The Washington Commanders will start rookie Sam Howell for their regular-season finale against the Dallas Cowboys having been eliminated from postseason contention.

Commanders head coach Ron Rivera confirmed the decision on Wednesday as they re-shuffle the QB deck for one final time.

Rivera swapped Taylor Heinicke for Carson Wentz at QB for last week's 24-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns, which ended the Commanders' playoffs hopes.

Wentz, in his first start after almost two months out with a fractured finger, completed 16 of 28 passes for 143 yards with three interceptions.

"I think first, initially, is obviously, it would be his first start, and it would become a little bit of a circus, having to deal with all of the things that come with being a starter, but also, you look at the opponent, and who you're playing and what they're playing for," Rivera told reporters.

"Going with Taylor would have given us an opportunity to see what they're doing, how they're doing it and would have given Sam a chance to look at it if we had gone with Taylor.

"At the end of the day, at some point, if Sam ever gets an opportunity to be a starter, this would be the chance. Why not get it over with now and go from there?

"The most important thing is that we're really intrigued in terms of watching and seeing what Sam can do as a quarterback in this league."

Wentz, 30, has two years remaining on his Washington contract, having joined via trade last offseason from the Indianapolis Colts.

Dak Prescott was just glad to get the job done as the Dallas Cowboys kept alive their hopes of winning the NFC East division with a 27-13 victory over the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium.

The Cowboys improved to a 12-4 record after capitalising on a series of penalties to lead from start to finish, leaving them hot on the trail of the 13-2 Philadelphia Eagles in their division.

Mike McCarthy's team must now defeat the Washington Commanders in the final game and hope the Eagles lose both of their remaining two to claim top spot.

Prescott threw both touchdown passes for Dalton Schultz, but also stretched his run to six games with an interception, giving up two in the second quarter as the Titans rallied to 10-6 at half-time with two Randy Bullock field goals.

"A win's a win, and we're going to take it and we're going to get better from the mistakes and make sure that we're improving," said Prescott.

"But a road win, short week, you've got to take them all. And style points and all that, that's for all of you who think games are won on paper."

Asked about the preparations required for the Cowboys' potentially pivotal clash with the Commanders, Prescott added: "Obviously get the rest we need, get our bodies back underneath us and then mentally understanding what's to come.

"Take a couple of days or two and get away from it, but know when we come back we've got to finish this season off on the right foot and we've got a long, long run ahead of us that we know we're capable of making."

Prescott completed 29 of 41 attempts for 282 yards with two TDs and two interceptions, tying Troy Aikman with 165 passing TDs for second most in franchise history.

While McCarthy recognised some shortcomings in the team's performance, much like Prescott he was just content to put another win on the board, particularly with a growing injury list.

"I'm in tune with the injuries and all the things that are going on," he said. "All the little stuff. Yeah, it wasn't clean. This was not a clean performance. We recognise that. I'm not disputing that at all.

"But I do know my football team. I know that they came out of a hard victory on Sunday and took a little longer to get their bodies back.

"That's what Thursday night football is. It's a tough challenge. But the most important thing is we answered the bell and we got it done."

Dak Prescott threw two touchdown passes as the Dallas Cowboys kept alive their hopes of winning the NFC East division with a 27-13 victory over the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium on Thursday.

The Cowboys capitalised on a series of penalties to lead from start to finish and improve to a 12-4 record, behind the 13-2 Philadelphia Eagles in their division. Dallas need to win their final game against the Washington Commanders and hope the Eagles lose both of their remaining two to top the NFC East.

Prescott threw both TD passes for Dalton Schultz, although he also extended his run to six games with an interception, giving up two in the second quarter as the Titans rallied to 10-6 at half-time with two Randy Bullock field goals.

Ezekiel Elliott, who ran 37 yards on 19 carries, rushed in the game's opening touchdown in the first quarter, extending his run of TDs to nine straight games. CeeDee Lamb brought up 100 yards across 11 receptions.

The Titans slump to their sixth straight loss but remain in playoffs contention at 7-9, with victory next week against the Jacksonville Jaguars to determine the winner of the AFC South.

