Talking Points

by Paul Domowitch
Posted: December 29, 2008

Do you believe in miracles?: The Eagles needed the four-win Raiders to beat Jon Gruden's Bucs. It happened. They needed either the Vikings or the Bears to lose. It happened. Then they had to go out and beat the Cowboys, and that happened as well. The Eagles are going to the playoffs, where anything can happen.

Buckhalter plays big role in win: Correll Buckhalter has been a forgotten man this season. He went into yesterday's game with just 89 touches, and 59 of them came when Brian Westbrook was hurt. Against the Cowboys, he picked up a big early first down with a 9-yard run, set up a touchdown with a 59-yard catch and run, and caught a 4-yard pass for a TD that put the Eagles up 17-3.

When it rains takeaways, it pours. The Eagles, who had just 24 takeways in their first 15 games, forced five Cowboys turnovers. Two of them were returned for third-quarter touchdowns by defensive end Chris Clemons and cornerback Joselio Hanson, which put the game away.

The amazing Dawk: Earlier this season, many were wondering whether Brian Dawkins' career was on its last leg. But he bounced back from a tough early start to earn another Pro Bowl invitation. He forced both of the Cowboys' third-quarter fumbles that were returned for TDs.

Snapping out of their red-zone funk: The Eagles had converted just two of 12 red-zone opportunities into touchdowns in the previous three games. But they turned all three of their first-half trips inside the 20 into touchdowns.

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