Philadelphia Eagles Blown Out By Cincinnati Bengals 32-14

Before I start with the analysis, let me apologize for not writing this and submitting it on time. When stuff happens and your team gets blown out, it is easy to have writers block. Not to mention I have begun watching shows on Netflix and Hulu so that has been occupying my time. Because of my personal opinions on my team's quarterback, there will be very little blame placed on him because he is a rookie and because the team was put in such a terrible spot to begin the game. When you get tons of pressure in your face, your line doesn't block, your teams gets down late in the game and a fifth of your passes get blocked at the line of scrimmage, it kind of makes sense that you will be throwing interceptions. This coaching staff has failed the quarterback as well as the defense, which had tons of trouble getting off the field.

The Cincinnati Bengals played amazingly in the game when it mattered. The first three quarters, their offense clicked in the passing game, especially when the Eagles did so well stopping their runs. Their third down game was probably the most impressive as for the first half, the Bengals never punted. Andy Dalton and the Bengals offensive line deserves all of the credit as he did the job without his best wide receiver, A.J. Green. Their offense was placed in many third and long situations, but the Eagles proved that they were unable to get to Dalton and he made them pay. I believe by the end of the game, the veteran quarterback had three touchdowns and no interceptions in one of the better games that he has played all season.

And while the Bengals offense played well, their defense played better. They did the job in pressuring rookie quarterback, Carson Wentz. They tipped the ball at the line of scrimmage multiple times and ended up getting three interceptions. Two because the line was able to pressure Wentz and one because the rookie made a bad throw down the middle intended for Ertz. I didn't like the throw, but when your team is down by over 20 points in the fourth quarter, you gotta make something happen. The Eagles running game was nullified early in the game and the team got down by so many points, it made the Bengals job on defense really easy as there would be a pass almost every time. Heck, Carson Wentz had so many tipped passes that he caught his own pass and ran for like five yards.

I don't want to make this all gloom and doom, I actually want to congratulate a player on the team. That player is rookie sensation, Paul Turner. I believe the rookie free agent caught every ball that hit him in the hands and without veteran receiver, Jordan Matthews and an injury in the game to Dorial Green-Beckham, the young receiver got a lot of targets. I would like to see him worked into the offense because he has talent, he catches passes and he doesn't give up on balls. During a rebuilding season, I don't care about wins and losses, I care about trying your best and having heart and it has become a theme in December that this team lacks heart. I am especially disappointed by the mindless penalties of helmet to helmet hits, horse collar tackles, and late hits out of bounds. That shows a lack of focus and an increase in frustration. I am also extremely disappointed when veteran players almost purposely miss blocks on other players because it shows a lack of trying. I also liked the way that the defense fought back late in the game by holding the Bengals to punts and two fumble recoveries, however, the offense was only able to score after the first fumble recovery. These were the only bright spots the defense showed all game.

I don't expect this team to win every game, I don't care if they end up being 5-11 during a rebuilding year where the team obviously lacks talent at certain positions. I'll tell you what makes me upset during it all, players who have shown time and time again that they are playing for a paycheck. I would much rather see players at the bottom of the depth chart come in and play their hearts off, then see overrated veterans disgrace the wings like they have been doing for weeks and years. There, somebody had to say it and I am especially looking at those players that were selected by former head coach Chip Kelly. Thanks to him and his "diligence", the Eagles have a lot of finesse and talented players that are just plain lazy and do not come to play when their number is called.

Andy Dalton evades Eagles tacklers in his team's victory

Philadelphia Eagles Stuffed By Green Bay Packers 27-13

In all ways, shapes and forms, this was the worst game that the Eagles have played in all season. The Packers were coming in with 4 wins to their name after hard losses to the Titans and Falcons in recent weeks, so I expected the Eagles to have a decent game against a defense with a depleted backfield. The Eagles on the other hand recently deactivated struggling receiver Nelson Agholor and activated Practice Squad receiver Paul Turner. This would be a good test for Carson Wentz, as well as the defensive line as the Packers were a very injured team.

