At 3-8, the Eagles have little to no hope of making the playoffs. But that doesn't mean there isn't still much to fight for and much to prove over the final five games. As head coach Andy Reid intimated earlier in the week, the team will now take a closer look at some of the young promising players on the roster, including quarterback Nick Foles and running back Bryce Brown, who just happened to set the franchise record for rushing yards in a game in his 178-yard performance last Monday night, which also happened to be his first career start. With Michael Vick and LeSean McCoy still on the mend from concussion, Foles and Brown will be in line to start again Sunday night against the Dallas Cowboys.

But those aren't the only other young players under the spotlight. With wide receiver DeSean Jackson on injured reserve with broken ribs, third-year man Riley Cooper and rookie Damaris Johnson will have an opportunity to prove their worth. On the defensive side of the ball, defensive ends Brandon Graham and Vinny Curry will be of special interest following the team's release of Jason Babin earlier in the week. Graham is slated to start at left defensive end and Curry, who only played his first game of the year last week, is in line for significant snaps as well. If you look across the roster, the Eagles are actually ripe with young players who have made contributions. In fact, 11 players who played significant roles in last week's loss to the Carolina Panthers had never taken a snap in the NFL before the start of this season.

Then, of course, there's the motivation of a significant rivalry. Young players included, this Eagles team knows that there's nothing but distaste for the NFC East rivals. The Cowboys, at 5-6, are on the fringes of playoff contention and the Eagles would love nothing more than to spoil the season of their longtime adversaries. For their part, the Cowboys have the advantage of a 10-day rest following their lopsided home loss to the visiting Washington Redskins on Thanksgiving. It is a must-win for Dallas, and for the Eagles, perhaps the absence of high expectations will lead to a freer, more successful, style of play.

Last Time They Met In Dallas
Dec. 24, 2011, Eagles 20-7 - The luster was taken out of the game early as the Eagles were eliminated from playoff contention via the Giants' win over the Jets. However, the Eagles steamrolled their division rival knocking quarterback Tony Romo out of the game early. Michael Vick threw for 293 yards and two touchdowns as the Eagles were just seven seconds shy of a shutout.

When The Eagles Have The Ball
The Eagles will once again roll with their rookie duo in the backfield as Michael Vick and LeSean McCoy continue to recover from their concussions. Bryce Brown needs little hype after his primetime performance last week in which he exploded for a franchise rookie record 178 rushing yards, including an electric 65-yard rushing touchdown. Brown's speed has been on display all season, but his performance in his first NFL start, and the first time in which he carried the ball more than five times in a game, was eye-opening. Still, there is some cleanup to do for Brown, who fumbled the ball away twice, a pair of mistakes that led to the Eagles' eight-point loss.

Nick Foles, meanwhile, wasn't asked to carry the offense last week against the Panthers, as he threw for only 119 yards on 16-of-21 passing. Perhaps not coincidentally though, Foles' performance earned himself a 76.2 quarterback rating, his highest of the three games in which he's received extended playing time this season. When he relieved a concussed Vick against the Cowboys three weeks ago, Foles was asked to carry the offense, as he threw 32 times, completing 22 passes for 219 yards and a touchdown. But Foles also threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown and was sacked for a fumble in the end zone that was also recovered by the Cowboys for a touchdown. For both Brown and Foles, protecting the ball will be of the utmost importance against a Cowboys defense that is only tied for 26th in the league with 12 takeaways.

As to who will be protecting Foles and blocking for Brown, that matter is not yet decided. We know that King Dunlap will line up at left tackle, Dennis Kelly will be the right tackle and veteran Jake Scott will take the reins at right guard. But with Dallas Reynolds hampered by an ankle injury, there's a chance that Evan Mathis, one of only two Eagles along with Brent Celek who will be making his 12th start of the season, will slide from left guard to center. If that's the case, 2011 first-round pick Danny Watkins will take over Mathis' vacated spot at left guard. Regardless of whether it's Reynolds and Mathis or Mathis and Watkins, the interior of the offensive line will have to deal with the Cowboys' interior linemen, not to mention the responsibilities of recognizing when and where the rush will be coming from, notably from DeMarcus Ware. Reynolds practiced Friday and is listed as questionable for the game.

On the outside, the wide receiver corps will be forced to deal with the absence of Desean Jackson, who not only makes plays for himself but opens up areas of freedom in the defense for his fellow receivers. The expected return of slot man Jason Avant will help, but Jeremy Maclin, Riley Cooper and Damaris Johnson will have to step up to help whoever lines up under center for the Eagles. Opponents have been wary of passing against a talented Cowboys secondary that includes first-round pick Morris Claiborne and free agent acquisition Brandon Carr. But that actually could be an area to exploit. Consider that the Cowboys rank ninth in the league with only 219 yards passing allowed per game. But there's a significant spread between that ranking and their ranking of 24th in allowing 7.2 yards per pass.

When The Cowboys Have The Ball

The Cowboys scored 38 points in the first meeting back in Week 10. However, the Eagles defense only allowed 17 of those points.

