The Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles have combined to win six of the last seven NFC East titles. The rivalry is a gift that keeps on giving.
He is preparing for his 10th NFL season and is coming off a solid year. DeMarcus Lawrence started all 17 regular-season games for the Dallas Cowboys. He finished with 65 tackles, six sacks and three forced fumbles. He returned one of his two fumble recoveries for a touchdown in a Week 5 win over the Rams. Lawrence was named to his third Pro Bowl.
Not long ago (courtesy of Rob Maadi and the AP Pro Football Podcast), the nine-year pro spoke about the defending NFC East and conference champion Philadelphia Eagles and how his team stacks up against Nick Sirianni's squad.
"I don't feel like it's a huge gap at all."
Cowboys: Does DeMarcus Lawrence have a point about Eagles?
That is certainly understandable. Dating back to 2018, the Cowboys have actually won seven of the 10 meetings between the clubs. Of course, Dallas' 12 wins this past season wasn't good enough when it came to winning a second straight division title. Hence McCarthy's team remains the hunter and not the hunted. So what is the key to the Cowboys upending the Birds this upcoming season?
"I feel like it comes down to certain details," added Lawrence. "Not just the scheme, but also your locker room. I feel like through this time right now when we headed to training camp, that we made those adjustments, we learned those different things that we need to learn about our teammates so we can fully function the way we should out there on the field."
Recent history is certainly in the Cowboys' favor, sort of. No team has repeated as NFC East champion in nearly 20 years. That would be the Eagles under Andy Reid, with his team winning four consecutive division titles from 2001-04.
It's worth noting that it will take a little while before these longtime rivals renew acquaintances. As it stands at the moment, the teams' first meeting in 2023 will come in Week 9 at Philadelphia. A little over a month later, the clubs are slated for a Sunday night clash at Dallas. Let the battles begin.