The game, however, started out in the Packers favor and they never lost the lead. Aaron Rodgers looked like the savvy veteran he always looks like against the Eagles and many of his passes appeared to magnetically hit his receiver in the hands. The Packers really didn't run the ball effectively as I believe their leading rusher was Aaron Rodgers. The guy still has it, at least against the Eagles as he was able to go for two passing touchdowns to Davante Adams on the first and second drives. Aaron Rodgers with his turtle screens and short passes seemed unbeatable as the Eagles rarely had a single answer for the Packers offense.

The Eagles offense started out well with Carson Wentz being perfect in passing on his first drive, ending the drive with his first rushing touchdown of the season. I thought he played decently in the first half as he got the Eagles out of a lot of 3rd and long situations. However, the Eagles were unable to add an equalizing touchdown in the second quarter after Wentz threw a pass to Bryce Treggs while the receiver was being interfered with. The officials didn't call holding or pass interference even though I thought they should have. Wentz's lone mistake was an over the middle shot to Zach Ertz that was intercepted by Packers Safety, Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix. Wentz also was able to target Dorial Green-Beckham and Jordan Matthews a lot in the first half, but after Jordan got injured, the Eagles attack was basically nullified in the longer passing game.

With running back Ryan Mathews out of the game, the Eagles relied on Sproles, Barner, and Smallwood to carry the load. Smallwood actually was playing well in the game, but he was hampered by poor play calling. The Eagles had a chance to extend drives while running the football, but they lost their edge when they relied on the passing game with injured receivers. The Packers had only six drives, as did the Eagles as Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense was able to lead long drives that spanned over ten plays. When that happens, coupled with roughing the passer, off-sides, and holding calls, it really does a number on the team.

The offensive line really didn't do Carson Wentz very many favors as he was pressured with four guys often and there were a lot of times in which holding and false-starts occurred, which kept the Eagles out of good position to convert drives. The lone bright spot on the Eagles team continues to be Caleb Stugis, as he was able to hit two field goals from very long distance. Sturgis was able to keep the Eagles in the game, but bad play calls and penalties kept them out of good position. The game was 17-13 at one point, but the Eagles defenders were unable to disrupt the Packers short passing attack and Aaron Rodgers had his was with the Eagles like he always does. It makes me question the coaching staff sometimes until I remember that this is a rebuilding football team with five wins in eleven games, which was far better than I expected. I know this was a very short recap, but to be honest, the game went by so fast that not even the annoying commercials could make it long enough to fill a three hour time slot.

I congratulate the Packers on their win even though some of the penalties made me a little salty. I am not as salty as I was after the Lions game, but I do question the officials when the Eagles defensive line are held a lot, the receivers are held even more, and it seems like Dorial Green-Beckham cannot even block on screen plays without getting called for offensive pass interference, when I see other teams get away with the same thing. Then I realize that it was probably karma for pushing that woman down the stairs. I am very disappointed in this team and I am merely hoping to see improvement throughout the season as the playoffs seem to be a lost cause with this team.

Aaron Rodgers with poise against the Philadelphia Eagles

Philadelphia Eagles Out Flown By Seattle Seahawks 26-15

Before I start with this post, let me just say that I didn't expect the Eagles to win this game and even penciled my favorite football team in as losing this game very early in the offseason. With that said, this team still had every chance to win this game, but because of the fact that the Seahawks are a craftier and better prepared team, they did not win. The Seattle Seahawks are a very good team at home and the Eagles have not been a very good road team, only winning one road game against the lowly, 2 win Chicago Bears. 

The game started out with the Seahawks having the ball, but they went three and out and punted to the Eagles. The Eagles had a chance to get a good drive started, but they stalled because, yet again, they decided to pass the ball three consecutive times instead of running it. Not only does this seem to be a trend with this team, it also is starting to be a trend by the Head Coaches in attempts to outsmart the opponent. The other team is great against the pass, lets pass anyway to keep them on their toes. The Eagles then punted the ball back to the Seahawks and on Seattle's seemingly first play ripped off a 70 or so yard run by C.J. Prosise for a touchdown that immediately put the Seahawks up 6-0 in the first quarter after a blocked extra point.

