Clarence Hill: Who has the edge between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles?

The 5-0 Philadelphia Eagles and quarterback Jalen Hurts have been one of the biggest surprises of the NFL season.

Yet, Dallas Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence isn’t that impressed.

Hurt is playing the best football of his pro career, leading an Eagles offense that ranks second in yards and fifth in points.

Yet, there is one problem, per Lawrence.

“Has he played us?’’ Lawrence asked. “All right. Different teams run different things and different schemes, you know what I’m saying. They’re going to put a different emphasis on things. All you all need to write is he hasn’t played the Cowboys yet, so we don’t know how good is he.’’

Lawrence acknowledges that Hurts “knows the system better” and is “making better reads and stuff like that” but he still believes there are shortcomings in his game that a Cowboys defense that is playing as well as any in the league can exploit.

“We ‘dem ‘Boys. Remember that. Don’t worry about it. ... Ya’ll will see it on Sunday,” Lawrence said.

So who has the edge on Sunday?

Cowboys Offense vs. Eagles Defense

The Cowboys offense is the team’s weak link. The rushing offense currently ranks 15th and passing attack ranks 27th. The best thing the Cowboys have done is not turn the ball over and come up with timely plays. They will need to do more of that on Sunday. It will start with the running game.

The Cowboys rushed for 164 yards against the Rams. The Eagles are giving up just 105 rushing yards per game, ranking 10th in the league. But the Eagles are allowing 5.0 yards per attempt, which ranks 25th-best in the NFL. The issue is teams have not had many attempts against them because they have been behind. The Eagles average only 21.2 rushes per game. Only the Chiefs have defended fewer rushing attempts (20.6).

The Cowboys and Cooper Rush, however, can’t get in a passing contest with the Philadelphia defense.

Edge: Eagles

Eagles Offense vs. Cowboys Defense

The Eagles rank second in total offense (419.8 yards per game) and fifth in scoring (27 points per game). Through five games, the undefeated Eagles lead the league with 58 explosive plays. Sunday’s game will be strength on strength as the Cowboys defense ranks third with just 14.4 points allowed per game. No team has scored more than 19 points against the Cowboys. The Cowboys also rank second in the league in sacks.

While Jalen Hurts has only four touchdown passes, he has rushed for six touchdowns and leads a rushingoffense that averages 160 yards per game. The Cowboys run defense gives up 117 yards per game. and has been gashed on the ground a few times

Edge: Eagles

Special Teams

The Eagles have been putrid on specials so far in 2022. They had a field goal blocked and muffed two punts. The Eagles are 25th in punt return average, 31st in kick return average, 21st covering kick returns and their punter is 26th in net average. The Eagles are also now employing an emergency rookie kicker due to an injury to Pro Bowler Jake Elliott. Suffice it to say, the Cowboys don’t have those problems with Bryan Anger averaging 45.9 yard per punt and has downed 13 inside the 20.

Edge: Cowboys

Coaching

Give Eagles coach Nick Sirianni credit for turning his team in the league’s best through the first five games. He is an early favorite for NFL coach of the year honors. But he and the Eagles have yet to face any real adversity. No one has done a better job managing his team through adversity and succeeding than Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy, who has pushed all the right buttons as his team has reeled off four straight wins since the loss of quarterback Dak Prescott.

Edge: Cowboys

Intangibles

The Cowboys have won seven of the last nine games in the series and swept the Eagles twice last year. This is a must-win for Philadelphia facing a Cowboys team without their starting QB. Or the Cowboys will be in their heads.

Edge: Cowboys

Prediction: Eagles 17, Cowboys 13