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Murray helps Eagles grind out a crucial victory

ARLINGTON, Texas - It ended with Jordan Matthews streaking through the Cowboys secondary into the end zone and tossing his touchdown football into the second level of AT&T Stadium.

DeMarco Murray leaps over the Cowboys' Jeff Heath.
DeMarco Murray leaps over the Cowboys' Jeff Heath.Read more(Yong Kim/Staff Photographer)

ARLINGTON, Texas - It ended with Jordan Matthews streaking through the Cowboys secondary into the end zone and tossing his touchdown football into the second level of AT&T Stadium.

But the Eagles advanced into Cowboys territory on their first possession of overtime with timely runs by DeMarco Murray and Ryan Mathews. The return of the running game, which has really been a four-game story, was a Texas-size reason the Eagles escaped with a 33-27 win over the Cowboys.

And Murray, who was so thoroughly embarrassed the first time he faced his old team, had revenge with a running and receiving performance that should silence some of his critics at least for one week.

"I approached it just like any game," Murray said.

Mathews knew better.

"It's good. It's real good," Mathews said when asked what the game meant to Murray. "I'm real proud of him. He's worked so hard in everything. He's just going to keep getting better. I can't wait to keep getting better with him."

Murray rushed 32 yards on the final, winning drive, and Mathews - who, it says here, is still the better running back for this offense - picked up a huge fourth down with a 2-yard splurge. The officials originally ruled that he fumbled, but his knee was clearly down, and the call was reversed.

Until the 20-yard burst, Murray was just so-so on the ground. But he finished with 83 yards on 18 carries (4.6 average). He also made an impact as a pass catcher. He had six grabs for 78 yards, including a 44-yard catch that helped set up the Eagles' first touchdown of the second half.

Mathews tallied 67 yards on 11 carries.

Now would be a good time to mention the Eagles' much-maligned offensive line, a unit that was without Pro Bowl left tackle Jason Peters. Lane Johnson did yeoman's work in Peters' place, and Dennis Kelly jumped out to right tackle for Johnson and was solid, even when matched up against defensive end Greg Hardy.

"I felt like I've faced better than him," Johnson said of Hardy. He added: "He's a guy that whenever things are going good, he's great. But whenever he's not a factor, he's a guy that will shut it down."

This was a group, even with Peters, that didn't look NFL-caliber in the September loss to the Cowboys. There are still issues, particularly with guards Allen Barbre and Matt Tobin, and they may rear their heads in the second half of the season. But it was an admirable outing considering the realignment and the previous meeting.

Murray and Mathews, meanwhile, are starting to resemble the two-back offense that Chip Kelly had envisioned.

With 7 minutes, 22 seconds left in the game, the carries were nearly evenly split. Murray had 13 rushes for 49 yards (3.8 average) and a touchdown, while Mathews had 10 for 65 yards (6.5 average) and a score. Darren Sproles had five totes for 23 yards.

But running backs coach Duce Staley went mostly with Murray on the Eagles' final drive before the overtime, and the case for more Mathews than Murray continued to gain strength.

Murray should be graded slightly on a curve because the offensive line woes through the first two games hindered him more than any other running back. And he was likely playing through a hamstring injury that the Eagles hid through the preseason and the first part of the season.

But his speed, or lack thereof, has been a season-long issue. It isn't as much his north-to-south running that has been the problem. He looked fast enough on the 44-yard catch that came on a wheel route in the third quarter.

When Murray has been asked to run outside, though, he's looked like the Bionic Man in slow motion. He had a 9-yard catch and a 5-yard run in the late fourth-quarter drive, but when the Eagles needed some positive yards on second down, Murray was stopped in the backfield for a 3-yard loss.

Sam Bradford's third-down pass to Miles Austin failed, and Caleb Sturgis saved them all with a 53-yard, go-ahead boot. But a touchdown there, obviously, would have been preferred.

The running game turnaround has been remarkable if you consider how limp it was just six games ago against this same opponent. The Eagles managed just 7 yards on the ground in the first September meeting. Bradford (two carries for 9 yards) was their leading rushing.

Murray, Mathews, and Sproles finished with a combined minus-2 yards. But it was Murray who was embarrassed the most. He rushed 13 times and gained only 2 yards.

The offensive line was a fundamental nightmare. Jason Kelce had probably his worst game as the Cowboys' angling and slanting defensive linemen were able to penetrate past the center. Kelly had tinkered with his run plays, but there were still tendencies that Dallas was able to key on pre-snap.

But since that game, the Eagles found life on the ground. Kelly started utilizing "12" personnel (two tight ends) and the run game started clicking.

Mathews was electric, especially two weeks ago against the Panthers. Only Staley, and apparently a groin injury, held him from going over the century mark again.

There was a lot written and asked of Kelly about the disappearance of Mathews. He didn't practice much last week because of the groin. But he sure didn't look like a player that was being hobbled by a soft-tissue injury.

Mathews delivered for most of the game, particularly early in the fourth quarter. He ran twice to pick up a first down and then he ran another 11 yards for a first down. There was a dropped pass somewhere in there. But it didn't matter as much because of the tackles he broke and the extra yards he scratched for.

When the Eagles advanced into the red zone, however, Murray was back in. On his first carry, he was dropped in the backfield for a 2-yard loss on a mid-zone run on which it looked like he was running in almond butter.

But the sweetness of the victory is what Murray will remember.

"Coming back here there were a lot of emotions," Murray said, before he caught himself and added, "for a lot of people. But you've got to check them at the door."

jmclane@phillynews.com

@Jeff_McLane