Titans QB Joshua Dobbs, making his first career start, made 20 of 39 passes for 232 yards with one touchdown, for Robert Woods, and one interception. Prescott completed 29 of 41 attempts for 282 yards with two TDs and two interceptions, tying Troy Aikman with 165 passing TDs for second most in franchise history.

Prescott found Schultz to make it 17-6 in the third quarter after a penalty on third-and-19 against Tre Avery for pass interference on Michael Gallup led to a 51-yard gain, with the Cowboys scoring on the next play. Monty Rice was penalised for roughing the passer on a second-and-10, leading to Schultz's second TD.

Despite playing without their starting quarterback, the Philadelphia Eagles put up a strong fight on the road against the Dallas Cowboys before ultimately going down 40-34.

Entering the contest at 13-1, the Eagles were missing Jalen Hurts for the first time this season, meaning backup Gardner Minshew would run the show.

One of the more capable backups in the league, Minshew played well, rushing for a touchdown in the first half before throwing one to begin the third quarter to put his side ahead 27-17. The Cowboys fought back to tie things up, but Minshew was not done, tossing his second touchdown of the game to pull ahead 34-27 early in the fourth.

However, Dallas had too much firepower down the stretch, highlighted by receiver CeeDee Lamb's big outing.

Lamb scored the Cowboys' only touchdown in the first half, and he struck again with his side trailing in the last quarter, tying the game at 34-34 to cap a 12-catch, 120-yard performance.

Dallas finally stuck their noses back in front when Brett Maher converted a 26-yard field goal with 2:19 remaining on the clock, leaving the Eagles with plenty of time to mount a game-winning drive, but it ended abruptly after Miles Sanders' fumble on the very first play.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott completed 27 of his 35 passes for 347 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, while his counterpart Minshew was 24-of-40 for two scores and two picks.

With the win, Dallas improved their record to 11-4 and secured their place in the playoffs, although they will need the Eagles (13-2) to lose their last two for any chance at stealing the division.

Bosa, Kittle lead eighth consecutive 49ers victory

The San Francisco 49ers (11-4) remain the hottest team in the NFL after rattling off their eighth straight win, defeating the Washington Commanders 37-20.

It continues rookie quarterback Brock Purdy's dream start to his career, with four wins from his first four starts since Jimmy Garoppolo's injury. He completed 15 of his 22 passes for 234 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, but the stars of the game were tight end George Kittle and pass-rusher Nick Bosa.

Kittle – who had only four touchdowns for the season prior to last week's game – now has four touchdowns in the past two weeks, following up a 93-yard, two touchdown performance with Saturday's 120-yard, two-touchdown showing.

Meanwhile, Defensive Player of the Year favourite Nick Bosa sacked Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke twice, taking his league-leading sack total to 17.5 in 14 games.

The Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys face off on Christmas Eve with the former on the brink of claiming the NFC East title.

Having compiled a 13-1 record across their first 14 games, the Eagles are three games ahead of the Cowboys in the division.

They will claim the title from the Cowboys with victory in Dallas but face the challenge of sweeping their rivals without starting quarterback Jalen Hurts.

Hurts is out with a sprained shoulder, meaning the Eagles will be hoping for backup Gardner Minshew to reprise 'Minshew Mania' and lead them to triumph.

The absence of Hurts may remove the downfield passing element from the Eagles' offense and will also have a negative impact on the Philadelphia ground game.

Hurts rushed for three touchdowns in last week's win over the Chicago Bears, taking his tally to 26 for his career. The only Eagles quarterbacks with more are Randall Cunningham (32) and Donovan McNabb (28). 

Still, the Eagles do have one of the most productive running backs in the NFL this season in the form of Miles Sanders, who has averaged 5.16 yards per carry in racking up 1,110 rushing yards. That number ranks fifth in the NFL, as do his 11 rushing touchdowns.

Sanders may be the focal point for the offense for Philadelphia in Week 16, with the onus potentially on him to increase the Eagles' tally of eight rushing touchdowns of 10 yards or more, one which trails only the Cowboys and the Seattle Seahawks (both nine).

Yet there is the distinct possibility that both teams find it tough sledding on the ground. The Eagles and the Cowboys have each allowed only three rushing touchdowns of at least 10 yards.

