To close out Week 7 of the NFL season, the Philadelphia Eagles host the Dallas Cowboys, and I’m sure the NFL schedulers thought this game would be more appealing. Instead, a 2-4 Cowboys squad faces an Eagles team without Jalen Hurts. The Eagles put up just 14 points last week with Tanner McKee, and now he’ll be their quarterback all season, with Hurts ruled out for the year after a bizarre blood clot saga. Thankfully, Hurts will be OK. With that, here are our best NFL Monday Night Football picks for this matchup.
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NFL Monday Night Football Picks & Predictions: Eagles vs. Cowboys
(Odds Courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
Eagles +4.5 (-108)
After a loss to the Panthers, the Eagles are yet again at home for Tanner McKee’s second start of the season. In the loss to the Panthers, McKee didn’t play terribly, completing 26-of-45 passes for 215 yards and one touchdown. The Eagles’ biggest problem was their lack of a running game. Dameon Pierce had just 12 carries for 35 yards and a touchdown. It looks like Saquon Barkley will return after practicing this week, though he is listed as questionable.
Getting Barkley back would be a massive boost for the Eagles’ offense.
Additionally, McKee will face a Cowboys defense cemented in the bottom third of the league in pressure, dead last in rushing yards allowed (149.8) and 23rd in passing yards allowed (232.7) per game.
The Cowboys primarily play Cover 3, but they also play a lot of Cover 1. Against those coverages since coming into the league, McKee has a 5:1 touchdown-to-interception ratio.
Furthermore, in two games (1-1) against the Eagles last season, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott completed 62.9% of his passes for 542 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
I’ll take the Eagles and the points at home against one of the NFL’s worst defenses.
Saquon Barkley Anytime Touchdown Scorer (+100)
After missing two games, Saquon Barkley appears poised to rejoin the Eagles. That is great news not only for their offense, but for Barkley, too, as he’ll have a chance, once he’s healed, to destroy the Cowboys’ defense.
As mentioned, the Cowboys allow nearly 150 rushing yards per game, and opposing running backs have scored in all but two games against them this season. They’ve allowed five rushing and two receiving touchdowns to the position, surrendering 4.26 yards per carry and nearly four receptions per game.
In Tanner McKee’s second start, Barkley should get a fair number of touches and be a popular target.
Tanner McKee Under 194.5 Passing Yards (-112)
Tanner McKee threw for 215 yards last week against the Panthers, but it took 45 attempts, averaging 4.8 yards per attempt. I mentioned before that against the two coverages the Cowboys most often play, he had a nice 5:1 touchdown-to-interception ratio, but his yards-per-attempt average is also 6.4.
In three career starts, McKee has averaged 5.8 yards per carry. Interestingly, he’s also attempted 40+ passes in all three, but he’ll face a Cowboys defense so bad against the run that opposing quarterbacks average just 30.2 pass attempts per game against them, tied for sixth in the NFL. For context, the league leaders are the Detroit Lions at 42.6.
With Saquon Barkley back, I expect McKee to dink and dunk, and Barkley to take over.
