As the Eagles prepare for their playoff-opening trip back to Dallas, they must deal with the fresh wounds of the 24-0 loss they suffered at the hands of Cowboys in the season finale. On defense, Sean McDermott's crew will have to focus on stopping an array of weapons that exploded in week 17.
"It's going to be a huge week after getting embarrassed down there yesterday," said defensive end Juqua Parker. "We have to be pumped up for this game because going down there and losing 24-0, that's making us look bad. So we know that we have to go out there and play our best game against them."
"Flat out, you saw it yesterday, we got our butts whupped," said strongside linebacker Moise Fokou. "But at the same time, we get to go back and compete against the same team, so we already know what they like to do. It's all about fine-tuning everything and going back down there a second time and ... taking care of business."
The Eagles allowed 474 yards of total offense, including 311 passing yards to Tony Romo.
"He's one of those guys that if you give him a lot of time, he'll pick your defense apart," Fokou said. "You have to really get in his face and make him worry about his back side."
And Romo knows that he'll be seeing a different Eagles' defense this time around.
"After winning like we did today, we're probably going to see a completely different team next week," said the Dallas quarterback after the game. "I don't think they liked what they did today, that's why I suspect we're going to see every kind of blitz ever invented."
Romo tossed 90 of his yards to wide receiver Miles Austin and 76 more to tight end Jason Witten.
"He's a big target for Romo," Fokou said of Witten. "He's not the fastest guy, but (he's) very crafty. He knows how to use his space."
Limiting the production of the Cowboys through the air will be imperative this Saturday night, but it still all starts up front.
"I would have to say slowing the run game down," said safety Macho Harris when asked what the biggest key to stopping the Cowboys' offense will be. The Eagles allowed 178 yards rushing to the Cowboys, the highest total they've allowed on the ground all season long. "We just need to be better all the way around and that's what we're going to do.
"Whenever a team beats you, your competitiveness in you will want to play them again right away to get that bad taste out of your mouth. We're fortunate enough to get a second chance and ... we're going to capitalize on that opportunity."
-- Posted by Bo Wulf, 3:34 p.m., January 4
