Philadelphia vs Dallas | Betting Analysis Week 3 NFL

One of the most heated rivalries in the NFL closes Week 3 on Monday night as the Philadelphia Eagles visit the Dallas Cowboys in an NFC East matchup. The Cowboys are favored on the NFL odds to improve to 2-1.

How to Bet Eagles at Cowboys NFL Odds & TV Info

When: Monday, 8:15 PM ET
Where: AT&T Stadium
TV: ESPN
Radio: http://www.siriusxm.com/nfl
Stream Option: ESPN app
Opening NFL Lines: Cowboys -3.5 (total 51.5)

Series History

Dallas leads the series 67-53. Last year they split. The Cowboys have won the past three at home vs. Philly and it was 37-17 in Week 16. Andy Dalton threw for 377 yards and three touchdowns, but he’s now in Chicago. Dak Prescott was out injured then. The Eagles led 14-3 after one quarter but Jalen Hurts couldn’t keep the offense rolling while giving up points on five consecutive Dallas possessions.

Why Bet on Philadelphia?

The Eagles (1-1) blew out the Falcons in Week 1 but lost 17-11 at home to the Niners last Sunday. Jalen Hurts completed 12-of-23 passes for 190 yards, adding 10 carries for 82 yards and a touchdown. Hurts was erratic as a passer, nailing Quez Watkins on a deep shot that resulted in 91 yards on one play but underthrowing receivers at multiple points later in the game. Hurts was the most effective runner the Eagles had, leading the team in rushing yards and scoring their only touchdown.

Watkins caught both of his targets for 117 yards in the Eagles’ loss. Watkins was placed in the starting lineup over Greg Ward for his explosive speed and hasn’t disappointed through two weeks.

Philadelphia leads the NFC and ranks 2nd in the NFL in rushing offense (162.0), trailing only Baltimore (220.0). The Eagles have rushed for 150+ yards in back-to-back games for the first time since 11/5/17-11/26/17 (three games). The last time they did so in the first two games of the regular season was in 1993.

Philly lost Pro Bowl defensive end Brandon Graham to a season-ending torn Achilles in Week 2 and also Pro Bowl guard Brandon Brooks for several weeks with a pectoral strain. Graham is the longest tenured member of the team, a captain and the energetic engine of the defense. Through two weeks of the season, the veteran Ryan Kerrigan has played 66 of 142 snaps (46%) on defense and has primarily been Graham’s backup/rotational counterpart at the left defensive end spot so he could be the primary replacement. The 11-year veteran cannot stay on the field forever, meaning the Eagles will most likely have to shift one of the defensive ends who typically play on the right side of the line over to the left to spell Kerrigan.

Tight end Zach Ertz landed on the COVID list last week but has since been activated and thus should be able to play. He spent the offseason looking for a team who would trade for him, only to find no interested parties. Through two games, Ertz has just four targets. Starting left tackle Jordan Mailata (knee) is out for this game. Andre Dillard will take his place.

Philadelphia has posted a 9-3 record on Monday Night Football since 2013 (including 4-1 since 2017), which marks the 5th-highest Monday Night Football winning percentage (.750) in the NFL. The Eagles have won 2 of their last 3 games against the Cowboys (since 2019). This will also be Philadelphia’s first Monday Night Football game vs. Dallas since 9/15/08 on the road.

Why Bet on Dallas?

Each of the Cowboys’ two games have been decided by three points or fewer, including their walk-off road win over the Chargers last Sunday. Dallas has kept games close by leading the NFL in both takeaways (six) and turnover margin (plus-four).

The Cowboys beat the Chargers 20-17 on a 56-yard field goal as time expired by Greg Zuerlein. Dak Prescott completed 23-of-27 passes, registering a completion percentage of 85.2%. Since he entered the league in 2016, Prescott’s four games with a completion percentage over 85.0% are the most by any passer. Prescott didn’t score for the first time in seven full games. He led the Cowboys on two scoring drives in the first quarter, both of which ended in rushing touchdowns. With three touchdown passes Monday, Prescott would notch his 20th career game with three-plus touchdowns through the air, tying Danny White for second all-time in team history.

CeeDee Lamb caught 8-of-9 targets for 81 yards. Lamb is tied for second in the NFL with four catches of 20-plus yards in 2021, buoyed by his fifth-ranked 105 yards after the catch. Fellow wideout Amari Cooper had just three catches for 24 yards and is banged up.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said he’s “hopeful” Cooper (ribs) can play against the Eagles. If Cooper is able to suit up, he’ll be facing a Philly secondary that’s held both the Falcons and 49ers below 200 passing yards in its first two contests. Cooper is tied atop the NFL with 16 receptions in 2021, which ties a career-high for catches in the first two weeks of a season. Cooper needs nine receptions against the Eagles to tie his own Cowboys record for most receptions through three games (25). With a 100-yard performance against the Eagles, Cooper would move into a tie for eighth in franchise history for the most 100-yard receiving games (12). Cooper has more receptions against Philadelphia (33) than any other team he has played against in his career.

Defensively, the Cowboys placed LB Keanu Neal on the reserve/COVID-19 list but have activated defensive end Randy Gregory off it. Gregory rejoins a Dallas pass rush unit that PFF grades 21st this year. Philly QB Jalen Hurts leads the league in time to throw this season, after also leading all quarterbacks in time to throw in 2020.

This will be the Cowboys’ 83^rd appearance on Monday night and 172nd prime-time game the team has played overall. Dallas is 92-80 in prime-time games.