, who’s in his first year coaching the Raiders after leading the Seattle Seahawks for 14 seasons.
Behind a 27th-minute goal from Maxi Moralez, New York City FC ended the Union’s 2025 season with a 1-0 win Sunday night in the Eastern Conference semifinals at Subaru Park.
The Union, who earned the Supporters’ Shield and hosting rights throughout the MLS playoffs after finishing with the league’s best regular-season record, were bounced out of the postseason earlier than expected. Matt Freese and the NYCFC defense kept the Union off the score sheet after Moralez’s goal.
Freese, a native of Wayne, finished with five saves. The Union were shut out at home for just the second time this season.
“We weren’t ourselves,” forward Milan Iloski said. “I think it was more on us than on them, to be honest. We were very prepared, we just didn’t play up to our standards.”
NYCFC advances to face Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami squad in the Eastern Conference final on Friday.
Moralez took advantage of a lapse from the Union’s backline to score the game’s only goal. NYCFC’s Agustín Ojeda attacked down the right sideline, shaking Olwethu Makhanya with a cut toward the center of the pitch. Ojeda passed the ball to Nicolás Fernández at the top of the 18-yard box, and he tapped a quick pass to Moralez.
The midfielder found himself one-on-one with goalkeeper Andre Blake and made the most of his opportunity, beating an outstretched Blake with a right-footed shot that found the left side of the net.
“They had a team out there that was hungry,” Union manager Bradley Carnell said. “And for the first couple of moments of the game, we didn’t really match that. That’s on me… Something just didn’t feel right, and we were a little bit slow to get into the game.”
The Union had several chances to level the game throughout the first half, but could not convert them. Tai Baribo whiffed on a point-blank attempt after a centering cross from Danley Jean Jacques in the 42nd minute. Bruno Damiani then got his head to a Kai Wagner free-kick cross in the 44th, but could not angle his attempt toward goal. Jakob Glesnes tried a shot from close range that forced Freese into a save in the 45th minute, but could not capitalize on the ensuing rebound.
Tai Baribo on the ball for the Union with New York City FC’s Kevin O’Toole defending him during Sunday’s MLS playoff game.
The Union outshot NYCFC, 9-3, in the first half, but trailed 1-0 at halftime. Freese made three saves to keep the Union off the score sheet over the first 45 minutes.
In the 55th minute, after stymieing a Union attack, NYCFC’s Fernández caught Blake off his line and punted a shot toward his goal from beyond the halfway line. Blake scrambled back to retrieve the shot and made a diving swipe to keep it from reaching the back of the net, but injured himself in the process.
The Union’s medical staff came on to attend to a grimacing Blake in the 56th, and Andrew Rick took his place in the net shortly after. Carnell made two other substitutions alongside Rick in the 60th, bringing in Mikael Uhre for Baribo and Frankie Westfield for Jovan Lukić. Carnell made his fourth substitution in the 69th minute, bringing on Jesús Bueno for Indiana Vassilev.
Westfield almost drew the Union level with a back-post shot in the 75th minute, but Freese stopped Westfield’s point-blank attempt with his knee. The Union made a case for a penalty in the 77th minute after Nathan Harriel was brought down in the box, but the referee did not deem NYCFC defender Raul Gustavo’s tackle as worthy of awarding the Union an attempt from the spot.
Carnell brought on Cavan Sullivan for Jean Jacques in the 83rd minute, hoping the 16-year-old could provide the offensive spark the team needed. The team pressed on, and Westfield almost became the hero again in the 87th minute with a volley attempt from close range, but it soared over the net.
“[It’s] just unfortunate,” Carnell said. “We got ourselves into that spot so many times. We could have got ourselves two goals at the end there.”
The Union finished the game with a 20-6 advantage in shots but were unable to tie it.
The Union’s Mikael Uhre and Bruno Damiani walk off the field after losing 1-0 to NYCFC.
Season’s end
The Union will take close to a three-month hiatus before the team embarks on its 2026 campaign. By finishing with the most points in MLS, the Union qualified for the Concacaf Champions Cup. The tournament, which features top clubs from North and Central America, is scheduled to begin in early February. The Union’s schedule for the tournament is yet to be determined, but groups will be decided at the Champions Cup draw on Dec. 9.
The Union’s 2026 MLS schedule will begin with a road match against D.C. United on Feb. 21. The team’s home opener will be against NYCFC at Subaru Park on March 1.
ARLINGTON, Texas — There was a disagreement in the visitor’s locker room at AT&T Stadium, 20 minutes and 20 feet apart.
“I’m in a little funk right now,” Saquon Barkley said at his locker stall after he totaled just 22 rushing yards on 10 carries, his lowest output in a game with at least 10 carries since 2022.
“He’s not in a funk, man,” Mailata said. “He’s hard on himself. … It’s on all of us up front.”
