Doug Pederson Guarantee Gave Cowboys the Motivation They Needed and Now He Has to Own it

The Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys suffered disappointing losses to the Minnesota Vikings and New York Jets respectively last week ahead of their "Sunday Night Football" matchup.

With both teams sitting at 3-3, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson guaranteed they would defeat the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium earlier this week, only to somewhat retract the statement. All that did was give the Cowboys motivation, and now Pederson has to own up to it.

The comments provided by Pederson proved to be bulletin board material for the Cowboys. The most ticked off individual on Dallas roster was defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, who told the Eagles head coach to "shut up" and "stay on the sidelines."

For Philadelphia, the game was essentially over from the start. The Eagles offense turned the ball over on their first two drives, allowing the Cowboys to capitalize with Tavon Austin and Ezekiel Elliott rushing scores.

Carson Wentz looked lost on the field, as he completed 16-of-26 pass attempts for 191 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and two fumbles lost.

Not to mention the Cowboys defensive front played very inspired, as Lawrence, Robert Quinn and Jourdan Lewis each recorded a sack on Wentz.

Look, it's never a bad thing to guarantee a win in order to motivate your squad. But you simply have to show up. Doug Pederson added fuel to the fire and the Dallas Cowboys salivated at the thought of proving him wrong, while also getting Jason Garrett off the hot seat (again).