Santa Clara, CA: In a game that featured the two most injury-ridden teams in the NFL, the Philadelphia Eagles came in playing underdog to a 49ers team that was missing it’s starting quarterback, running back, pass rushers, and outside corners. And while San Francisco was riding the hot hand coming into Sunday night, winning two straight against the New York Jets & New York Giants, respectively, quarterback Carson Wentz led the Eagles an ugly, gritty, 25-20 win over the defending NFC Champion 49ers. 

A win’s a win, even when it’s ugly 

            Even before the season started, the Eagles lost some solid players, particularly on the offensive line. Losing right guard Brandon Brooks (torn Achilles) and left tackle Andre Dillard (torn biceps) during the off-season was just the start of Philadelphia’s injury woes. Since then, the Eagles have lost four of their top receivers (Alshon Jeffery, J.J Arcega-Whiteside, DeSean Jackson, and Jalen Reagor), two starting-caliber defensive backs (Avonte Maddox & Trevor Williams), their starting right tackle (Lane Johnson), and their replacement left tackle (Jason Peters). And we’re just scratching the surface here. As if it wasn’t bad enough, quarterback Carson Wentz has been playing terribly, throwing for just 737 yards, three touchdowns, and six interceptions in his last three games.  

            And yet, in a game where the national audience and the NBC broadcasting panel picked the 49ers to win across the board, the Eagles made everyone and their mother look foolish. The stats say that Wentz played at a pedestrian level; 18/28 (64% completion) for 193 yards, seven carries for 37 rushing yards, a passing touchdown, one rushing touchdown, and an interception. But on the eye test, Wentz played his heart out. His best play of the night was the one that changed the tide; on second and 19, Wentz lobs the ball deep to second-year wideout Travis Fulgham (2-57-1), who wrestled with a defensive back as he tip-toed his way into the endzone for a 42-yard score. Aside from that play, the rest of the Eagles offense was silent. Primary half-back Miles Sanders only got 13 carries for 46 yards, as coach Peterson elected to go with a running back-by-committee approach near the end of the game, which resulted in 93 total rushing yards by six different ball carriers. Veteran tight end Zach Ertz only registered four catches on five targets for nine yards, his lowest of the season. “Big Team win,” Wentz said in his post-game presser. "[The] defense played their tails off, turnovers were huge for us. Guys just rallied around each other and played their tails off.” 

Speaking of the defense, the unit was Philly’s saving grace, forcing San Francisco to punt for times and turn the ball over three times. The unit registered 15 total quarterback hits, five sacks, a forced fumble, and two interceptions, with the second pick by linebacker Alex Singleton going to the house for a 30-yard pick-six. 

Defending Champs On the Ropes 

            In the last two games, head coach Kyle Shanahan orchestrated two blow out games against both of New York City’s “football teams”; beating the Jets 31-13 and the Giants 36-9 with B & C-team players. Over the course of those two games, though, San Fran lost almost every playmaker on both sides of the ball. They lost three of their top pass rushers (Dee Ford, Nick Bosa, and Solomon Thomas), their starting corners (Emmanuel Mosely, Kyle Williams, and Richard Sherman), their starting two running backs (Tevin Coleman and Raheem Mostert), and their starting quarterback (Jimmy Garoppolo), along with a laundry list of other significant injuries.  

            After the Giants game, coach Shanahan was asked whether backup quarterback Nick Mullens, who threw for over 300 yards against New York, could compete for the starting job once Garoppolo came back from injury. Shanahan answered with a resounding no, and against the Eagles, we can now see why. Mullens was good against the Giants, but not that good. Against a desperate Eagles defense, Mullens was abused and confused; throwing for 200 yards even, a touchdown, a lost fumble, two momentum-killing interceptions. It got so bad, he was benched for C.J. Beathard (14/19 – 138), whose fourth-quarter comeback bid came up short with seven seconds left on the clock. 

            On the Brightside, star tight end George Kittle’s return to the gridiron was as big and loud as he is. Despite missing the last two weeks with a knee injury, Kittle caught 15 balls on 15 targets for 183 yards and a touchdown, along with one carry for eight yards. 

            On defense, the injury-riddled front seven registered 10 quarterback hits and three sacks against Wentz, even picking him off on a pass-deflection at the line of scrimmage in the first quarter. They kept Philly to just 267 total offensive yards (174 passing, 93 rushing) on the night, but just couldn’t keep them out of the endzone.  

What’s next? 

            The Eagles are coming back to the East coast with a win, but they’re set to face in-state rival Pittsburgh, who’s coming off an extra week of rest after their week four-game against the Tennessee Titans was postponed due to a COVID outbreak in Tennessee. 

            As for San Francisco, they’re getting a chance at a bounce-back game, as they’re set to host a 1-3 Miami Dolphins team. However, don’t let the record fool you; this Fitzmagic-led squad went blow-for-blow in a close 31-23 loss to NFC West rival (and division leader) Seattle Seahawks.  