One thing the running back and left tackle could probably agree on, though, is that what happened Sunday — the Eagles blowing a 21-point lead in a 24-21 loss to the Cowboys — would never, could never, have happened to the 2024 Eagles.
The Eagles lost for a lot of reasons Sunday. They beat themselves with 14 penalties, which tied a high in the Nick Sirianni era. They raced to a 21-0 lead behind an opened-up and aggressive playbook and then went too conservative. They didn’t apply enough pressure on Dak Prescott. They struggled covering Dallas’ one-two punch at wide receiver, especially later in the game with a banged-up secondary.
But they lost Sunday, too, because of their yearlong problem running the football. Yes, they tried to — and sometimes with great success — get their passing game going against one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL, but they have consistently struggled this season to control a game and control the clock with what was their greatest weapon in 2024: a running game that broke records. This, with almost the same personnel.
The Eagles were without star right tackle Lane Johnson, which certainly had and will have an impact on their ability to run to the right side for as long as he is out with a Lisfranc injury in his right foot. But even with Johnson on the field this season, they have been unable to get Barkley going.
The Eagles ran four times on first down with leads of 21-0 or 21-7. The results of those runs were: 2 yards, 1 yard, 5 yards, and 1 yard. Barkley’s 2.2 yards per carry Sunday represented the third time this season he was held under 2.5 yards per tote. He had zero such games in 2024.
The Cowboys, Landon Dickerson said, utilized more five-down fronts with their new-look defensive line, something they hadn’t done a lot of prior to Sunday. It was their “flavor of the day,” Dickerson said, but the Eagles couldn’t find a way to break through on the ground. Besides Johnson’s injury, the blockers in front of Barkley have been beaten up. Cam Jurgens cleared concussion protocol in time to play Sunday, but he’s been dealing with back and knee injuries. Dickerson has had multiple injuries, too.
But Barkley said it all starts with him.
“I’m not getting the run game going, I’m not getting yards, and I’m tired of the excuse of people trying to stop our run game,” he said. “I don’t really subscribe to that. I just got to be better, got to make plays.
“I’m a big boy. I’m a man at the end of the day. I’m going to own it and get ready for next week.”
Barkley said the message on the sideline Sunday, as Dallas was mounting its comeback, was “we got to respond.”
“We didn’t do that,” he said. “We got to do a better job of putting teams away. We didn’t do that and I definitely didn’t help. Obviously last year and in other games I was a big part of that and it’s been kind of nonexistent this year. I got to figure it out for the team and I’m going to get it right. I’ll figure it out.”
Barkley found success as a pass catcher Sunday. He had seven catches for 52 yards, but it was after a catch when he made his biggest mark on the game — a fumble with the Eagles driving in Dallas’ territory in a 21-21 game with under eight minutes to play.
“It’s the guy you don’t see,” Barkley said. “We always coach that. They made a good play. I got to be better.”
The ball pops out of Barkley’s hands in the fourth quarter on Sunday against the Cowboys.
Barkley, who has gone over 100 yards this season just once, said he doesn’t think he’s pressing. He said he is healthy, too. He’s not frustrated, he said, but is “disappointed in myself.”
The running game, he said, “starts with me, ends with me.”
There’s more to it, though, even if Barkley wants to take all of the ownership. The play call needs to be the right one and the blocking needs to be executed before Barkley does anything. Too often, Barkley has been hit behind the line of scrimmage.
Asked why he feels the need to put it all on his shoulders when so much more goes into the success of the running game, Barkley replied: “Because I’m the running back.”
Barkley said he has “had funks like this before.”
“I just got to break it,” he said. “The only way I know how is by flushing this, working my butt off, and get ready for my next opportunity.”
A 17-year-old in Mays Landing, N.J., was charged with the murder of his mother, 49-year-old Julissa Serrano, on Saturday, the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement.
Prosecutors said the Hamilton Township Police Department received a 911 call on Saturday evening about a young man with a knife at Meadowbrook Condos in Mays Landing. When officers arrived, they found Serrano with multiple stab wounds. She died from her injuries after being transported to a nearby medical center, the prosecutor’s office said, and her cause of death is pending an autopsy.
Officials did not release the name or any other details about the 17-year-old. He was charged with murder, possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose, and unlawful possession of a weapon, the prosecutor’s statement said. He is now in custody at the Harborfields Atlantic Youth Center.
Attempts to reach Serrano’s relatives and next-door neighbors were not immediately successful.
The Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and the Hamilton Township Police Department are leading the investigation, and ask that anyone with information about Serrano’s death call the Major Crimes Unit at 609-909-7666.
ARLINGTON, Tex. – Instant grades on the Eagles’ performance in their 24-21 loss to the Cowboys:
Quarterback: C
Jalen Hurts started hot, but cooled off as the Eagles became conservative after jumping out to the 21-0 lead. He had some big throws down the stretch, but he took a costly sack — the only one of the game — on third down late in the game.
