The Philadelphia Eagles were down to their third-string quarterback.

That didn’t stop them from dominating the Dallas Cowboys and their second pitcher in a 41-7 win in Philadelphia.

A combination of talented players and an opportunistic defense led the Eagles to their 13th win of the season and the NFC East title. The Eagles are in the No. 2 seed in the NFC after Minnesota’s 27-25 win later Sunday against Green Bay.

Philadelphia managed four takeaways, Saquon Barkley’s recent explosion and an injury-free performance to secure the victory without quarterback Jalen Hurts, who was sidelined for a week after suffering a concussion in the first quarter against the Washington Commanders.

Philadelphia’s ability to win without Hurts and linebacker Nakobe Dean, Philadelphia’s “defensive” game leader, who was sidelined with an abdominal injury, showed the team’s roster depth and flexibility.

Sure, the Cowboys had quarterback Dak Prescott and receiver CeeDee Lamb on the ground. But Dallas had won four of its last five games with Cooper Rush under center; against Philadelphia, the Cowboys were clearly out of reach.

A week after the Eagles’ running game faltered without Hurts and their defense allowed five touchdowns to Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels, Philadelphia ironed out its kinks.

Barkley paced Dallas with 167 rushing yards in just over three quarters of the game, bringing his total to 2,005 yards this season and just 101 yards shy of the single-season record set by Eric Dickerson 40 years ago.

Defensively, Eagles cornerback CJ Gardner-Johnson recovered from an unsportsmanlike ejection last week and intercepted Dallas QB Cooper Rush twice.

The Cowboys marched down the field with 11:43 left in the first quarter when Gardner-Johnson brought chaos to the heated rivalry game for the first time. Rush faced third-and-3 from the Philadelphia 35-yard line and targeted receiver Jalen Tolbert with an intermediate pass. Gardner-Johnson appeared to be heading toward tight end Jake Ferguson, but he slid back and took over the route for Tolbert.

With a 70-yard swipe, he scored the Eagles’ first defensive touchdown of the season and the first touchdown of his career.

Rush rebounded with a 12-play, 70-yard touchdown drive capped by a 4-yard touchdown pass that went to Tolbert. But with 50 minutes to play, the Cowboys had scored their last points.

Philadelphia recovered a fumble by Jake Ferguson to spur a field goal drive and used Gardner-Johnson’s second interception to launch a touchdown drive capped by a tush push from sophomore quarterback Kenny Pickett.

Pickett’s most impressive series of the day included a 34-yard completion to tight end Grant Calcaterra, who caught an acrobatic one-hander, and a 22-yard touchdown to DeVonta Smith on third-and-12.

Pickett completed both passes despite dealing with a rib injury a week ago. Fox sideline reporter Pam Oliver said Pickett refused to confirm whether he had a bruised rib or a fracture, saying he would tell the broadcast team after the game.

Pickett didn’t finish the competition. With 8:56 left in the third quarter, edge rusher Micah Parsons knocked Pickett down as Pickett targeted AJ Brown in the end zone. The quarterback aggravated his rib injury and walked to the sideline, hunched over, where he was examined by medical staff.

Shortly afterwards he went to the dressing room and it was deemed doubtful whether he would return.

That didn’t stop Philadelphia. Third-string quarterback Tanner McKee, getting his first start of the NFL regular season, found Brown for a 20-yard touchdown and later Smith for a 25-yard touchdown on a possession that came to pass – yes – another takeaway, this time a Rico fumble.

Pickett completed 10 of 15 passes for 143 yards and a touchdown and also rushed for a touchdown before being sidelined with a rib injury. McKee went 3-of-4 for 54 yards and two touchdowns as the Eagles shifted to a run-heavy attack.

Smith caught six of seven targets for 120 yards and two touchdowns.

Rush finished the game 15 of 28 for 147 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Dowdle rushed for 104 yards.

The Eagles host the 3-13 New York Giants in their regular season finale. The Cowboys host the Washington Commanders, Dallas is already out of the playoffs but faces uncertainty over their head coaching future.

Mike McCarthy’s contract expires at the end of the season. Team owner and general manager Jerry Jones has not yet confirmed whether McCarthy will receive an extension.