The Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles entered the season with high hopes, and neither has lived up to expectations thus far. Both franchises enter their Monday Night Football showdown in Week 7 with a record of 2-4, although each has a different feeling surrounding them.

Philadelphia is getting close to punting on the season, with injuries throughout the roster leaving them thin. They don't expect Jalen Hurts to be back this season, and will be without DeVonta Smith and Dontayvion Wicks against the Cowboys. There's still a chance Saquon Barkley could play, but he's missed the past two games with a hamstring injury.

Dallas, on the other hand, still believes they have something to fight for. Jerry Jones is preaching aggression as the trade deadline approaches, and they're beginning to get healthy on defense. With the stage set for this NFC East contest, let's check out three matchups that will decide who walks away with the win.

Cowboys D-line vs. Eagles rushing attack

Dallas has been terrible against the run this season, entering Week 7 as the worst-ranked rush defense. They should have some newfound confidence after shutting down the Green Bay Packers ground game, holding them to just 2.2 yards per attempt for a total of 57 yards. Of course, it helped that Josh Jacobs was out and Pierre Strong ended up getting the majority of the attempts.

Still, they can use that success as a springboard into this week as they face a Philadelphia offense that hasn't been very efficient on the ground. The Eagles have just 493 rushing yards, which is 29th in the league. Saquon Barkley enters the weekend questionable after missing the past two games, and if he were to sit out, this would be an advantage for the Cowboys. Dallas should assume he's playing and they need to be ready to shut him and the ground game down, which would put pressure on quarterback Tanner McKee and a thin receiver corps.

CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens vs. Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, Riq Woolen

Dallas has a major advantage in the passing game with CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens going up against a secondary that's 26th in the league with 1,467 yards surrendered through six games. That doesn't mean there's no one to worry about in the secondary as the Eagles have three cornerbacks capable of making big plays in Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, and Riq Woolen.

Lamb and Pickens will both wind up against all three of these defensive backs at some point, and must win their matchups to keep the offense moving forward. That's especially true when it comes to one-on-one matchups.

Cowboys pass rush vs. Tanner McKee

Dallas recorded three sacks in the loss to the Packers, which was a huge plus for them. All three of those sacks came from defensive tackles, with Quinnen Williams, Kenny Clark, and Elijah Garcia all getting to Jordan Love.

This week, they need the pass rush to show up once again as they face Tanner McKee. The Cowboys can't allow McKee, who is a traditional pocket passer, to get comfortable. They need to force him to move around and make mistakes. While the interior of the defensive line will be huge in that regard, they also need players such as Malachi Lawrence and Rashan Gary to provide a spark off the edge.

It's impossible to forget the way this defense allowed Jalon Daniels to have his way in Week 5 as they were upset by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Their front seven will be the key to avoiding a similar disaster in Week 7.