Hurts completed 27 of 39 passes for 289 yards and a touchdown. He didn’t have a turnover. When there was pressure, Hurts did well to either find a receiver or throw the ball away. He found Saquon Barkley on a scramble drill and picked up 16 yards.
Hurts was near perfect on the opening drive, completing five of six passes for 47 yards and a touchdown. And as a runner, he broke a tackle and muscled his way into the end zone on a draw play for the Eagles’ second touchdown.
Running back: D+
Early on, the Eagles went heavy through the air and didn’t need the run game. But when they got ahead, it was again tough going for Barkley on the ground. He managed just 22 yards on 10 rushes.
Barkley was active as a receiver, catching seven passes for 52 yards. But he fumbled in the fourth quarter when Sam Williams stripped him from behind in Cowboys territory. In pass protection, he delivered a nasty chip block that knocked Cowboys defensive tackle Quinnen Williams to the ground.
Receiver / Tight end: B-
Maybe it was catching passes from Tom Brady during warmups. A.J. Brown was firing on all cylinders to open the game, catching five of six targets for 67 yards and a touchdown on the first two drives. He ended the Eagles’ opening series with a 16-yard grab in the end zone when he beat cornerback DaRon Bland on a skinny post route.
Brown broke a tackle and picked up yards after the catch on a fourth-quarter 19-yarder. He finished with eight grabs for 110 yards.
A.J. Brown had one of his best games of the season with eight catches, 110 yards, and a touchdown.
DeVonta Smith was Brown’s near equal with six grabs for 89 yards. He made a highlight-reel catch in the second quarter, contorting his body to pull in a 41-yarder. Hurts’ heave traveled 54.4 yards in the air and had a 22.9% completion probability, according to Next Gen Stats. On the next play, Smith picked up 10 yards on a jet sweep that went down to the 1-yard line.
In the third quarter, he came back for a 12-yard grab on third-and-8. Smith and Brown had back-to-back penalties — pass interference and a false start — in the fourth quarter.
Tight end Dallas Goedert shed a defender on his first catch of the game — a 13-yarder late in the third quarter. Grant Calcaterra caught his first pass since Week 5 for 8 yards.
Offensive line: C-
It’s been difficult to get much going on the ground all season against defenses primed to stop Barkley. But that doesn’t excuse the O-line’s run-blocking woes. The unit was better in pass protection, but couldn’t hold up once Hurts was forced to drop often.
Fred Johnson started in place of the injured Lane Johnson (foot) and had his struggles. He took a costly illegal use of hands penalty in the fourth quarter that brought back a 16-yard throw to Smith. He got beat inside in the first quarter and Barkley was dropped for a loss, and on the next play, false-started.
Tyler Steen got dusted by Williams up the middle in the fourth quarter and Hurts had to shovel the ball away. The right guard also had a holding penalty on a second-quarter rush.
Center Cam Jurgens had a key block on Hurts’ 7-yard draw play touchdown. In the second quarter, he was whistled for a third-down false start. Left guard Landon Dickerson just couldn’t block Osa Odighizuwa long enough before Hurts ate the sack.
Left tackle Jordan Mailata got toasted off the edge by James Houston and Hurts was forced to throw the ball away in the third quarter. A play later, Mailata allowed pressure on the middle and his quarterback was hit as he threw. Matt Pryor lined up illegally as the sixth O-lineman, negating a nicely designed 20-yard play-action pass to Goedert.
Defensive line: C+
The D-line started hot, but relented in the second half when forced to play so many snaps. Running back Javonte Williams was still held to 4.4 yards a carry on 20 rushes. In terms of the pass rush, the unit never got to quarterback Dak Prescott.
Outside linebacker Jaelan Phillips was kept in check for the first time since becoming an Eagle. He didn’t have a single tackle. Defensive tackle Jalen Carter somewhat made up for the spitting incident that got him ejected in the first meeting. The defensive tackle flashed multiple times. But it wasn’t enough.
The Eagles defensive line, led by Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis, did not record a sack on Sunday.
Edge rusher Jalyx Hunt would have beaten Tyler Guyton on a rush if the left tackle didn’t kick him, resulting in a tripping penalty before the half. Hunt missed a run tackle attempt in the third quarter. Nolan Smith just hasn’t looked himself since coming back from a triceps injury. Brandon Graham couldn’t hustle off the field quickly enough before the Eagles were flagged for too many men on the field. The penalty brought back a Nakobe Dean interception. Earlier in the game, Graham got washed out on a Williams 20-yard run.
Moro Ojomo left briefly with an injury, but returned. He had a relatively quiet day. Jordan Davis dropped Williams for a 4-yard loss in the third quarter, but he didn’t do much on his rushes.
Linebacker: B
Nakobe Dean had another third-down sack when he blitzed and bowled over Williams in the third quarter. He later drew a holding penalty on another rush. Dean was in coverage when Williams couldn’t hang onto a fourth-down pass. A drive later, he was flagged for illegal contact. Dean might not have gotten deep enough on Prescott’s 17-yard pass to tight end Jake Ferguson just before the half.