With Dallas able to complement a running game led by the exciting tandem of Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard with a passing attack overseen by Dak Prescott, the Cowboys have a greater number of avenues towards offensive success. Prescott is fourth among quarterbacks with at least 200 attempts in well-thrown rate. He has delivered an accurate, well-thrown ball on 85.4 per cent of his passes.

The change from Hurts to Minshew makes the Eagles' offense more of an unknown, but if they can survive their starting quarterback's absence and prevail, it will underline their status as the top team in the NFC, if not the NFL.

We are firmly in the business end of the 2022 NFL season.

Seven teams have already clinched their place in the postseason and a further seven will join them in the final three weeks of the campaign.

This is the time of year when room for error is diminished in games that have a huge bearing on how the final playoff field shakes out.

As such, festive feeling will be thin on the ground for those teams playing in such encounters during this weekend's Christmas schedule who come up short.

So often, though, these contests are decided by the game within the game, and here Stats Perform looks at three of the most important Week 16 clashes and the personnel matchups that could decide them.

New England Patriots @ Cincinnati Bengals

Win Probability: Patriots 52.0 per cent

Key Matchup: Matthew Judon and Josh Uche vs. Bengals offensive line

The Patriots' hopes of claiming a Wild Card berth took a massive blow in bizarre circumstances last week as Jakobi Meyers' inexplicable last-second lateral landed in the grateful arms of Las Vegas Raiders pass rusher Chandler Jones, who stiff-armed Mac Jones into the turf and raced into the endzone to deny New England a chance of an overtime win.

At 7-7, they are still just a game behind the Miami Dolphins and must climb off the mat, though they are this week tasked with doing so against one of the hottest teams in football.

The 10-4 Bengals have a one-game edge over the Baltimore Ravens in the race for the AFC North division title, yet there is a matchup the Patriots can look to exploit in this one.

While Cincinnati's offensive line has improved in terms of preventing pressure on Joe Burrow, it remains in the bottom half of the NFL in pass block win rate, in which the Bengals rank 24th.

In Judon and Uche, the Patriots possess a pair of pass rushers who can cause the Cincinnati O-Line huge problems. Judon is second in the NFL in sacks (14.5), behind only Nick Bosa of the San Francisco 49ers, while Uche has 10.5, all of which have come across his last seven games.

Both Judon (40.08 per cent) and Uche (42.38 per cent) possess pass rush win rates way above the average for edge players of 28.74 per cent, and if they are at their best, they could help eradicate the advantage the Bengals have at quarterback and tilt the game in New England's favour.

Seattle Seahawks @ Kansas City Chiefs

Win Probability: Chiefs 80.4 per cent

Key Matchup: Seattle defensive backs vs. Chiefs receivers

Like the Patriots, the Seahawks' prospects of reaching the postseason are in significant jeopardy.

Their hopes of winning the NFC West are gone after the 49ers clinched the division title in Seattle by completing their first sweep of the Seahawks since 2011 in Week 15.

That leaves Seattle fighting for a Wild Card, and the odds are very much against them in this one against a Chiefs team who are in a battle for the AFC's one seed with the Buffalo Bills.

Part of the reason why the Seahawks are still in the mix is the play of their young but talented secondary, which ranks 13th in the NFL in pass coverage win rate according to Stats Perform's matchup data.

Rookie cornerback Tariq Woolen has enjoyed an outstanding first season for Seattle, with his combined open percentage allowed across man and zone coverage of 22.75 the seventh-best among corners with at least 100 total matchups.

The Chiefs' pass-catchers are 13th in terms of winning their coverage matchups in 2022, a year in which the loss of Tyreek Hill has undoubtedly had an impact.

Yet with 82.1 per cent of Patrick Mahomes' throws this season going to an open target, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid continues to excel at scheming receivers into space.

For the Seahawks to have any hope of pulling off a sizeable upset, their secondary must limit the chances for the Chiefs' receivers to enjoy such freedom.

Philadelphia Eagles @ Dallas Cowboys

Win Probability: Cowboys 59 per cent

Key Matchup: Eagles offensive line vs. Cowboys pass rush

This NFC East matchup may have lost some of its lustre with the Eagles needing a meltdown to surrender the division title to the Cowboys and Jalen Hurts out because of a shoulder injury.

But that should not take away from the true heavyweight fight this game provides in the trenches.

