National Football League

Eagles at Cowboys Week 8: 3 things we learned

Published Oct. 31, 2016 9:09 a.m. ET

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The Dallas Cowboys look unstoppable after beating the Philadelphia Eagles in overtime on Sunday night, but what did we learn from the contest?

The marquee matchup of Week 8 featured the Dallas Cowboys completing a comeback over the surging Philadelphia Eagles, needing overtime to do it. The victory makes six-straight victories for the Cowboys and allows them to take command over the top spot in the NFC East. A top-tier Eagles defense flexed on the Cowboys all night long, but the rookie duo of Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott proved to be too much to handle.

Things looked bleak for the Cowboys, but Prescott was able to get the edge on rookie counterpart Carson Wentz. He would lead his team down field and sealed he victory on a five yard touchdown pass. Here are the three biggest takeaways from the Dallas victory over the Eagles Sunday night.

Ezekiel Elliott is unreal

Despite not eclipsing the 100-yard rushing mark for the fifth consecutive game, Elliott proved that he is a becoming a force in this league. Racking up 96-yards off 22 carries does not do justice to the amount of damage Elliott was doing to the Eagles defense.

Elliott still came out and produced amid lingering rumors of a pending investigation into allegations against Elliott domestic violence situation. If one thing has become apparent it’s: Elliott is the primary running back for the Cowboys this season, and if want to be taken serious as super bowl contenders they need him on the field.

Eagles Defense is for real

The outcome wasn’t in the Eagles favor, but they showed that they are still a force on Sunday evening. Picking off Prescott once and forcing two fumbles by the Cowboys. They made Prescott uncomfortable all night forcing him to go an abysmal 19-39.

They may have lost, but it does not fall on the defense. They had enough key-stops to allow Wentz and the Eagle defense to attempt to run up the score on Dallas. Despite Elliotts 96-yards, It was also encouraging that they held the league leading running back to under 100.

Dez makes a difference

After spending the last three-weeks injured, wide receiver Dez Bryant made his presence know. The veteran receiver caught the game-tying long bomb from Prescott, and finished the game with four receptions for 113-yards with a touchdown.

Bryant instantly made a difference on offense, providing Prescott with a new target and taking some of the defensive pressure off the other guys. Despite only grabbing four, Prescott targeted Bryant 14 times, showing that he has the utmost confidence in his receiver coming off an injury. It will almost be scary if Prescott and Bryant can develop insane chemistry, it will just allow Elliott more opportunity.

The Cowboys should be able to continue their dominance as they face off against a struggling Cleveland Browns team. It will be interesting to monitor if Prescott will continue to get the nod at the quarterback position with regular starter Tony Romo creeping back to 100 percent health. For the Eagles, they will have their hands full attempting to contain Odell Beckem Jr. and the New York Giants who are coming fresh off a bye week.