Zack Baun recovered a fumble when receiver KaVontae Turpin slipped and clipped a teammate in the second quarter. He missed an open-field tackle on Ferguson in the second quarter. Williams zipped through Baun for a 12-yard gain in the third quarter. Baun let an interception slip through his hands a few plays later.
Cornerback: C
Prescott threw for over 350 yards and tossed two touchdowns against a secondary that got banged up. Adoree’ Jackson was in coverage when Pickens caught a 1-yard touchdown before the break. Jackson left with a concussion after Pickens caught a 24-yard pass in front of him in the third quarter. Cooper DeJean, who plays outside corner in base personnel, stayed there in nickel after Jackson left. He came up and made a tackle against the run not long after the switch.
DeJean allowed Lamb to catch a 50-yard pass in which he was also flagged for interference. The Eagles wanted offensive PI. Kelee Ringo was called upon soon after, but also committed a pass interference penalty.
Cooper DeJean had an up-and-down game in coverage and was beaten once deep by CeeDee Lamb.
Earlier, DeJean might have abandoned his zone when a scrambling Prescott found Turpin for a 48-yard reception just before the half. Michael Carter took his first snaps in the slot with DeJean outside. He had good coverage downfield on his first snap.
Unlike in the first meeting, Quinyon Mitchell played the boundary side of the field rather than follow Pickens. He allowed Ferguson to pick up a first down after he stiff-armed Baun. Mitchell had a pass break-up on Lamb in the third quarter, but was flagged for pass interference on the next down.
Safety: C+
Reed Blankenship assisted on six run stops in the first half and intercepted Prescott in the end zone with a diving grab for his first pick of the season. Blankenship missed Turpin in the open field on his 48-yard catch and may have allowed too much space underneath for Ferguson to catch a 17-yarder that set up Dallas’ first touchdown.
Blankenship left in the third quarter and was replaced by Sydney Brown. Prescott dove over him on his 8-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. The quarterback had success going at Brown in the Cowboys’ game-winning drive.
Drew Mukuba got run over and lost tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford on his 4-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter.
Xavier Gipson’s fumble in the fourth quarter should have been a gift to the Cowboys. He probably shouldn’t have fielded the punt at the 2-yard line in the first place. Gipson got hurt on the play and had to be carted inside.
Kicker Jake Elliott missed a 56-yard field-goal attempt wide right in the fourth quarter. Punter Braden Mann came up huge in the third quarter with back-to-back impressive boots. He had a 58-yarder that flipped the field and dropped a 48-yard spinner that Sydney Brown downed at the Cowboys’ 4. The Eagles had a player step out of bounds on Mann’s 76-yard touchback punt late in the game.
Will Shipley averaged 26.5 yards on four kick returns.
Coaching: D-
This one’s on Nick Sirianni. The coach’s conservatism finally cost the Eagles. It was a close game, but there’s no excuse for coughing up a 21-point lead against a team that kept shooting itself in the foot. The Eagles were sloppy with 14 penalties — tied for the most of the Sirianni era. That’s on the coaching.
Offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo had a nice start, and a not-so-great finish. Repeated first-down runs after the 21-point lead were ill-advised. He continued to dial up successful plays in the red zone. Hurts’ draw play score came off a new wrinkle: a three-tight end set that shifted into an empty backfield.
Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio‘s unit folded under the weight of the offense’s ineffectiveness and injuries. The defense delivered a goal-line stand in the fourth quarter after Gipson’s fumble, but it relented in the end.
The Eagles went up 21-0 early in the game but allowed 24 unanswered points from the Cowboys to lose, 24-21, Sunday in Dallas. If you turned the game off in rage after the Eagles’ second-half fumbles and miscues, here’s everything you missed on the Fox broadcast …
Jalen Hurts and the Eagles’ passing offense have earned a lot of critics through the first 10 games of the season. The Birds ranked 28th in passing yards per game coming into Sunday.
But one person who’s not criticizing Hurts and Kevin Patullo’s offense? Tom Brady.
“You hear critiques about the style of the passing offense, that it’s remedial, I totally disagree,” Brady said. “He’s got a lot of full-field reads, he’s looking to the right, he did a great job earlier in this game on that comebacker to Saquon Barkley, scanning the field. He just doesn’t put the ball in harm’s way, and that’s what you need from your quarterback.”
Brady continued to praise Hurts during the game. He also complimented Hurts’ chemistry with A.J. Brown, despite the discourse off the field in recent weeks.
“It doesn’t look like there’s any issue to me,” Brady said.
Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown had a touchdown called back because he didn’t get his second foot down before touching the pylon.
Pylon cam
It didn’t occur to me that the pylon cam wasn’t in the actual pylon, and that there was a separate pylon that contains the camera.