Micah Parsons may be losing ground in the Defensive Player of the Year race, but he remains the headline act for a defense that is first in the NFL in pass rush win rate.

That would normally give the Cowboys a clear edge in a matchup with every offensive line, but not with this one.

Philadelphia's O-line leads the league in pass block win rate, with the Eagles allowing a pressure rate of 32.9 per cent that is the fourth-best in the NFL.

The Eagles maintaining their strength up front against Parsons and Co. will obviously be critical to Philadelphia as they seek to overcome the absence of Hurts.

There is no substitute for the value Hurts brings in the run game, but the Cowboys' defense has shown enough vulnerability to suggest backup quarterback Gardner Minshew can have success against Dallas, provided the offensive line wins the battle up front and allows the Eagles to stay on schedule.

The Philadelphia Eagles may have already won the NFC East and will enter Week 16 without quarterback Jalen Hurts, but a clash with the Dallas Cowboys remains the standout game on the slate.

While the Cowboys' attempts to stick with the Eagles this year were hampered by their road form, Dallas are strong at home and will hope to send a warning to their division rivals ahead of a playoff campaign in which both teams will hope to feature prominently.

Elsewhere, the Kansas City Chiefs have work to do still as they aim, like the Eagles, to secure a bye with the number one seed in the AFC.

But it is not all about the NFL's leading lights, with the battle for position ahead of the postseason ongoing – with a big game in store in Charlotte.

Stats Perform picks out the key facts ahead of a busy Christmas weekend...
 

Philadelphia Eagles (13-1) @ Dallas Cowboys (10-4)

In beating the Chicago Bears last week, the Eagles secured a 13th win in a single season for only the third time in franchise history. On the two previous occasions, Philly finished with a 13-3 record and reached the Super Bowl, losing to the New England Patriots in the 2004 season and beating the same team in 2017.

The Eagles have never won 14 games in a regular season and will be without injured QB Hurts as they aim to end a four-game losing streak in Dallas.

But the Cowboys are coming into this big home game on a downer, having blown a 17-point lead against the Jacksonville Jaguars last week for their first loss in five.

That game also again showed big QB performances can sometimes prove immaterial, with Dak Prescott throwing for 256 yards and three touchdowns. The Cowboys are 1-2 this season when Prescott has thrown three or more TD passes and only 7-6 since 2020. Prior to that, they were 13-3 in such games.

Seattle Seahawks (7-7) @ Kansas City Chiefs (11-3)

Patrick Mahomes and Geno Smith each earned Pro Bowl selections this week – a fifth for Mahomes but only a first for Smith. Both were well deserved, with the pair third and second respectively for passer rating among qualifying players this year (Smith, 105.3, and Mahomes, 105.0).

However, Mahomes will look to do something he has never done before on Saturday: beat the Seahawks. Having lost 38-31 to Seattle in his only previous such clash in 2018, they are one of just two teams Mahomes has played but never beaten (also 0-2 against the Indianapolis Colts).

Smith, who has never faced the Chiefs, leads the NFC with 26 touchdown passes as he aims to follow Russell Wilson (2017 and 2018) and Matt Hasselbeck (2005) as the only Seahawks to lead the conference across a season. However, with eight interceptions and four fumbles lost by Smith, Seattle are the sole team in the league to have committed a turnover in every game this year.

Detroit Lions (7-7) @ Carolina Panthers (5-9)

The Lions' stunning 6-1 run, including an active three-game winning streak, has them firmly in playoff contention in the NFC. The last time they won six out of seven games in a single season, back in 2016, was also the last time they made the postseason.

However, the Lions have a miserable history against the Panthers. Their 3-7 record in this matchup is their worst against any current NFC franchise, while Detroit are 0-5 on the road against the Panthers since winning on their first trip in 1999.

With Jared Goff in the best form of his career, the Lions will hope to snap that streak. He has gone six games without an interception, which ties the longest such streak by a Lions QB since the statistic was first tracked in 1960. Goff had never previously gone more than three games without throwing a pick.

Elsewhere...

The Bears this week face the Buffalo Bills, the only team in the Super Bowl era to have lost more consecutive games with 125 or more rushing yards in each loss. Chicago have lost seven in a row, but the 1976 Bills were defeated in 10. With 2,616 rushing yards but a 3-11 record, the Bears are on course to become the first team to lead the league in rushing yards yet have one of the worst two records since the 1932 Staten Island Stapletons.