Writer

-By: Juan Guarin-Camargo

The Eagles home opener was a chance to right the ship early on before the question about the team and in particular, Carson Wentz started. Unfortunately, the Rams had a different plan for the Eagles at home. The Rams came across the country to put the smackdown on the Eagles to the tune of 37-19. Jared Goff came out firing on all cylinders and completed his first 13 passes including a pair of touchdowns to Tyler Higbee. By early in the second quarter the Eagles were down 21-3. The Eagles started to show some fight and by halftime had scored twice to bring the score within 5 points. Alas, that was not enough for the Eagles as they only went on to score 3 points in the second half of the game. Carson threw two interceptions and had a turnover on downs that eventually closed the door on the Eagles chance at victory. 

Overall on the day, the Rams look to be returning to that 2018 form when they had one of the best offenses and defenses in the game. McVay and that squad had the offense hitting on the short passes and screen game, while running back Darrell Henderson took over as the lead back that day and showed great potential. The biggest X factor was the tight ends and Higbee shined. He finished the game with 5 catches for 59 yards, but was lethal in the red zone with three touchdowns. The defense was rolling as well, with the previously mentioned two interceptions. The Eagles line held up well with no sacks allowed to Donald and Co., but still, the defense held a potent Eagles offense down. 

On the flip of this is the struggling Eagles team that now has a lot of questions starting to rise up. The offense is back again looking hit or miss and the turnovers are the main culprit in that aspect. Miles Sanders came back after missing the first game and started the first drive off with a fumble. The Rams capitalized on it and scored to have the Eagles down early. They responded well with at least a field goal the next drive, but it wasn’t until the second quarter they started to pick it up. They scored two more touchdowns in the first half to close the gap to a five-point game. Then the turnovers again reared their ugly head and Carson threw interceptions on two of their last four drives. The other two drives only resulted in three points and a turnover on downs. These types of ineffective drives and costly turnovers are why people in the media are questioning Carson Wentz as the franchise guy. He has all the tools but seems to continue to make stupid plays when he knows better. 

Hopefully, the Eagles can get back on track with their next game being against a Bengals team that has promise but needs more team with Joe Burrow to be a threat. While the Rams hope to continue to roll on through there schedule with the Bills coming up.

Writer

-By: Darren Braxton:

The Eagles and Rams are trending in opposite directions after Week 1. Who will emerge victorious in their third matchup of the Pederson/McVay era?

Injury Report (from philadelphiaeagles.com):

Philadelphia

OUT: WR Alshon Jeffery (foot)

QUESTIONABLE: DE Derek Barnett (hamstring), DE Brandon Graham (concussion)

NOT LISTED: DT Fletcher Cox (rest), DT Javon Hargrave (hamstring/pec), WR DeSean Jackson (rest), T Lane Johnson (ankle), T Jason Peters (knee), RB Miles Sanders (hamstring)

Los Angeles

QUESTIONABLE: TE Gerald Everett (back)

NOT LISTED: T Andrew Whitworth (not injury related)

Outside of Vinny Curry and Craig James moving to IR, the Eagles injury report looks a lot more promising than it did last week. Lane Johnson, Miles Sanders, and Javon Hargrave will all make their season debuts as the Eagles look to avoid an 0-2 start. The only worrying part about this report is that both starting DEs are listed as questionable. They did practice fully on Friday, so their chances of playing are looking good.

Los Angeles has a very, very short injury report. Backup TE Gerald Everett is expected to play.

Analysis:

It was proven last week that the best way to stop the Eagles offense is to pressure Carson Wentz relentlessly. Wentz has the tendency to try and do too much with dead plays, resulting in extra lost yards and fumbles. Even when he has a clean pocket, sometimes he looks shaken up from previous pressure, leading to overthrows. While Los Angeles doesn’t boast the same ridiculous defensive line depth that Washington does, they still have Aaron Donald, who is arguably the best football player on the planet. He hasn’t had previous success against Philadelphia, but he shouldn’t be taken for granted as he has the ability to wreck any game at any moment. He picked up one sack last week against Dallas (three total for LAR).

The Eagles may finally get to see their starting defensive line at full health with the expected returns of Derek Barnett and Javon Hargrave. Jared Goff is a QB who likes to dink-and-dunk his way to success, but the Eagles now have the horses to really rattle him into making bad decisions. Jim Schwartz should be very aggressive now that he has a very solid defensive backfield ready to cover up for blitzes. Sean McVay’s offense includes a lot of screens and passes near the line of scrimmage, so expect the Eagles corners to play closer up than usual. The Dallas defense, which isn’t better than this current Philadelphia unit, held the Rams to just 20 points despite a strong performance from RB Malcolm Brown and a very efficient day by Goff.

Dallas ran the ball just 27 times, but they did average over five yards per carry on the Rams D. With Miles Sanders and Lane Johnson back in action, the Eagles can finally run the ball successfully and take pressure off of Wentz. They had no semblance of a run game against Washington last week, and that contributed to them blowing the lead. The Eagles run defense continues to be strong and I expect them to dominate against the Rams uninspiring duo of Malcolm Brown and Cam Akers. The Eagles really do have the advantage in this matchup, but let’s see where their confidence is after a tough loss to the Washington Football Team.

Can Doug Pederson improve to 3-0 against the man who stole the 2017 Coach of the Year?

Prediction:

Eagles 24, Rams 16

Sunday, September 20 at Lincoln Financial Field, Eagles 1.5-point favorites (Odds Shark)

Writer

-By: Micah Jimoh