Ashley Fox: The right call on Westbrook

The Eagles made the right call sitting Westbrook. He shouldn't play until he's totally ready. Maybe five years ago he and the team would've happily rushed him back to play last week against the Giants. Not now.

First Quarter

Wait long enough, and you'll get to see the Wildcat actually work. Except, it worked for the other team. Easily. On first and goal from the 2-yard line, the Cowboys called for a direct snap to running back Tashard Choice, who pretty much walked into the end zone. Dallas takes an early 7-0 lead.

See. It does work. Just like Andy Reid's been saying.

Jason Peters has made his way to the Eagles locker room. Trainer Rick Burkholder re-taped Jason Peters' left ankle on the sideline, and as the first quarter ended, Peters was standing on the Eagles sideline. He didn't stand there long.

Peters suffered an injury when he got awkwardly caught underneath Cowboys nose tackle Jay Ratliff as Ratliff sacked [Donovan] McNabb late in the first quarter.

Second Quarter

Peters is back. He was on the field for the Eagles 12-play drive that ended with a 48-yard David Akers field goal. That's good news for the Eagles, who had shifted Todd Herremans to tackle and put Nick Cole in at guard during Peters' absence.

Third Quarter

DeSean Jackson has had a quiet night catching the ball, but he played a part in the Eagles' touchdown drive. Jackson was singled up with Terence Newman, and drew a look from a Cowboys safety. McNabb threw a short pass to Jeremy Maclin, who sprinted down field and got a block from Jackson (on Newman) to get a couple extra yards. All told, Maclin's reception went for 45 yards, and two plays later the Eagles scored the go-ahead touchdown.

Tony Romo's streak came to an end. Never before had he gone three consecutive games without an interception. The Eagles wouldn't let him make it four. Sheldon Brown picked off Romo midway through the third quarter, ending Romo's streak at 143 consecutive passes without an interception.

This is why Asante Samuel doesn't tackle. When he actually got credited with one on Felix Jones, Samuel ended up on his back for several minutes.

Samuel probably wishes he did make one tackle earlier in the game. In the second quarter, Patrick Crayton caught a Romo pass, then stiff-armed Samuel on his way to a 64-yard gain. It was an embarrassing effort even for Samuel, who has great vision and quickly breaks on the ball but who either can't or won't ever tackle.

Fourth Quarter

Huge review call by the official, who took a second look at the spot after Donovan McNabb's attempted sneak on fourth-and-1 with less than 11 minutes to play. The official upheld the ruling on the field that McNabb didn't get the first down. It cost the Eagles their third, and final, timeout, which very well could come back to haunt them in this 13-13 game.

This is why the Cowboys love Miles Austin. He is a YAC machine. On a crucial third-and-14 play from the Eagles' 49-yard line, Austin blew past Sheldon Brown, caught a perfect pass from Tony Romo, and cruised away from three trailing Eagles defenders for the go-ahead touchdown. It was Austin's first catch of the game, and it couldn't have come at a bigger time. Prior to that play, the Cowboys had converted just five of 12 third-down attempts. They lead 20-13.

Monster game from David Akers. He just kicked a 52-yard field goal to pull the Eagles to 20-16 with under 5 minutes to play. Earlier in the game, Akers made a 45-yarder and a 48-yarder. He's made the difficult look routine.

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Contact columnist Ashley Fox at 215-854-5064 or afox@phillynews.com.