Recent history suggests the Minnesota Vikings will follow up last week's record-breaking comeback against the Colts with another win over the New York Giants. The Vikings' 7-2 record against the Giants since 2005 is their best against NFC opposition and New York's worst.

The Patriots will have to upset the Cincinnati Bengals to get their playoff bid back on track, yet they have won their past seven home games in this matchup, including the last four while scoring at least 35 points. The last team to win five in a row at home to any one team while scoring 35 points or more were the San Francisco 49ers against the Atlanta Falcons between 1992 and 1996.

Tua Tagovailoa will be relieved this week's game against the Green Bay Packers is in Miami and not Wisconsin. Following last week's defeat to Buffalo, the Dolphins QB is 0-4 in starts when the weather is below 50 degrees Fahrenheit; he is 17-7 when the temperature is at least 50 degrees.

The Philadelphia Eagles will not allow Jalen Hurts to "play through" his shoulder sprain, meaning Gardner Minshew will start against NFC East rivals the Dallas Cowboys.

Hurts is among the MVP frontrunners having led the 13-1 Eagles to the NFL's best record in 2022.

They will clinch the number one seed in the NFC with another win against the Cowboys but will have to get it without their quarterback, who suffered the injury to his right shoulder in last week's clash with the Chicago Bears.

Hurts was keen to play regardless, coach Nick Sirianni suggested, having earned a first Pro Bowl selection this week.

But Minshew, who has taken snaps in three games this year and started twice in 2021, has Sirianni's backing in place of Hurts.

"Gardner will be our guy, and Gardner will be ready," the coach said. "Gardner worked his butt off for this opportunity against a really good football team. He had a great practice [on Wednesday]."

He added: "[Hurt] is disappointed because he wants to play. He's the toughest guy I know.

"But we have to do what's best as an organisation to put us in a safe spot, because he will play through anything.

"Jalen did everything he possibly could to get his body ready to go. At the end of the day, he's not going to be able to do it. He tried like crazy.

"I know he still wants to go. That's just the toughness. Jalen Hurts is the toughest player I've ever been around."

Minshew practised on Wednesday after missing the Eagles' walkthrough on Tuesday to speak at the funeral of Mike Leach, his coach at Washington State.

The Philadelphia Eagles lead the selections for next year's revamped 2023 Pro Bowl Games, with the all-star match moving to flag football from contact action.

The NFL leaders, who sit among the favourites for the Super Bowl with a 13-1 regular season record in 2022, have seen eight players picked for the event.

Quarterback Jalen Hurts headlines a list of Eagles names that also includes wide receiver A.J. Brown, guard Landon Dickerson, and offensive tackle Lane Johnson among others.

Six NFL teams have at least five players selected for the Pro Bowl, which will take place on February 5 at the Las Vegas Raiders' Allegiant Stadium, a week out from Super Bowl LVII.

Hurts will start for the NFC selection against Patrick Mahomes, with the Kansas City Chiefs man headlining a seven-strong selection from his franchise in the AFC group.

Other teams well represented include the Dallas Cowboys with seven, the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers with six and the Minnesota Vikings with five.

The league previously confirmed Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald had made his ninth consecutive Pro Bowl, despite injury struggles that have curtailed his campaign

He is joined by Travis and Jason Kelce, who become the first pair of brothers to earn simultaneous selection for a record fifth time.

The two teams will be coached by a set of siblings in former Super Bowl winners Peyton and Eli Manning too, with the duo having earned 18 Pro Bowl selections between them in their playing days.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott knows the NFC top seed may be out of reach but wants his side to "make a statement" against the 13-1 Philadelphia Eagles on Saturday.

The Eagles sit atop the NFC East ahead of the Cowboys, with a 10-4 record, with the Minnesota Vikings (11-3) and the San Francisco 49ers (10-4) among the only other contenders for the NFC top seed with three games to play. Dallas must beat Philadelphia to remain in contention to usurp them.

The Cowboys, who are assured of a playoffs spot, allowed a season-high 40 points in their loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 15 and Prescott was eager to see a response against a fellow contender.

