The sudden trade of All-Pro edge pass rusher Micah Parsons from Dallas to Green Bay sent off shockwaves throughout the league, and it certainly meant something for the Eagles, who host Dallas on Thursday night in the NFL opener.
Having extra time to prepare for the Dallas defense, led by Parsons, suddenly changed. No longer do the Eagles have to concern themselves with Parsons (who recorded five quarterback sacks in seven games against Philadelphia); they now have to adjust and prepare for three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kenny Clark – acquired by Dallas from the Packers in the trade – and a defense led by new Cowboys coordinator Matt Eberflus.
"It changes a lot. I'm gonna be honest with you, it changes a lot," left tackle Jordan Mailata said. "Eleven (Parsons) is a great player and we always have protection plans built in for great players and now we just have to figure out the players that they have on their defense, how can we stop them?"
Said tight end Dallas Goedert: "When Parsons is out there, you are always aware of where he is and you make sure that you have a plan for him. Now that he's gone, they still have great players and they have a scheme that we haven't seen, so we have to prepare for everything. It's really about us being on our game and doing what we do."
The Eagles had Pro Bowl left guard Landon Dickerson on the practice field on Sunday, a good sign. There is still no definitive word on his availability for Thursday night. As with all openers, teams have to prepare for the unknown.
And there is plenty of that with this one, against a division rival. THE division rival.
"There isn't any need for hype. This is the opener and it's Dallas, a division rival," center Cam Jurgens said. "We just have to prepare and play the best football we can play. They've got good players up front. Tough guys. We played Clark twice last year and he's tough. He's a veteran and he's strong, so we will see how they use him in their scheme. We'll learn as the game goes along and we will have things built in in case we see them trying to do new things.
"It's always a chess match. That's the nature of football and that's what makes it so much fun."
Tyler Steen knows Clark has been in the league for nine seasons, is known as a good run stopper, and a physical presence.
"He's a big dude, real physical, powerful guy. He's been in the league for a while and has the experience, so we're looking forward to the challenge," Steen said. "What is Dallas going to do with him? How does he fit in with that? What he's doing in this game might be different than what he did in Green Bay. Dallas wants to confuse us and try to get us off our game, so we have to communicate well and play the way we play.
"At the end of the day, it comes down to us and executing what the coaches want us to execute."
That's the message from Head Coach Nick Sirianni as the Eagles close in on the opening kickoff: Stay on point with your assignments and don't listen to the chatter. There is a ton of that out there. What is important is that the Eagles hone in on their tasks.
This is not a new thought from Sirianni, who expects the Dallas defense to come after Philadelphia's offensive plan. Parsons is simply no longer part of the equation.
"We're getting ready to play the Cowboys, so he's in your thoughts for gameplanning, but they still have guys that we have to prepare for," Sirianni said. "They have Kenny Clark, who's a really good player, and they have good depth at that defensive end group. You don't get too wrapped up in that except for some of the things you're doing with the game plan. But, also understanding that they have a lot of good players over there and getting ready for those guys and shifting your attention to that."
