ARLINGTON, Texas — Doug Pederson could have given the Eagles a chance to beat the Cowboys in regulation and sneak out of AT&T Stadium with a win, but instead, he kicked it and the Eagles lost 29-23 in overtime.
In hindsight, maybe the Eagles should have been more aggressive.
After they scored a touchdown on Carson Wentz’s pass to Darren Sproles with just 1:45 left in regulation, DeMarcus Lawrence was called for an unnecessary roughness on the extra point.
If Pederson wanted, he could have taken the ball at the 1-yard line with a chance to get a two-point conversion and give the Eagles a win in a game they probably had no right to win. Instead, he chose to keep the extra point and head to overtime.
“The decision-making was to kick the extra point and tie it up,” he said. “I just elected at that point just to go for the kick.”
Pederson said the Eagles had a brief discussion on the sideline, but “felt good about it.”
After the loss, Pederson was asked if he’d do it the same way if given the chance again. He said he stuck by his decision.
NFL
“Fourth quarter. Late in the game where it was,” he said. “Opportunity, you know, to just keep points on the board. Nothing other than that.”
It’s tough to kill Pederson for not making a call that would have taken a point off the board and could have potentially lost the game without a chance to go to overtime. But it does sort of go against his aggressive nature. This is the guy who wrote the book “Fearless” after all and has built his reputation on making gutsy calls.
It’s pretty telling that Pederson didn’t go for the two-pointer. Here’s what he said about those scenarios last season. Good pull by PhillyVoice’s Jimmy Kempski.
“That, to me, is almost a no-brainer to go for it,” Pederson said last season.
It’s a little telling that even after the Eagles’ offense seemed to get going Sunday afternoon in the second half, he still wasn’t confident enough in them to pick up one yard at the goal line in a crucial situation.
Instead, the Eagles played it safe, went to overtime and then lost as the Cowboys drove 75 yards to score a touchdown and end the game.
Was it the right call to go for two? It’s hard to say. Maybe we’d be killing Pederson if they tried it and failed. But maybe they would have gotten in the end zone and kept their playoff hopes alive.
Hindsight is 20/20, of course, but this is one that might haunt the 2018 Eagles.
Click here to download the new MyTeams App by NBC Sports! Receive comprehensive coverage of your teams and stream the Flyers, Sixers and Phillies games easily on your device.
More on the Eagles
-
Carson Wentz won't be elite until he learns to play a complete game
-
Hamstrung in secondary, Eagles give up staggering numbers to Cowboys
-
Eagles can move on from 'sickening' defeat but no changing what happened
-
One thing clear after wild OT loss — these Eagles are just not good enough
-
Eagles robbed by 'ridiculous' call on opening kickoff vs. Cowboys