One thing I was extremely happy about was the fact that the Eagles offense still had fight in it. They had fight by going all the way down the field on a seemingly seven minute drive that was capped off by a Carson Wentz to Zach Ertz touchdown pass. This was Ertz's first of the season and Wentz's first in two games. Regardless, the Eagles took the lead and did so by using the running game as well as some key short passes. The Seahawks next drive started deep in their own territory and it looked like if the Eagles could get them off the field that they could take control of the game. However, third down after third down and the Seahawks kept on converting, kept on converting until Seattle was at the Eagles 40 yard line and at 3rd and 16. The Eagles had a chance to force an incomplete pass, but were flagged for being offsides. So on 3rd and 11 on the Eagles 35 yard line, Russell Wilson turned a seemingly broken play into a Jimmy Graham touchdown catch with a missed tackle by Watkins. Believe me, it was embarrassing but not the most embarrassing touchdown Seattle scored that day. 

Now here is where the Eagles started to piss me off. Now they had a chance to score a touchdown on a screen pass, but guess who messed it up for the Eagles? You guessed it, Nelson effing Agholor. Because he wasn't lined up two inches closer to the line of scrimmage their touchdown was nullified on an illegal formation and they were instead forced to punt. I am kind of up to here with that guy. When he isn't dropping passes, he is screwing up touchdowns. He is a great route runner, the best on our team, but he just sucks. On the ensuing drive, Russell Wilson would throw deep to Doug Baldwin for 44 yards and that would lead to a Seahawks field goal. If the Eagles could get one bit of credit here, the red zone defense was just about immaculate as I don't think the Seahawks ever scored from close range. 

Before the half, the Eagles had a chance to nullify a part of a two possession lead by the Seahawks, but Carson Wentz was intercepted on 1st and 10 from the 50. The ball was intended for Dorial Green-Beckham and Wentz did not see Cam Chancellor and if he had waited a little longer, it might have been a completion. It really sucked to not get points off of that drive, but they might not have gotten points anyways as there wasn't much time left on the clock. I like the fact that Wentz was being aggressive, but it shows up as an interception none the less. 

After the Eagles and the Seahawks traded punts to begin the second half, the Eagles had the ball deep in their own territory. On 2nd and 4 with plenty of time in the pocket, Wentz forced a pass down the field to Bryce Treggs in double coverage and the ball was intercepted by Richard Sherman. Shouldn't have thrown the ball, but deep in your own territory, it is basically a punt on 2nd down. The Seahawks would then get into the red zone and Russell Wilson would jet sweep the ball to Doug Baldwin, run around the defense and would throw the ball to his quarterback, who was wide open for a touchdown. It seems very ironic that Russell Wilson would do that in a game where Nelson Agholor played so poorly in because him and Nelson Agholor are tied for receiving touchdowns this season. 

So the 4th quarter was extremely boring filled with punts, field goal attempts, field goal misses, turnovers on downs, but the Eagles still had the ball and were able to get the ball down the field thanks to some good passing by Carson Wentz. The Eagles were even able to get Dorial Green-Beckham open in the end zone for a touchdown and thanks to Nelson Agholor, a 2 point conversion. Now instead of doing the smart thing and saving their onside kick for their potential game winning drive, Doug Pederson elected to onside kick the ball with 3:33 on the clock, which is such a no no, that isn't even funny. The Eagles had the Seahawks on the ropes and they have a great special teams unit. You kick the ball deep and force a three and out. Instead, the Eagles onside kicked the ball, didn't get it and forced the Seahawks to punt, but instead of being deep in Seattle territory, the ball was at the Eagles 47. 

So the Eagles get the ball back and with a little less than two minutes to go were caught with a phantom pass interference call on Dorial Green-Beckham on a screen play that would have made it close to the Seahawks red zone, but instead lost 10 yard and were unable to capitalize and then lost. Let me say that despite some bad calls and no calls, I knew the Eagles weren't going to win. Seattle played really well on defense and again, they are just the craftier team. One moral victory is the fact that this team fought and didn't give up and if they had been smarter, they would have possibly had a chance to score earlier and possibly get an onside kick on the ensuing kick off. Not saying it would have helped them win, but it might have been a closer game. This team falls to 5-5, which if someone told me the Eagles would have 5 wins at week 10, I would have slapped them in the face and called them crazy. 