But after Brown’s near touchdown was called back because he didn’t get his second foot down before touching the pylon, the instant replay clearly showed two pylons, just inches away from each other.
sometimes the pile on counts sometimes the pile on doesn’t count? #FlyEaglesFly robbed of a 2nd aj brown td #nfl refs are lost sometimes the ball can hit the pile on sometimes that doesn’t end the play lol pic.twitter.com/JKHvmeBbPo
“Really good skills to differentiate the actual pylon from the pylon cam,” play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt said. “Could have knocked them both down.”
“We have way too many pylons down there. A.J. did a great job,” rules expert Dean Blandino said.
Is it necessary for the pylon cam to also be shaped like a pylon? Feels like there could be a clearer way to differentiate.
Jalen Carter lasted longer than five seconds on the field in the rematch vs. the Cowboys — unlike his early ejection in the season opener for spitting on Dak Prescott.
That doesn’t mean he cooled down with the trash talk. After Prescott’s red zone interception, Carter had a few choice words for Prescott, which got caught on the broadcast.
“Nick is definitely letting the ref know. ’It didn’t look like what it was. We weren’t trying to pick him,’” Brady joked.
The refs followed that up with a Brown false start in the fourth quarter, so clearly they were not intimidated.
Eagles punter Braden Mann had to re-punt late in the game because of a penalty on Kelee Ringo.
Confusing re-kick
Brady and Burkhardt were confused after the Eagles had to re-punt the ball on fourth down, after Braden Mann booted one more than 70 yards.
The pair theorized the kick potentially hit the scoreboard, which is an automatic re-kick, but after reviewing the tape, they couldn’t figure out where that could have happened.
“If it hits the scoreboard, that’s basically a do-over,” Burkhardt said.
It turned out, the Eagles had committed a penalty on the play, and the Cowboys elected to have the Birds attempt another punt. It worked, and Dallas got better field position the second time around.
“They had a player going out of bounds on the play, the Cowboys took a penalty and elected to re-kick,” Blandino said.
ARLINGTON, Texas — For the first 30 minutes, the Eagles did everything necessary to win a key game in a hostile stadium. They looked like a team worthy of a title defense.
For the next 30 minutes, they did everything necessary to give it away. They looked like a team unworthy of even a division title.
Two lost fumbles.
Two huge passing plays.
Fourteen — 14! — penalties, their most this season by five, and tied for the most by the Birds since Sirianni took over in 2021.
It was, to borrow A.J. Brown’s descriptor from two weeks ago, a (bleep)-show after the first 18 minutes. Cam Jurgens’ false start crippled one drive. An illegal formation stymied another. Brandon Graham couldn’t get off the field fast enough, and that negated an interception. On consecutive snaps to start the fourth quarter, DeVonta Smith committed offensive pass interference and A.J. Brown false-started, so a promising drive ended in a long field goal miss. In the middle of the fourth quarter, at the Cowboys’ 28, Fred Johnson turned second-and-7 into second-and-17; Saquon Barkley fumbled on the next play.
By the time Dak Prescott found George Pickens for 24 yards with 35 seconds to play, all the good that had been done — the offensive breakout of the Eagles’ passing game, the stinginess of the defense early — all of it had been undone.
Safeties Andrew Mukuba and Sydney Brown pull down Cowboys receiver George Pickens after he made a big catch over the middle.
Brandon Aubrey kicked a 42-yard field goal as time expired Sunday, leaving the Birds 24-21 losers. They now face a short week and a Black Friday afternoon game against a hot Chicago Bears team whose 8-3 record mirrors their own.
It looked like the Eagles had their Thanksgiving turkey at halftime, perhaps drowsy with tryptophan as they sleepwalked through the Texas evening.
“All it is is a lack of focus,” said left tackle Jordan Mailata. “First, look internally, because that’s the only way we can move forward.”
Focus? Focus? From a veteran team that won a Super Bowl nine months ago? Focus, in a game against a losing team that you beat in September — a game that would virtually wrap up the NFC East title with six weeks to go?
“We’ve got to make sure we’re mastering the things that require no talent,” coach Nick Sirianni said, trotting out one of his most careworn aphorisms.
Mailata and quarterback Jalen Hurts said the same thing. Give him credit: Even if Sirianni can’t manage to scheme a running game, he can manufacture a maxim and embed it.
Mottoes won’t win another Super Bowl.
The win saved the Cowboys’ season, for the moment. Now 5-5-1, the ’Pokes have won two in a row; have made their abysmal defense respectable; and have a legitimate shot at the playoffs.
Seriously? Sure.
For all of the Eagles’ mistakes, the Cowboys made the plays winning teams make. They didn’t wilt down by three touchdowns. Prescott is now 10-5 against an Eagles franchise that is in the middle of the best decade in its history. He entered with gaudy numbers against the Birds, and burnished them with 354 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, a rushing touchdown, and, yes, another win.
