Eagles 10, Patriots 17: Offense flops, Eagles fall to 5-6
Eagles 10, Patriots 17: Offense flops, Eagles fall to 5-6
It wasn’t pretty. In a game where the defense really stepped up to the plate and did all it could, the offense failed to deliver on their own side of the ball. Here’s what we learned from the Eagles seven-point loss to New England.
1. The Eagles Aren’t Going Anywhere With This Receiving Core
What, did we think Jordan Matthews was going to be the answer? Without Alshon Jeffery, the Eagles receivers managed to look even worse than they have all season. The quartet of Nelson Agholor, J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, Mack Hollins, and Matthews combined for 75 yards for the entire game. Hollins came up catches again, but could’ve had one solid gain if not for an ill-fated pass by Carson Wentz. Whiteside finally hauled in a pass and actually would’ve had two (the other one being a great grab), if not for an early penalty committed by Jason Peters. We knew it was going to be tough against a great secondary, but the absolute inability of Eagles receivers to gain any type of separation is extremely concerning and hurts the offense so much. Agholor once again came up short in a big moment. On fourth down, Wentz somehow launched an accurate pass to the back of the end zone while facing immediate pressure and it hit Agholor right in the mitts. It didn’t stay there. On replay, it looks like a tough catch to make, but if Agholor wasn’t completely inept when it came to tracking footballs, he would’ve been in a great position to bring in the tying score. I won’t blame the loss on him, but his play becomes more frustrating by the week.
2. The Defense Was… Good?
The Eagles defense balled out Sunday. There were several dropped picks that could’ve easily turned the tide of the contest, but outside of that, they played exceptional football. Jalen Mills and Ronald Darby had the boundaries on lock, and Tom Brady actually recorded the most first-half incompletions in a game of his entire career. Their only touchdown came on their second trick-play attempt of the game when Julian Edelman threw a touchdown pass to Phillip Dorsett. The only true low point was Avonte Maddox who was getting abused all game by Julian Edelman (literally and figuratively). Hopefully, this is an outlier game for the second-year man, but if not, Cre’ Von LeBlanc can still return this season. The Eagles defensive line also put together a stout performance. Even though the box score only shows one sack, they were in Brady’s face all day. There would’ve been plenty more takedowns if he didn’t quickly spike the ball into the turf whenever a green jersey came within ten feet of him. Holding New England to 17 points was a dream scenario for this team, but they still couldn’t pull out a victory.
3. Carson Wentz
Bad performance from the $32 million man. I’m not going to put too much stock into it because it was his first truly bad game of the season and his receivers did him no favors. He sailed several passes including three consecutive ones on what proved to be the Eagles final chance at tying it up, but he once again came through with a beauty of a throw on the final fourth down. Wentz now has three game-tying/winning touchdown passes dropped on the season. I’ve seen a lot of people say that he needs to do more with this receiving core, but those people are underestimating just how terrible that group is and are also expecting a man who only has one full season under his belt (and only 50 career games) to already be carrying a team. Also to those who fault him for holding the ball too long, there’s not much you can do when it takes about ten seconds for your receivers to find any space. Sign J.J. Nelson?
4. Eagles Offensive Tackles
Lane Johnson was carted off with a head injury which is clearly not ideal. Big V really isn’t a good tackle, and as expected, things went downhill as soon as he entered the lineup. Jason Peters was flagged twice early in his return, and briefly left the game after getting his leg rolled up on. I personally think he shouldn’t have gotten his job back as Dillard performed well in his absence. Dillard usually looks shaky when he first enters game, but that’s to be expected when his snaps are so random and staggered.
5. Coaching
The Eagles abandoned the run too early in this game and I was surprised to see Ajayi kept on the sideline in favor of Boston Scott. Sure, Ajayi hasn’t played in a very long time, but I have a hard time imagining him being more ineffective than the 5’6 Scott. The Eagles got off to a fast start in part because of a pass interference penalty that Scott drew, but after going up 10-0, they imploded. There’s only so much you can do with this receiving core, but there’s no excuse for abandoning Miles Sanders in the second half.
Also, fire Mike Groh.
-By: Micah Jimoh
Writer/ Interviewer