Sunday Night the Eagles and Cowboys will be playing in the 121st installment of one of the most historic rivalries in all of sports. The all-time numbers favor the Cowboys, as they lead the series 68-52. Even though history favors Dallas, there have been plenty of Eagles players over the years that would dominate Dallas when they took the field against them to help Philadelphia come out with some "W's." Here's a look at some of the best "Cowboy Killers" in Eagles history:
Tommy McDonald
In eight games against Dallas, McDonald averaged a little over three receptions per game. That doesn't sound like dominance, but he ended up with seven touchdowns in those eight games. He certainly made the most of his opportunities.
Jerome Brown
Even though his life and NFL career were cut tragically short, Brown played long enough to terrorize Troy Aikman and the Dallas Cowboys. While Brown only recorded 2.5 career sacks against the Cowboys, he helped the Eagles to an 8-1 record over Dallas when he was on the field. Despite the low sack total, Brown was a constant disruptive force on the interior defensive line.He wreaked havoc on the Cowboys offensive line for five years.
Reggie White
Brown didn't rack up the sacks because White was the one stealing all of them. In 15 games against the Cowboys as an Eagle, White registered 14.5 sacks. He gave them nightmares and the Cowboys were certainly happy the Eagles front office didn't want to fork over money to him to stay in Philadelphia. He only faced them six other times in a different uniform, racking up just three sacks.
Donovan McNabb
The Cowboys may own the series lead over the Eagles, but during the McNabb era the Eagles cut into that massive lead when they won more games than they lost to the Cowboys (12-8). McNabb threw for 3,945 yards and 26 touchdowns against the Dallas defense compared to 13 interceptions. He also added five touchdowns on the ground.
His most memorable play against the Cowboys was his 14 second scramble to find Freddie Mitchell deep down field.
Brian Westbrook
The ball always seemed to be in Westbrook's hands when the Eagles faced the Cowboys in his tenure. 183 rushes and 67 receptions meant that he earned a total of 1,288 yards combined through the air and ground in 15 games against Dallas. He reached the endzone himself a total of nine times, but also threw a touchdown in a game against the Cowboys.
His most memorable play against the Cowboys was his infamous stop at the goal line to kill the clock instead of scoring a walk-in touchdown.
Lito Sheppard
The Eagles’ two longest defensive plays against the Cowboys were both turned in by cornerback Lito Sheppard. He picked off Vinny Testaverde in 2004 and returned it 101 yards, then picked off Drew Bledsoe in 2006 and returned it 102 yards. Sheppard is the only player in NFL history with two 100-yard INT returns against the same team. In total, Sheppard racked up eight interceptions in 13 games against Dallas.
Sheldon Brown
Lito's counterpart was also a bonafide Cowboy Killer, scoring a touchdown of his own on a fumble recovery. Brown also put up 62 total tackles, one sack, five interceptions, 15 passes defended, and two forced fumbled to go with that fumble recovery touchdown.
LeSean McCoy
McCoy averaged 91.8 yards/game on the ground against Dallas, because in 10 games he had 918 yards. He also had a great 5.25 Y/A to help the Eagles move the ball downfield quickly on them. He only scored four total touchdowns though, but at the end of the day he was still a thorn in the Cowboys' hand when he was on the field.
Evan Mathis
In 332 pass-blocking snaps against Dallas in his career, Mathis allowed just eight pressures. He also had a run-blocking grade of 92.6 from Pro Football Focus in his combined games against the Cowboys. He certainly left Cowboys defensive tackles constantly frustrated.
Jordan Hicks
In just five games, Hicks recorded four interceptions on Dallas quarterbacks, including one pick-six. He also added one sack, which injured Tony Romo. The fractured clavicle suffered by Romo at the hands of Hicks started his laundry list of injuries that forced an early retirement. If he wasn't so injury probe himself, Hicks would likely still be in Philadelphia now and getting ready to add to his Cowboy Killer status.
Brandon Graham
BG gets a sack basically every other game against Dallas, recording seven of them in 14 games. He has also added 12 tackles for loss and 17 QB hits, which means he's always disruptive even though Dallas has had some great offensive lines in recent years.
Lane Johnson
Two-time Pro Bowler DeMarcus Lawrence has played 352 defensive snaps against the Eagles so far in his five-year career. Johnson has helped make sure that Lawrence has not gotten a single sack on any Eagles QB in his career. That's what I'd call dominance.
DeSean Jackson
Jackson has played in 17 career games against the Cowboys, catching 57 passes for 1,147 yards and four touchdowns. That includes his time on Washington and Tampa Bay though. With Philadelphia he caught 35 passes for 663 yards and one touchdown in 10 games. Jackson is always a threat in these games, as he has had over 90 receiving yards in three of those 10 games, including a 210 yard performance in 2010.
His most famous play was his 91-yard touchdown from Michael Vick.
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