"If anything, it's about making a statement to ourselves," Prescott told reporters.

"It's about, as you look at the season, we've had some games where we played really well and some games where we bit ourselves in the foot and had some games where we didn't and we lost.

"This is about putting our best foot forward, putting our best effort out there and proving it to ourselves in all three phases that we're a hell of a team and we can go get it done against one of the best teams in the league whether they're in our division or not."

The Eagles beat the Cowboys 26-17 in October at Lincoln Financial Field when Prescott did not play due to a thumb injury. Dallas have gone 6-2 since Prescott's return.

"I think everybody in this locker room is looking forward to this rematch in that sense," Prescott said.

"When you play a team that's a division rival, understanding the long history that comes with these two teams, understanding that they're playing their asses off. They're having a hell of a season.

"For them to be in our division and that they control the destiny in winning the division right now, yeah, you just want to get in and get another shot and make sure you put your best foot forward in doing so."

The Eagles may be without QB Jalen Hurts after he hurt his throwing shoulder late in the third quarter of their 25-20 win over the Chicago Bears.

The chances of Odell Beckham Jr. signing for the Dallas Cowboys are "diminishing", according to owner Jerry Jones.

Beckham has been a free agent since leaving the Los Angeles Rams, with whom he tore his anterior cruciate ligament during the team's Super Bowl triumph last season.

The Cowboys have been closely linked to a move to sign the wide receiver, with Beckham undergoing a physical with the team earlier this month.

However, it was reported the Cowboys had concerns over Beckham's recovery from his injury, and the team signed former Indianapolis Colt T.Y. Hilton last week to add veteran depth to their receiving core.

Hilton was inactive as the Cowboys clinched a place in the postseason with three games to go, despite a shock loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

With just three games left of the regular season, Jones feels the chances of Beckham joining the team are getting lower by the day.

"As of this morning we don't have anything," Jones told 105.3 The Fan. 

"The reality is though that time is moving on down the road relative to playing in the playoffs and so every day diminishes our chances of going forward."

Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni has refused to rule out quarterback Jalen Hurts from playing in Saturday's blockbuster with the Dallas Cowboys despite a sprained right shoulder.

Hurts injured his throwing shoulder late in the third quarter of the Eagles' 25-20 win over the Chicago Bears but was able to finish the game.

Sirianni said the team will prepare Hurts and backup QB Gardner Minshew to play against the Cowboys. He also declined to put any timeline on Hurts' injury.

"I don't put anything past Jalen Hurts, as far as his mental and physical toughness, so there's a chance he could play this week," Sirianni told reporters.

"He is one of the toughest guys I know, and he heals fast — he's a freak. His body is not like, pardon me, yours or mine."

Hurts has been pivotal to the Eagles' sensational 13-1 season and is one of the leading candidates for league MVP with career highs of 3,472 passing yards, 22 passing touchdowns and 13 rushing TDs. The 24-year-old also ranks fourth in the NFL in quarterback rating (104.6).

Sirianni said Hurts' availability was about the injury healing, rather than pain tolerance.

"He’s an unbelievable competitor, [has] unbelievable toughness, which is why every time there's a question about Jalen, the first thing that you get, regardless of how he’s playing or whatnot, is about his leadership ability and his toughness both mentally and physically," he said.

"So, it'll be more about the healing with Jalen than it will be about the pain, because he can play through anything."

Either way, Sirianni was bullish in 26-year-old Minshew's ability to cover Hurts, should be deemed unavailable.

Minshew spent two seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars before moving to the Eagles in 2021, where he has had limited opportunities, playing only seven times, with only two starts.

"He's what you want out of your backup quarterback, to be ready with limited reps," he said.

"Now, we're able to do things differently here, then I think in most places I've been — we take a lot of time, we have a lot of developmental reps."

Saturday's game sees the Eagles take on the 10-4 Cowboys, who allowed a season-high 40 points against the Jaguars in Week 15.

Cowboys QB Dak Prescott is also under some pressure, having thrown two interceptions in the overtime loss to the Jags.

For so much of the 2022 season, the stars have seemed to be aligning for the Cowboys as they look to finally justify the hype that surrounds Dallas before every NFL campaign.

