Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles

Lincoln Financial Field
0200 GMT Tues 15 Nov
UK TV: Five

Why it matters

The Cowboys and Eagles both play in the NFC East Division, which means both that they have a traditional rivalry – Dallas have won 50 of the 89 games between the two going back to their creation in 1960 - and that they are chasing the same place in the end-of-season playoffs, which makes the competition all the more intense.

The Eagles, who reached the Super Bowl last season and have been one of the league's best teams throughout the decade, have struggled sometimes this season, with injuries and off-field controversy. Dallas, meanwhile, are back to confounding the pundits with a revitalised team. The offense is more than the sum of its parts, thanks to the conservative game-planning of cult head coach Bill Parcells and a defense packed with young, fast and terrifyingly big players taken in this summer's college draft.

Team talking points

The Eagles have been front page news for the last week following the suspension of star wide receiver Terrell Owens. Don't feel too sorry for Owens, who caused the initial ruckus by asking for his seven-season, £28m contract to be re-negotiated just a year after signing from the San Francisco 49ers. The latest controversy came when Owens criticised the team for not properly commemorating his 100th career touchdown, then got into a changing-room fight with a former Eagles player. Philadelphia called it "conduct detrimental to the team" and Owens has been told he will not be brought back even when his four-game suspension is over.

Dallas fans are still marvelling at the success of quarterback Drew Bledsoe. Released by Buffalo after three indifferent seasons, the 33-year-old (born on Valentine's Day if that's of interest) was criticised as immobile and not accurate enough when throwing deep. Compared to his predecessor Vinny Testaverde, who was immobile and not accurate at all, he is a superstar. In fact, many in Dallas are comparing him with Troy Aikman, the QB who led the Cowboys to three Super Bowl wins in the 1990s. Bledsoe rejoins Parcells, with whom he played as a youngster at the New England Patriots in the mid-1990s, and the two clearly work well. But the success of the Dallas running game has given him far more time to complete his passes.

Star players

Donovan McNabb, #5, QB, Eagles
The brightest star of the side for much of his seven-year career, McNabb has been forced to share the headlines with Owens over the last 18 months, but with the loud-mouthed receiver sitting at home, McNabb is once again the man upon whom the Eagles offense relies. He has been slowed with injuries this year – the list so far includes a bruised sternum, a rib problem and a sports hernia – but has soldiered on.

Keyshawn Johnson, #19, WR, Cowboys
Known by Five pundit Mike Carlson as "Foghorn Keyshawn", the receiver has been through his fair share of controversy, and was even suspended then cut by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers two seasons ago in similar circumstances to those of Owens. That meant the Cowboys could pick him up, and reunite him with coach Parcells, who – this script's becoming tired already – he began his career with at the New York Jets in 1996. Muscular for a wide man, Johnson catches the short passes to keep the pressure off Bledsoe when he needs a quick solution, and is also a valuable blocker down field, opening up space for Dallas' young runners.

What to look for

Old school football coaches always preach, "Establish the run to set up the pass" and both Parcells and Eagles boss Andy Reid are old school.

Unfortunately for Reid, he does not have a running back to dominate a defense and take their attention away from the pass. In their 33-10 victory over the Eagles on 9 October, the Cowboys restricted Brian Westbrook to 12 yards rushing – at least a sixth of what he should be aiming for. Last week he ran 17 times for 24 yards against Washington, and the Eagles lost 10-17. That was in the same week that the Eagles signed him to a five-year £14.35m contract extension, for some reason. If Westbrook cannot establish himself, the onus is even more heavily on McNabb, who does not have his leading man Owens waiting for him. The one hope is the exploit the Cowboys' weakness to deep passes up the middle but that is the sort of low-percentage play they won't be able to try often.

Dallas had pinned their hopes for the future on running back Julius Jones but now find an embarrassment of riches in their backfield. Jones sprained his ankle in the last match against the Eagles – after running for 77 yards in the first half – and is expected back for the first time since then. In his absence, Tyson Thompson and Marion Barber have proved more than capable. Once they have gained some yards on the ground, look for Bledsoe to run "play action", faking the run then passing long. Wide receiver Terry Glenn (who began his career under Parcells in the mid-90s ...) is his favourite target.

Tip

With neither team managing to dominate, the Cowboys prevail 24-17.

Interesting trivia

Since Owens joined them at the start of last season, the Eagles have yet to win without him in the line-up during regular season – they have lost all three matches when he has been injured or suspended. They advanced to the Super Bowl last year, though, with Owens unavailable because of an ankle injury.

Cowboys quarterbacks coach Sean Payton played the position for Britain's Leicester Panthers in 1988, leading them to the Budweiser League quarter-finals.

Tyson Thompson is the first Cowboys player ever to have grown up in Irving, Texas, the suburb just west of Dallas where they play their home games.

Less trivially, Bill Parcells' younger brother Don died last Wednesday after a three-year battle with a brain tumour. His funeral takes place on Monday in New Jersey. A college running back, Don Parcells played for Army, once scoring a touchdown against a Navy team that featured future Cowboys great Roger Staubach at QB. Obituary in the Newark Star-Ledger.