Russell Wilson extends football after catching first career touchdown

Philadelphia Eagles Play Gritty Against Atlanta Falcons 24-15

After losing a tough game against the New York Giants, the Eagles were looking to go home and regroup. A lot of questions surrounded the Eagles play calling as Doug Pederson called the game way too aggressively the week before. Everyone knew that the Eagles were a good team at home, but the Falcons were probably one of the best offenses in the game with Matt Ryan at quarterback, Julio Jones at wide Receiver and a great duo at running back. The Eagles would have their hands full as the Falcons had a three game winning streak all time against the Eagles.

However, this was a whole different team with a whole different coaching staff. After kicking the ball to the Falcons and stopping them in their own territory, the Eagles put the ball on the ground and moved the ball 81 yards for over seven minutes and forty-one seconds to cap off the drive with a Ryan Mathews rushing touchdown. After Mathews had been put in the doghouse by the fan base with two previous fumbles, one costing the Eagles the game against the Lions, it was good to see the Eagles premiering the savvy vet. Not to mention, Carson Wentz also completed four passes for four attempts to help the Eagles get down the field mistake free.

After the Eagles forced the Falcons to punt, the Eagles marched down the field with the signature play being a twenty yard screen pass to Ryan Mathews, but the even bigger problem with the drive was the fact that Caleb Sturgis missed a pretty simple 44 yard field goal. Caleb Sturgis had been pretty good thus far, but that was a pretty bad miss because the Falcons would end up going down the field after a long pass to Julio Jones. However, the drive stalled and Matt Bryant ended up kicking a field goal. After a three and out by the Eagles, the Falcons got the ball and went down the field again thanks to Julio Jones, but the Eagles stopped the Falcons in the red zone and Matt Bryant kicked yet another field goal.

After a long Ryan Mathews run, Carson Wentz got sacked and he fumbled with the ball being recovered by the Falcons and got the ball into Eagles territory. It really seemed like the Falcons were going to do something with the ball, but the only problem was the fact that Matt Ryan missed a 53 yard field goal. With 22 seconds left to go in the half, the Eagles had the ball in good field position, but very few time outs. With eight seconds left to go in the half, Pederson elected to call a play on 4th down, but none of the receivers got open and Wentz threw an incomplete pass on 4th down with two seconds left to go. I was really worried that the Eagles handed the Falcons a hail mary pass, but everything was okay because nothing came out of it.

After halftime, the Eagles were able to get the ball down the field quite easily. They did this mostly using the running game. However, once the Eagles got into the red zone, they seemed to freeze as the Eagles got a holding penalty with the ball deep in Falcons territory and were unable to convert. This series ended in a field goal that put the Eagles up 10-6. With the ensuing kick off, Matt Ryan was able to air mail a pass to Julio Jones and Matt Bryant was able to kick another field goal. After another drive of Ryan Mathews driving the ball on the ground, the Eagles had the ball on 3rd an 1 at the Falcons one yard line. However, instead of calling a quarterback keeper up the middle with his 6'5" quarterback, Doug Pederson elected to call a stretch play. I was really mad at that point because this was a point in time where the Eagles could have gone up by a touchdown, but that didn't happen.

After Caleb Sturgis kicked the short field goal, Matt Ryan was able to target Taylor Gabriel going up against Leodis McKelvin for a deep touchdown. The Falcons would take their first lead and the Falcons gained another victory after forcing the Eagles to miss a 55 yard field goal that was outside of Sturgis' range. This really pissed me off because on the previous kick off, Kenjon Barner was able to bring the ball back 52 yards on the kick off so the Eagles appeared to waste a good return. The other problem with this drive was the fact that Wentz was able to hit Jordan Matthews on a mid-ranged pass, he was popped in the face and dropped the ball. All of the Eagles fans around me were pissed off because we all thought it was hitting a defenseless receiver, but of course, the referees weren't watching because they wear a blind fold when it comes to calling penalties for the Eagles. Luckily, the Eagles were able to stop the Falcons on the next drive and they forced them to punt.