The Cowboys survived an early season quarterback injury to Dak Prescott to start 4-1 with Cooper Rush under center, and have since consistently shown signs of being a team that has the ingredients to go all the way to the Super Bowl.

Prescott, following an unconvincing performance on his return from injury in Week 7 against the Detroit Lions, has rediscovered the level of performance that has helped him ascend to the fringes of the NFL's elite at the quarterback position. The loss of Amari Cooper in a trade with the Cleveland Browns has had a minimal negative impact on the offense, with CeeDee Lamb thriving as the undisputed number one receiver and Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard forming an explosive running back tandem.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys' defense has frequently shown its ability to derail opposing offense through dominance on the defensive line and success in generating takeaways, in which Dallas lead the NFL with 26.

Yet their strength on that side of the ball is now worthy of being called into question following a four-game stretch in which the Cowboys went 3-1 but saw their proficiency on defense drop off significantly.

Indeed, since Week 12, the Cowboys have allowed an average of 359.8 net yards per game. Only 10 teams have given up more in that span. Between Weeks 1 and 11, the Cowboys were the ninth-best defense in the NFL by the same measure.

The Cowboys were able to survive their defensive decline across Weeks 12 to 14, beating the New York Giants by a possession and blowing out the Indianapolis Colts with a fourth-quarter avalanche, before they narrowly avoided a humiliating loss to the Houston Texans in a game in which they gave up 23 points to the NFL's second-worst offense by yards per play.

But their Week 15 meeting with the Jacksonville Jaguars arguably served as a harbinger of what could come for the Cowboys in the postseason if Dan Quinn's defense cannot get back on track.

Though their loss to the Jaguars was settled by a Prescott pick-six as Rayshawn Jenkins returned an overtime interception that clanked off the hands of Noah Brown, it was one borne of the Cowboys' inability to kill the Jaguars off having led 27-10 in the third quarter.

Dallas gave up two 75-yard touchdown drives, sandwiched by a 39-yard drive, to surrender that advantage in just under nine minutes of game time. The Cowboys' defense conceded eight explosive runs of at least 10 yards and 11 such passes, and were unable to preserve the lead Prescott restored with just over three minutes remaining with his second touchdown pass to Brown.

Of course, the Cowboys' defense did get the ball back to Prescott with a forced fumble from Trevor Lawrence immediately after that score, and criticism of the Dallas offense for calling a shot play to Brown on third down on the subsequent drive that fell incomplete and gave Lawrence another shot with a minute left is merited.

But the offense is rarely going to be perfect on every drive, and the frustrating thing for the Cowboys as that this was a defeat suffered amid one of Prescott's finest performances of the season.

Prescott delivered an accurate, well-thrown ball on 27 of his 30 pass attempts. His well-thrown rate of 90 per cent was the fourth best among quarterbacks with at least 10 attempts going into Monday and the best for signal-callers with an average of at least eight air yards per attempt. Prescott averaged 8.33, with his impressive combination of aggressiveness and accuracy exemplified by his perfectly placed 20-yard touchdown throw to Peyton Hendershot on a wheel route to put the Cowboys up 14-0 in the second quarter.

In terms of turnovers, the defense did offer support to Prescott by producing three, and the Cowboys' quarterback was not blameless in their loss of the original 17-point lead, throwing a third-quarter interception to Jenkins that set Jacksonville up for a touchdown to trim the advantage to 27-24.

But the reality is the offense scored enough points to beat Jacksonville and, instead of complementing that effort with a display that frustrated the Jags and an improving Jacksonville attack, the Dallas defense instead delivered volatility that should worry a team that will almost certainly have to go on the road as a Wild Card in the NFC playoffs.

Brown's unreliability in the clutch could be seen as an error that justifies owner Jerry Jones' continued apparent lobbying for the Cowboys to sign Odell Beckham Jr. for their playoff push.

Yet the Cowboys are not a wide receiver, especially one whose status in his recovery from a torn ACL remains unknown, away from winning their conference. They are instead seemingly short the kind of defense that can propel them to glory against opponents like the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers who can stymie their offense and whom they will surely need to overcome to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl.

With a postseason berth secured, there's plenty of reason for hope in Dallas, but there could be trouble ahead if the Cowboys cannot halt a worrying defensive downturn.

