Upper Hand

The Dallas Cowboys are still the NFL’s biggest tease.

A week after clobbering the Los Angeles Rams with their best performance of season, it was apparently set up too perfectly for the Cowboys.

All they need was to beat the battered Eagles and the NFC East title was theirs again.

Not here. Not now.

The Cowboys proved again that they are not ready for the playoffs after all, falling 17-9 at Lincoln Financial Field to blow the chance to claim a division crown. 

And now this whole trying season is set to go up in smoke. The only way Dallas (7-8) wins the NFL’s worst division now is by defeating Washington next weekend at home while the Eagles (8-7) lose at the New York Giants.

No, it was never supposed to come to this for Jerry Jones’ team, which came into the season with Super Bowl aspirations and started 3-0.

The Eagles, with problems of their own, responded with a gritty effort to keep hope alive for another late-season rally to the playoffs – and it was especially sweet as they claimed first place while preventing their divisional nemesis from celebrating in South Philly.

Philadelphia’s defense carried the day. It prevented the Cowboys from scoring a touchdown, limited Ezekiel Elliott to 47 yards on 13 carries and pestered Dak Prescott (74.5 passer rating) into one of his worst games of the season.

And now the clock ticks on embattled Cowboys coach Jason Garrett.