With the ensuing drive, Wentz was able to shine by passing the ball to Zach Ertz and by finally getting a pass interference call on a deep pass to Jordan Matthews. The Eagles were then hooked up with 1st and goal at the five and Ryan Mathews took the run from the shotgun and get the ball into the end zone. The score was 19-15 as the Eagles decided to go for two. After there was a hold penalty called on the first attempt, the ball was moved to the one and the ball was handed to Mathews for a successful conversion to go up by six. After trading punts, the Eagles were able to pin the Falcons deep in their own territory, but this was dashed as Najee Goode hit the return man out of bounds unnecessarily and 15 yards were tacked on to the play. At this point in time I thought the game was over but the Falcons only gained 5 yards. So on 4th and 5, Matt Ryan threw to an open Julio Jones in the zone, but the pass was miraculously dropped.

So the Eagles had the ball at the Falcons 40 yard line and were able to get eight yards, but that wasn't enough for a first down. However, it was enough for Sturgis to hit a 48 yard field goal right down the pipes. With a nine point lead I felt very comfortable, but there was still one minute, 57 seconds left. The Falcons were able to get sixteen yards, but Matt Ryan made the fatal mistake of throwing an interception to Leodis McKelvin for the walk off interception. The man was able to redeem himself for giving up the long touchdown and the Eagles were victorious. The Eagles did great running the football and really cut down on the mistakes. While Julio Jones had a lot of yards receiving, he didn't scorch the Eagles for a touchdown. While the play calling was bad at times, Wentz really wasn't getting much help from Nelson Agholor and Dorial Green-Beckham, but Darren Sproles continued to be the unsung hero with 8 receptions for 57 total yards. The officiating was also terrible, but that is no surprise to me, I am totally used to that, but I know the officiating will get worse when the Eagles play the Seahawks next week. They are the one team that seems to be immune to penalties as they rarely get called for anything and referees strangely keep their hands in their pockets when they commit penalties, should be an interesting one, but I was content to get the win.

Ryan Mathews scoring his second rushing touchdown of the game

Philadelphia Eagles Get Edged by New York Giants 28-23

As we go through a rebuilding season, I tend to lose more and more faith that this team will go to the playoffs. While the playoffs are always the first goal for every team, sometimes that just isn't realistic. It seems like every time this team loses, the fan base jumps off of a bridge and this was even something that I saw after this last game against the New York Giants. I knew this game was going to be close because that is how the games at Met Life Stadium usually are. Despite the fact that the Eagles haven't lost to the Giants in two whole years, I always knew that with a rookie Quarterback and Head Coach the game would be tough.

The game opened up with the Giants getting the ball and going three and out and punting it right to the Eagles. Once the Eagles got the ball, Carson Wentz completed one pass and then immediately threw and interception. This was an interception that immediately went for an Eli Manning touchdown pass to Odell Beckham Jr. This was a positive and a negative for me because I have both of those guys on my fantasy team. Then on the next drive, Carson threw another interception and then Eli Manning threw another touchdown, this time to Roger Lewis after the Eagles cornerback and safety ran into each other.

On the Eagles next drive, they got their offense started when they featured Trey Burton twice for a total of 43 yards, but the drive stalled deep in Giants territory and then Stugis kicked a field goal. However, Landon Collins rolled into the kicker but no penalty was called. The Eagles would then force a punt and with their next drive they again, went down the field, but they stalled deep in Giants territory. However, on a 4th and 2, Doug Pederson elected to go for it on a Quarterback sweep, but Wentz was dropped for a loss and the Eagles were forced to hand the ball back to the Giants when they could have gotten a field goal. The Giants would go backwards on their ensuing drive and on the Eagles drive, Wentz would connect with rookie free agent receiver, Bryce Treggs, for a 61 yard pass. This would be the longest completion of the day and the longest of Carson's career. Many Eagles fans were eagerly awaiting the playing of Treggs because he is very quick and he didn't disappoint. The drive would eventually lead to a short run for a touchdown by Ryan Matthews to make the game 14-10.

On the Giants ensuing drive, Eli Manning would methodically take the Giants down the field with the highlight play being a Victor Cruz catch over the head of Leodis McKelvin. Cruz would then leave the game with an injury after the play and the Giants would score on a passing play to Odell Beckham Jr. The only highlight of the rest of the half for the Eagles would be a long return by Darren Sproles and if he would have scored, it would have been good for the Eagles, but instead of kicking a field goal when the drive stalled, Doug Pederson again elected to run it up the middle on 4th and 1 with little Darren Sproles. The Eagles didn't get it and the whole time I sat there, yelling at the TV, "KICK THE F***ING FIELD GOAL!" The half basically ended with a blocked Caleb Sturgis field goal by Jason Pierre Paul so when Dog finally stopped being stupid, he wasn't even allowed to get the points. 