The Philadelphia Eagles’ win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday may have come at a cost, as Jalen Hurts reportedly sprained his throwing shoulder and is uncertain to play in this week's key divisional matchup against the Dallas Cowboys.

The injury is not expected to be a long-term one, but could prevent him from playing in Week 16, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

If Hurts is unable to play against the Cowboys on Saturday, Gardner Minshew would be in line to get the start.

Hurts was reportedly injured late in the third quarter of the 25-20 win at Chicago but was able to finish the game. He threw for 315 yards with two interceptions and had three touchdown runs while rushing for 61 yards.

With the win, the Eagles improved their NFL-best record to 13-1 and took a three-game lead over the Cowboys atop the NFC East with three games to play.

Already assured of a playoff berth, Philadelphia can clinch the division and the number one seed in the NFC playoffs with a victory at Dallas on Christmas Eve.

Hurts has been instrumental to Philadelphia's sensational season and is one of the leading candidates for league MVP with career highs of 3,472 passing yards, 22 passing touchdowns and 13 rushing TDs. He also ranks fourth in the NFL in quarterback rating (104.6).

The Dallas Cowboys missed the chance to clinch a playoff berth as they suffered a stunning overtime loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who claimed a thrilling 40-34 win on a pick-six from Rayshawn Jenkins.

Dallas led 27-10 in the third quarter with a postseason place within their grasp, and had the chance to punch their ticket late in regulation despite 2021 first overall pick Trevor Lawrence leading a Jaguars turnaround with touchdown passes of 59 yards and three yards to Zay Jones, which were sandwiched by a 10-yard toss to Marvin Jones Jr.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott spun out of the pocket and found a diving Noah Brown for a 13-yard connection that marked Brown's second touchdown catch of the day and restored the Cowboys' lead with just over three minutes remaining.

Lawrence then fumbled on an 11-yard scramble as the Jaguars tried to respond to seemingly gift the game to Dallas, only for the Cowboys to quickly go three and out and hand the Jags a final chance to tie the game.

They did just that as Lawrence hit Zay Jones again for 19 yards with five seconds remaining to set up a 48-yard Riley Patterson field goal, which levelled matters at 34-34.

An engrossing quarterback duel between one of the NFL's best and one of its future stars was settled by an interception as Prescott's short third-down pass bounced off Brown's hands and into the grasp of Jenkins, who sprinted 52 yards the other way to seal a remarkable win.

The Jags improve to 6-8, just a game back in the win column of the AFC South-leading Tennessee Titans, while the 10-4 Cowboys are still likely to make the playoffs but have a mountain to climb to win the NFC East, where they trail the Philadelphia Eagles by three games.

Chiefs, Eagles survive scares

The Kansas City Chiefs stunningly struggled to put away the one-win Houston Texans with the chance to clinch a seventh successive AFC West title.

It looked as if they may fall victim to the biggest upset of the season when Harrison Butker missed a game-winning 51-yard field goal to force overtime and Patrick Mahomes was sacked to give Houston the ball. However, Davis Mills fumbled the ball back to Kansas City on Houston's first offensive snap of the extra period, setting up Jerick McKinnon to seal a 30-24 win with a 26-yard walk-off touchdown run.

The Eagles were not pushed quite as far by the Chicago Bears, but another impressive dual-threat showing from Justin Fields meant the NFC's number one seed had to work hard for a 25-20 win, their 13th of a spectacular campaign, which was secured when A.J. Brown made his ninth catch of 181-yard display to convert on third down and allow Philadelphia to kill the clock.

Lions' surge continues as Jets let time run out

The Detroit Lions' hopes of an unlikely playoff berth were boosted once again as they claimed a dramatic sixth win in seven games to improve to 7-7.

Detroit dented the New York Jets' postseason prospects with a 20-17 win at MetLife Stadium, Jared Goff's 51-yard touchdown pass to Brock Wright on fourth down with 109 seconds remaining proving decisive.

The Jets, starting Zach Wilson once more in place of the injured Mike White, were left to rue poor clock management on the final drive, with Wilson's improvised 20-yard cross-field completion to Elijah Moore only progressing them to Detroit's 40-yard line with one second remaining. Greg Zuerlein's 58-yard field goal attempt drifted well wide, dropping the Jets to 7-7 after a 6-3 start.