Hurts fell to 5-4 against his archrival, and, despite a fine statistical performance — the Eagles’ inconsistent passing game showed its head for 45 minutes or so — he chose to wallow in the defeat.
The loss will lead to more questions about an Eagles offense that has been under siege all season.
Hurts passed for 289 yards, threw for a touchdown and ran for two more, but he sputtered after the first half. Malcontent receiver A.J. Brown caught a season-high eight passes for 110 yards, but virtually disappeared after the first half.
It was a magnificent first 18 minutes.
It was a pathetic final 42.
Eagles cornerback Cooper Dejean keeps Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott out of the end zone in the fourth quarter.
Both Barkley and punt returner Xavier Gipson fumbled in the fourth quarter.
Cornerback Cooper DeJean gave up a 48-yard bomb to CeeDee Lamb, which led to Prescott finding tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford for a touchdown from 4 yards with about two minutes to play in the third to make it 21-14. DeJean then gave up a 41-yard bomb to Pickens, which led to Prescott running 8 yards to tie it at 21 early in the fourth.
But the Cowboys went nowhere after Barkley’s fumble and punted, which led to Gipson’s gaffe, which eventually led to fourth-and-goal from the Eagles’ 2-yard line, which led to Dallas’s inexplicable decision to go for it with less than four minutes to play against an offense that had been enfeebled for the second half.
Prescott threw incomplete from the Eagles’ 2. He threw short of the goal line to tight end Jake Ferguson.
With two minutes left, the Eagles faced third-and-2 from their 37. Two Tush Pushes, right?
Nope. Straight drop back. Hurts couldn’t pull the trigger, took a 13-yard sack, gave the ball back to Dallas, and watched as the Cowboys saved their season.
ARLINGTON, Texas — Everything’s bigger in Texas, including Eagles collapses.
After going up by 21 points early in the second quarter, the Eagles gave up their three-score lead to the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas scored 24 unanswered points, capped by a 42-yard Brandon Aubrey walk-off field goal to give the Cowboys the 24-21 victory and end the Eagles’ win streak at four games.
The Eagles’ implosion was their own doing. They incurred 14 penalties, which tied the largest total in a single game in Nick Sirianni’s five-year tenure as head coach.
Here’s our instant analysis from the Eagles’ first loss since falling at the Giants in Week 6.
Defense dissipates
The Eagles defense came out strong in the first half for the most part, limiting the Cowboys to just seven points.
They dominated the turnover battle over the game’s first 30 minutes. Zack Baun had a fumble recovery early in the second quarter after Cowboys wide receiver KaVontae Turpin fumbled a handoff at the Eagles’ 31-yard line. The fumble recovery eventually set up a Tush Push touchdown from Jalen Hurts to extend the lead to 21-0. On the Cowboys’ first trip to the red zone of the afternoon, Reed Blankenship picked off Dak Prescott in the end zone on a pass intended for CeeDee Lamb.
Reed Blankenship picked Dak Prescott off in the end zone but later left the game due to injury.
Unsurprisingly, Vic Fangio’s unit wouldn’t remain flawless against the league’s second-ranked scoring offense. This time around, the Eagles defense couldn’t put a Band-Aid over the listless offense that couldn’t sustain drives in the second half.
Late in the second quarter, Turpin generated a 48-yard catch-and-run, breaking multiple tackles over the middle of the field. That play eventually led to the Cowboys’ first touchdown, a 1-yard pass to George Pickens with Adoree’ Jackson in coverage to make the score 21-7, Eagles.
The Eagles bent but didn’t break in the third quarter, as Aubrey missed a 51-yard field goal attempt.
But the Eagles defense got banged up in the second half. In the third quarter, Jackson entered the concussion protocol and Blankenship went down with a thigh injury.
Cooper DeJean took over on the outside with Michael Carter slotting in as the nickel cornerback. The 22-year-old DeJean was tested heavily, getting called for defensive pass interference on a pass intended for Lamb in the third quarter, which was declined because the receiver made a 48-yard catch.
Lamb drew another defensive pass interference two plays later, this time against Kelee Ringo, who came in for a play at outside cornerback. Ringo didn’t see the field again on defense. The Cowboys scored on the following play, a 4-yard pass to tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford to make it 21-14.
DeJean was also in coverage for Pickens’ 43-yard catch down the left sideline early in the fourth quarter. That explosive play led to yet another Cowboys touchdown, an 8-yard Prescott carry to tie the game at 21-21.
The Cowboys had an opportunity to pull ahead late in the fourth quarter after Xavier Gipson’s fumble on a punt return at his own 8-yard line. However, the Cowboys opted to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the Eagles’ 1-yard line instead of settling for a field goal. Prescott’s short pass to tight end Jake Ferguson was incomplete, leading to a turnover on downs.
Ferguson began to make up for the incomplete pass with less than a minute remaining in regulation. He caught a 19-yard pass over the middle of the field with Sydney Brown trailing behind him. Brown, the 25-year-old safety, had entered the game in relief of Blankenship.
