After blowing huge leads Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys are faced with this question: Are their flaws fatal or curable? In a 24-23 loss to the 49ers, the Eagles blew a 23-3 lead because they couldn’t stop the run. In a 34-30 loss to the Lions, the Cowboys blew the biggest lead in franchise history — 27-3 — because Tony Romo threw up on himself again.
On a day when he threw for 331 yards, Romo tossed pick-sixes on back-to-back possessions in the third quarter, giving Detroit life. The Lions obliged, outscoring the Cowboys 17-0 in the fourth quarter as Matt Stafford threw two touchdown passes to Calvin Johnson.
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The biggest lead Dallas had ever blown before Sunday was 21 points to the Redskins in 1965. That meltdown was courtesy of the golden arm of Sonny Jurgensen. This time, Dallas (2-2) had no one to blame but Romo.
It’s become a much-repeated storyline. In a 27-24 opening-game loss at the Jets, Romo had two turnovers in the fourth quarter, paving the way for a New York comeback from 14 points down. That defeat made the Cowboys’ all-time record with a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter 246-1-1. At least on Sunday, the fourth-quarter lead they blew was only 13 points.
“The games turn obviously on turnovers. It’s the No. 1 stat in football,” Romo told reporters. “I shouldn’t have allowed them to have that chance.”
At Philadelphia, the Eagles’ loss was just as stunning. It came on a day when Michael Vick threw for 416 yards and ran for 75. Philadelphia (1-3) yielded 127 yards on 15 carries to Frank Gore and couldn’t make stops in the fourth quarter when it had to.
San Francisco entered the game with an anemic average of 213 yards a game, ranking last in the NFL in total offense. They were averaging 2.5 yards a rush. But against the Eagles they averaged 6.6 yards a carry.
The Eagles have been outscored 36-0 in the fourth quarter so far as they have been worn down by the rushing attacks of the opposition. Atlanta’s Michael Turner burned the Eagles for 114 yards two weeks ago.
Fatal flaw or correctable?
“It’s shocking. It’s frustrating,” Vick told reporters. “Some people have it, and some people don’t.”
– Kevin Dunleavy
