Why Eagles’ Gardner Minshew not taking solace from his solid performance after loss to Cowboys

ARLINGTON, Texas – Eagles quarterback Gardner Minshew broke the huddle with 20 seconds left in the fourth quarter, down 40-34 to the Dallas Cowboys in Saturday’s pivotal NFC East game. Minshew had led the offense 56 yards down the field and down to the Cowboys’ 19-yard line with a chance to tie the game with a touchdown and kick a potential game-winning extra point.

As Minshew dropped back to pass, he felt the pressure of two Cowboys defenders coming toward him. After scrambling around but facing the conclusion that there was nothing to do but throw the ball and hope for a prayer, Minshew threw in the direction of wide receiver A.J. Brown. Although Minshew thought there was a chance for a Christmas miracle, four Cowboys surrounded Brown, and the ball fell to the blue endzone turf, seeing his 40th and final pass attempt of the game go incomplete.

Minshew finished the game completing 24 of 40 passes (60%) for 355 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions in the Eagles’ 40-34 loss, spoiling their chances to clinch the NFC East title on their rival’s field. Despite the loss, Minshew held his own in place of an injured Jalen Hurts, who is dealing with a sprained shoulder, becoming the first Eagles quarterback since 1991 to have a fourth-down passing touchdown and a fourth-down rushing touchdown in the same game.

After the game, Minshew was not taking any solace in moral victories, saying he could have played better.

“We lost, so that sucks,” Minshew said. “You always want to do your job well enough for the team to win, but I felt like I didn’t do it. Obviously, at this point, there are things to grow on and things built on, so we have a lot to clean up.”

Minshew said that when the game plan was formulated, the Eagles did not make any drastic changes, using many of the same play designs and concepts the Eagles have run for most of the season except for the designed run plays that are put in for Hurts. Minshew added that Hurts was instrumental leading up to the game, and that was only a microcosm of how much Hurts has assisted him in the past two seasons.

“Jalen has been awesome helping me get up to speed with what it feels like with these guys in the game,” Minshew said. “He has a lot of experience playing Dallas, and I was leaning on that. But really, I’ve learned from Jalen over the last two years. He’s doing some really incredible stuff out there, and to be able to watch him not only win games but every day at practice, I’ve learned a ton from him. I’m really grateful for him and the role he played this week.”

In the second half, Minshew relied on Brown and DeVonta Smith. Smith was targeted 12 times by Minshew, catching eight passes for 113 yards and two touchdowns, helping him get over the 1,000 receiving yards mark for the first time in his career (1,014). Brown finished with six catches for 103 yards. Smith said that Minshew played well, but the offense’s four turnovers led to Saturday’s loss.

“Overall, we played good as an offense, but we just shot ourselves in the foot,” Smith said. “We turned the ball over and things like that. I feel like he did a good job. He made the right reads and checked to the right things that we needed. We just got to take better care of the ball.”

Center Jason Kelce also saw some bright spots with Minshew under center but echoed the concern about committing so many turnovers.

“We moved the ball effectively, but turnovers were our Achilles heel. It was not all bad. We put points up, and we moved the ball effectively. We also ran the ball and threw the ball well. We could have done better for sure, but the turnovers killed us big time.”

The Eagles will have a decision to make leading up to next week’s game against the New Orleans Saints. The Eagles will be in the same situation as they were this week, deciding if Hurts’ shoulder is well enough to play and decide if they should reinsert him as the starter. If Hurts cannot play, Minshew said he would be ready to step in again and try to clinch everything in front of the fans at Lincoln Financial Field.

“I’m just trying to win,” Minshew said. “Any time you step out there, that’s all it is. There are a ton of guys that put in a ton of effort and a ton of work into this team and into this season. I just don’t want to let them down and do everything I can for them to win and get that first seed in the NFC.”