That play, plus a 24-yard catch from Pickens two plays later, set up Aubrey’s game-winning field goal.
Saquon Barkley lost a fumble on what was another tough rushing day for the running back.
Second-half offensive struggles
The Eagles offense was far more conservative after their three straight touchdown drives to start the game. With 17 seconds remaining in the first half and two timeouts, with the drive starting from their own 28-yard line, the Eagles opted for a handoff to Saquon Barkley.
He gained just 1 yard and both teams returned to their respective locker rooms, the Eagles squandering a potential opportunity to put Jake Elliott in position to kick a field goal.
The Eagles posted just 28 net yards of offense on their first three drives after halftime, punting on all three.
After the game, Sirianni pushed back at the notion that the offense became more conservative after going up three scores.
“I didn’t think so,” Sirianni said. “Obviously, we’re always trying to be a balanced attack. So I just think, again, we’ll have to look at ourselves and look at the schemes and we’re going to have to look at the execution and see what the issues were. We just weren’t very efficient as an offense in that second half. I didn’t really feel that we took our foot off the gas.”
The group suffered from a litany of self-inflicted wounds. DeVonta Smith and A.J. Brown incurred back-to-back penalties early in the fourth quarter — an offensive pass interference and a false start, respectively. The Eagles couldn’t overcome the 25-yard deficit, leading them to settle for a 56-yard field goal attempt from Elliott. The Eagles kicker missed, giving the Cowboys the ball back at their 46-yard line.
Jake Elliott missed a long field goal that would have put the Eagles ahead, 24-14, in the second half.
The offense seemingly had a spark halfway through the fourth quarter, moving the ball 45 yards down the field (a 19-yard Brown reception made up nearly half that total). But Fred Johnson’s illegal use of hands penalty killed their momentum, bringing up second-and-17 from the Cowboys’ 38.
On the following play, Hurts dumped a short pass off to Barkley while under duress. Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams knocked the ball out of the running back’s grasp and linebacker Kenneth Murray recovered it at the Dallas 33.
While the Cowboys failed to take advantage on the following drive, they got a gift of their own on the ensuing Eagles punt return. Gipson coughed up the ball deep in his own zone and Cowboys long snapper Trent Sieg corralled it at the Eagles’ 7-yard line.
Once again, the Cowboys couldn’t score following the turnover. But Hurts took a 13-yard sack from defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa on third-and-2 at the Eagles’ 37-yard line, forcing them to punt.
With the Eagles’ run game practically nonexistent this season, Barkley couldn’t salt away the contest in the second half as he had so many times last season. He finished the game with 10 carries for 22 yards (2.2 yards per carry is a single-game season low for Barkley). Four of those carries (for a total of 5 yards) came on first down on the five possessions that followed their 21-0 lead.
The Eagles would do some celebrating early, but the good times would not last beyond halftime.
First-half flourish
It was a tale of two halves for the Eagles offense. Through the first 18½ minutes of the game, the Eagles passing game was practically unrecognizable from their performances in the last two weeks against the Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions.
Hurts surpassed the 135 passing yards he mustered last week against the Lions in the first half alone. The 27-year-old quarterback threw early and often, going 13-of-19 for 163 yards and a touchdown in the first 30 minutes.
In the first half, Brown hauled in five receptions on six targets for 67 yards and a 16-yard touchdown, which occurred on the Eagles’ opening drive and gave them a 7-0 lead. Brown beat Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland on a post route to haul in Hurts’ throw in the middle of the end zone.
The play marked Brown’s first touchdown in more than a month (Oct. 19 against the Minnesota Vikings). Against a zone-heavy Cowboys defense, the Eagles targeted the intermediate middle of the field to great success, especially on in-breaking passes to Brown.
The Cowboys defense also gave the Eagles a few early holiday gifts in the form of self-inflicted wounds. A roughing the kicker penalty on Dallas against punter Braden Mann gave the Eagles a fresh set of downs on their second possession. Hurts took advantage of their misstep, especially on a third-and-5 conversion when he connected with Brown for a 22-yard completion on an in-breaker.
The chunk play ultimately helped set up a Hurts 7-yard touchdown on a quarterback keeper, putting the Eagles up, 14-0. Hurts later added the Tush Push touchdown to give the Eagles the 21-0 lead and what would turn out to be their final points.
Smith’s acrobatic 41-yard reception on third-and-12 from the Eagles’ 48-yard line helped set up the push sneak at the goal line. But the offense couldn’t sustain its first-half firepower.
“Whatever it was, it wasn’t enough,” Hurts said of the passing game’s strides in the first half. “I think everything that we’ve been able to do hasn’t been a lack of capability. We’ve got a lot of confidence in how we can go out there and play. Ultimately, we can’t focus on that. … I can only focus on the things that we can control that didn’t go our way.”
