Cowboys and cheerleaders spread Christmas cheer with gifts for children at local hospitals 

The Dallas Cowboys are having a well-deserved mini-bye after playing two straight Thursday games, so on Monday they decided to do something different.

The team and its cheerleaders went around multiple hospitals in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area to deliver Christmas gifts to children. The outreach program was led by Charlotte Jones-Anderson, daughter of owner/general manager Jerry Jones and the franchise's executive vice president and chief brand officer.

Among the players who appeared were Pro Bowlers Dak Prescott, Tony Pollard, CeeDee Lamb, Tyron Smith and DeMarcus Lawrence.

About the experience, wide receiver Michael Gallup said:

“We’re in December football. Everybody knows that. This is crunch time. At the same time, you’ve got to be able to give back. These kids give us more joy than they even know, coming in there giving us high fives, telling us about what they’re going through, what they have going on. We enjoy it.”

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Could Cowboys come closer to stealing NFC East with win over Eagles?

Speaking of December football, the Dallas Cowboys' first December game is a massive one.

They host divisional rival Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday Night Football, and the timing for them to reassert their control over the NFC East is very good. Their opponents are coming off being routed 19-42 by the San Francisco 49ers.

The last time the two teams met, the Eagles won 28-23 at home. However, the Cowboys have not lost in Arlington in all of 2023, putting them in a very good position to notch their tenth win of 2023.

And head coach Mike McCarthy is very eager to achieve it. Speaking to the press on Monday afternoon, he said:

"I really do like the stretch that we're getting ready to be on. When you look at the teams that we're getting ready to line up against and; obviously, Philadelphia is all that matters right now — this is an excellent opportunity for us to play in playoff-type games without playoff consequences.

"We're looking forward to it... It's the Cowboys [versus] the Eagles. I don't think you have to say anything more on that."

One major side story to that is potentially facing off against linebacker Shaq Leonard. The veteran linebacker was in talks with the Cowboys before ultimately deciding to join the Eagles.