The critical play of the first meeting was a third-and-5 late in the third quarter. All four of the defensive linemen had a chance to bring down quarterback Tony Romo, but he escaped and completed a 25-yard pass to wide receiver Miles Austin. Three plays later, Romo connected with a diving Dez Bryant for the game-tying touchdown.

The Eagles struggled early in the game with the patented delay-draw runs that the Cowboys are notorious for. Dallas marched 80 yards on its opening drive and 30 of them were gained on the ground by Felix Jones, who also finished the drive with an 11-yard reception for the touchdown.

Credit the defense as the Cowboys offense only scored a field goal in the second quarter before the game-tying touchdown.

Romo finished the game 19-of-26 for 209 yards with two touchdowns for a 122.1 passer rating. Jones finished with 71 yards on the ground. Tight end Jason Witten had eight catches for 47 yards, while Bryant led the team with 87 receiving yards on three catches.

With 10 days to rest after their Thanksgiving loss to the Washington Redskins, the Cowboys will hope to have running back DeMarco Murray in the lineup. Murray has missed the last six games with a foot sprain and is listed as questionable.

Romo, meanwhile, has completed at least 70 percent of his pass attempts in three of the past four games. He has thrown seven touchdowns against two interceptions in that same four-game span. In the Week 12 loss to Washington, Romo threw for 441 yards and three touchdowns.

The time off should also help Austin, who injured his hip against the Redskins. He is second on the team in receiving yards (727) and touchdowns (4).

The Eagles will have a little bit of a different look up front. With the release of defensive end Jason Babin, Brandon Graham is now the starter opposite Trent Cole. Vinny Curry and Phillip Hunt should get additional playing time on the field.

The secondary struggled with big plays against Carolina and the previous week vs. Washington. Certainly, the Cowboys have the ability to execute the big play with Romo's athleticism and the likes of Bryant on the outside and Witten in the middle of the field.

The Eagles did a good job of holding the Cowboys offense to 17 points in the first meeting. They'll need a similar effort as Dallas still clings to playoff aspirations.

Key Matchups

Eagles' Defensive Line vs. Cowboys' Run Offense

The Cowboys entered the 2012 season looking like a dangerous and balanced offense. Running back DeMarco Murray was impressive, and quarterback Tony Romo was surrounded by more talent than at any point in his career. But Murray has missed the last six games, and his replacements have been more or less ineffective. As a result, this Cowboys offense has been about as one-dimensional as it gets. Dallas ranks dead last in rushing, averaging less than 68 yards per game.

The Eagles are allowing 117.5 yards on the ground this season, though they have not allowed more than 76 yards to a running back since Week 3. While the Eagles have yet to allow a 100-yard rusher this season, the Cowboys were able to find some success on the ground. The last time these teams met, Dallas' running backs ran for 102 yards on 24 carries.

However, the defensive line the Cowboys will see Sunday will look different than the one they played against in Week 10. On Tuesday, the Eagles released starting defensive end Jason Babin, replacing him with a platoon of young players in Brandon Graham and Vinny Curry. Look for the Eagles to shut down Felix Jones and the Cowboys rushing attack early.

QB Tony Romo vs. Eagles' Secondary

As bad as the Cowboys have been at running the ball, they have stayed competitive this season because of quarterback Tony Romo and Dallas' passing game. Romo is third in the NFL in passing yards with 3,357 and has tossed 16 touchdowns. But he has also thrown 15 interceptions and has been sacked 26 times.

While the Eagles' secondary has struggled in recent weeks, defensive coordinator Todd Bowles' unit will have to stop Romo and his plethora of receiving weapons if the Eagles hope to snap their seven-game losing streak. The Eagles secondary has been beaten on big plays recently, and hasn't been able to come up with any turnovers. Since Week 10, quarterbacks facing the Eagles have thrown eight touchdowns and no interceptions. It's a trend the Eagles simply must overcome to win.

Players to Watch

DE Vinny Curry

Fans had been clamoring all year to see the Eagles' rookie defensive end, and second-round pick Vinny Curry did not disappoint. In his first NFL action last Monday, Curry played 21 snaps (or 31 percent of the team's total snaps) and finished third on the team with five tackles.

With the release of Jason Babin on Tuesday, the Eagles' young defensive ends like Curry will be asked to step up against a Cowboys offense ranked ninth in yards per game. Curry was a pass rushing force in college, and the Eagles could certainly use some of that pressure against the Cowboys. Quarterback Tony Romo has been sacked 26 times, including three by the Eagles in their Week 10 meeting. Curry will be asked to build on his positive performance and help generate pressure on Romo.

WR Riley Cooper

Since being drafted by the Eagles in 2010, wide receiver Riley Cooper has spent much of his time out of the spotlight. But with DeSean Jackson's season over, Cooper will be asked to step up and continue his midseason surge.

Cooper broke his collarbone on the first day of hitting at Training Camp, and missed the entire preseason, as well as the first five games of the regular season. But in his last three games, Cooper has made his presence felt. He has eight catches for 92 yards and an impressive one-handed touchdown which came the last time the Eagles faced the Cowboys. With injuries taking their toll on the Eagles' receivers, look for rookie quarterback Nick Foles to pay attention to his 6-3, 222-pound target.