Eagles wide receiver Devonta Smith is tackled by Cowboys safety Donovan Wilson in the third quarter.
Injury report
Gipson went down with a shoulder injury following his fourth-quarter fumble on a punt return. He was carted from the medical tent to the locker room. After the game, Gipson was in the locker room with his right arm in a sling.
With 35 seconds remaining in the game, Drew Mukuba went down after Pickens’ 24-yard catch. The rookie safety left the locker room after the game on crutches, not putting any weight on his right foot, which was in a boot.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton etched their names into Penn State history on Saturday as the Nittany Lions handily defeated Nebraska, 37-10.
After Zakee Wheatley and Amare Campbell stuffed Nebraska’s fourth-down attempt on the game’s opening possession, Penn State (5-6, 2-6 Big Ten) used a seven-play, 98-yard drive to take an early lead it never relinquished.
On a night dominated by the Nittany Lions offense, Allen rushed 25 times for 160 yards and two touchdowns to set the program’s all-time rushing record. The senior running back stands alone with 3,954 career rushing yards after breaking Evan Royster’s program record of 3,932 set in 2010.
Allen said he wanted to make a difference for his team. And under the lights of Beaver Stadium, he did just that.
“We witnessed greatness from Kaytron Allen tonight,” interim coach Terry Smith said. “Penn State has been playing football for an awfully long time, so to be the number one rusher in the history of this place is an impressive thing.”
Singleton added two touchdowns to tie Saquon Barkley for the most total touchdowns in Penn State history (53). He finished with 51 receiving yards and 44 rushing yards.
The Nittany Lions scored on six of their nine offensive drives en route to a 27-point victory. After two winless months, the team has rallied around Smith’s leadership to keep its bowl-game hopes alive.
“[Smith] brought us back together. He put all the broken pieces back together,” senior linebacker Dominic DeLuca said. “He did everything he could for us to fight and to change our culture. He’s a true Penn State guy. Everyone’s behind him, everyone wants to play for him.”
Penn State interim head coach Terry Smith (right) shown with athletic director Pat Kraft following their 37-10 win on Saturday night.
Terry Smith fever is alive
Beaver Stadium fans led multiple “Terry! Terry!” chants before, during, and after the Nittany Lions’ victory. Several Penn State players, including cornerbacks A.J. Harris and Audavion Collins, held up “Hire Terry Smith” signs as they ran off the field.
After his team’s first home victory since Sept. 13, Smith said he has “always been a head coach.” He told his players in recent weeks he wants the head-coaching job at Penn State — a message Dani Dennis-Sutton said motivated him and his teammates to “win for Coach T.”
Smith is beloved within the program. His players have bought into his messaging to turn a six-game slide into a two-game winning streak.
And after a turbulent two months filled with heartbreaking losses and a coaching change, Smith finally got his moment on the same field he has spent 16 seasons as both a player and a coach.
“I’m very motivated by the support. My players love me unconditionally. I love them unconditionally,” Smith said. “I had the amazing opportunity today to walk in with my granddaughter and experience people chanting her grandfather’s name. Very few people get an opportunity to experience [that].”
One by one, Penn State’s entire offensive line shared why Smith should be the program’s next head coach. Left guard Olaivavega Ioane praised him for “leading the team out of a dark time.” Sixth-year center Nick Dawkins lauded Smith’s honesty.
Anthony Donkoh, the team’s starting right guard, was one of several players who pointed to a “Hire Terry Smith” sign postgame. Donkoh said players got the signs from fans and wanted to show support for the man known as “the truth-teller” inside the Lasch Building.
“It just makes it a no-brainer for [Smith] to be the head coach,” Donkoh said. “The players are saying it, and the community around them is saying it. You have your guy. You don’t have to look anywhere else for who the head coach should be.”
Penn State running back Nick Singleton led the team with 51 receiving yards against Nebraska on Saturday night.
An offensive explosion
Through its first seven games, Penn State’s inability to generate explosive plays hindered its offensive production. But on Saturday against Nebraska (7-4, 4-4), explosive plays were plentiful.
The Nittany Lions generated three plays of 30 or more yards in the first quarter alone. On the team’s opening drive, Koby Howard caught a 31-yard pass before Allen’s 50-yard scamper set up tight end Andrew Rappleyea’s first career touchdown.
Singleton added a 50-yard reception on the next possession and tacked on a pair of rushing touchdowns on the next two drives to make it four Nittany Lions scores on four first-half drives.
Penn State finished with 412 yards of total offense and tied its season high of 37 points. Grunkemeyer continued his improved play by completing 11 of his 12 pass attempts for 181 yards and a touchdown.
“I’m super proud of the effort from our guys. They are playing inspired football,” Smith said. “In a season that they could easily give up and quit, they’re on the brink of playing some of their best ball.”
Up next
Penn State hits the road for its season finale against Rutgers (5-6, 2-6) on Saturday (3:30 p.m., BTN).
