Tony Romo throws for two scores as the Cowboys top the Eagles.  COWBOYS 38, EAGLES 23 PHILADELPHIA — They were going to play dirges for one of these desperate teams, but little did the Cowboys realize that destiny would be sitting in their laps at the end of the day. What could have been their funeral turned into a revival. In knocking out Michael Vick and burying the Eagles, 38-23, at the Linc Sunday, the Cowboys put themselves in position to be tied for the NFC East lead in two weeks’ time. Amazing but true. They’ll have the chance to win two home games, next Sunday against the 2-7 Browns and Thanksgiving against the 3-6 Redskins, before the suddenly slumping Giants even take the field again after their bye. If Dallas manages to take both winnable games, Jerry Jones’ kids will be 6-5 and a half-game back when the Giants kick off against the Packers on Sunday night, Nov. 25. Not that they were ready to consider that possibility after a tumultuous week. With ex-coach Jimmy Johnson leading the chorus of discontent with Jones’ handling of the franchise, a hypothetical ax was aimed at the head of coach Jason Garrett. A fifth loss in six games would have put Cowboys Nation in panic mode. “We don’t use words like desperate,” QB Tony Romo joked, not long after admitting the Cowboys had their backs against the wall. “Obviously, the importance of this game was at the highest of levels. I don’t think we’re thinking about anything other than the exact same feeling we had this week. We need to get another win. We’re still in the hole. We’re still 4-5. We still need take the same approach.” The approach was simple enough. Stop killing themselves. Facing the Eagles, their cousins in self-destruction, it was almost a case of who would find a way to lose. That formula changed somewhat when former Eagle Ernie Sims came through clean on a blitz with about 12:00 left in the half and found the human piñata otherwise known as Michael Vick in his sights. Vick, battered all season behind the Eagles’ shabby O-line, finally took one too many hits and left the game with a concussion, ushering in what many Eagles fans hope was the beginning of the Nick Foles era. The rookie from Arizona, who hadn’t played one snap or had any practice time with the first team, entered the game to a standing ovation and rallied the Eagles to a seven-point third-quarter lead. Ultimately, though, he couldn’t prevent the Eagle unfaithful from exiting with boos while calling for the head of coach Andy Reid, who has a five-game losing streak for the first time in his 14 seasons. Vick will start next week’s game at the Redskins if he passes the concussion protocol, Reid said, although at 3-6, the Eagles may be running out of season and Reid out of his long-held job. “He’s the quarterback, yeah,” Reid said afterward. “But he’s hurt right now, so I just have to see how he’s doing. Let’s take a little consideration for Michael here. “Nobody can predict the future,” he said in response to whether a Vick injury was inevitable this year. “I was hoping he would make it through without having a concussion here but that’s where we sit right now with him. The kid is a warrior, he’s tough, competitive, the whole works.” Foles would throw the first TD pass of his career when former Packer safety Charlie Peprah — acquired just two weeks ago — blew a coverage and left Jeremy Maclin wide open for a 44-yard score, followed by a field goal that made it 17-10. But things turned quickly in Dallas’ favor, for once this year. Romo changed the dynamic of the game with one play, by sliding under two sack attempts to find Miles Austin for a huge first down. The Cowboys would go on to score three touchdowns in a span of 2:35, first on a perfect Romo strike to a diving Dez Bryant from 30 yards out, then on a 78-yard punt return by Dwayne Harris up the left sideline and finally on a 47-yard interception return by Brandon Carr on a ball thrown a little behind and off the hands of DeSean Jackson. The Cowboys would tack on a late TD when Jason Hatcher recovered a Foles fumble caused by Anthony Spencer in the end zone. “Any time you can score miscellaneous touchdowns, it gives you a great opportunity to win. We had three of them today,” Garrett said. “We talk about all three phases. Each of the units made signature plays, difference-making.” The difference a week makes can’t be understated either. “I don’t think the approach changed that much this week other than the guys knowing we had to get this win,” Romo said. “The little stuff. We won the game tonight but we’ve still got a lot of stuff we’ve got to correct, the stuff that can cost you and they have cost us at times this year. You don’t want the games to come down to a field goal or a hand being inbounds (the overturning of Bryant’s would-be game-winner against the Giants). I think we just need to continue to get better.” If they do, the Giants will be hearing their footsteps.
Dallas scored big on all sides of the ball and pumped some life back into the NFC East race. Tony Romo threw a pair of touchdowns, Dwayne Harris had a 78-yard punt return TD, and Brandon Carr returned an interception 47 yards for a score to lead the Dallas Cowboys to a 38-23 win over the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.