The Eagles would open the second half with a long drive the was mostly set up by Darren Sproles. Carson was able to throw a 20 yard pass to under achieving receiver, Nelson Agholor and Kenjon Barner was able to pound the rock into the end zone for a touchdown. With the Giants next drive, they went straight down the field on a long drive that was capped off with a Sterling Shepard touchdown thrown by none other than Eli Manning. It seemed like in this game, whenever the Eagles could catch a break, the Giants were always able to take the momentum back to their side.

On the bright side for the Eagles defense in the 4th quarter was the fact that they were able to get two turnovers. One in which Nolan Carroll was able to steal it away from Odell Beckham before he was able to secure it and the other with the ability to run the ball, Eli Manning threw a tipped pass right into the hands of Jordan Hicks. This was an extremely ill advised situation because it put the Eagles in the situation where they could score the go ahead touchdown after adding two field goals. So with the game on the line, the Eagles ran three passing plays from the Giants 17 yard line. I couldn't believe this, even with one time out, I expected them to at least try to run the football. However, on 4th down, Carson Wentz threw a fade route to Jordan Matthews, Jordan tried to adjust but was looking over his opposite shoulder. The ball fell to the ground incomplete and the Giants won.

It really sucked to see the Eagles lose this game because there were many points in the game where they could have won. Too many points were left on the field and the Eagles were also completely foolish to not kick those field goals earlier in the game. Carson Wentz also blew the first quarter by throwing costly interceptions. I don't really fault him because he is a rookie, but it appears that he has been trigger happy in certain situations. He did settle down eventually and was one of the reasons why the Eagles were able to come back in the game. I will say that as a football fan, this was a very good game and the better team won here. It isn't easy to say that, but the team has to play smarter. Not to mention, Doug Pederson has to find the featured back on this team because he just keeps mixing and matching backs without allowing them to get in a groove. He was criticized for playing to conservatively against Dallas and showed everyone by playing to aggressively against the Giants. He needs to find a middle ground soon or the fans will eat him alive.

Jason Pierre Paul blocks Eagles field goal

Philadelphia Eagles Submit to Dallas Cowboys 29-23 (OT)

Instead of making this post a reaction to everything that happened in this game, I am merely going to make it a critique of rookie Head Coach, Doug Pederson. Let me just say that this was a really good game. It had offense, defense, clutch performances, turnovers, and it went down to the wire. While I knew that the Philadelphia Eagles were going to lose, I was very impressed by the way that they were able to halt rookie sensation, Ezekiel Elliot and was able to disrupt rookie Quarterback, Dak Prescott. The Eagles were actually winning 23-13 at one point in the game, but because of some really bad coaching decisions, the Eagles eventually submitted to the Dallas Cowboys. The main reason was because while the Eagles made some questionable decisions in the 4th quarter and the Cowboys showed their experience and made some good choices of their own.

My girlfriend is an avid Dallas Cowboys fan and ever since I started dating her exclusively we circled October 30th as being our biggest test. Lets just say that she was very down in the 4th quarter, until her team started to come back and go into overtime. When Jason Witten caught the game winning touchdown, she was happy, but full of so much emotion that she didn't know what to do. I knew before that overtime drive even started that the Eagles would probably lose. I actually said to myself in the 3rd quarter that it would be really cool if the Eagles won this game, they would be 5-2 and at the top of the division, despite being a rebuilding team. Okay, back to the point of the post, the reasons why the Eagles gave this game away to a formidable Cowboys team in order was:

Number 1: Chris Jones fake punt run

At the end of the third quarter, the Dallas Cowboys trailed the Eagles 20-10 and had a 4th down deep in their own territory. Instead of punting the ball, they instead threw a curve ball to everyone watching by calling a fake punt. Chris Jones, the Cowboys punter, is actually a really fast human being. After getting by the rush, he went down the field for about 25 to 30 yards. If the Cowboys had punted, then the Eagles would have gotten it at around their own 40 yard line in good field position. As anyone might know, fake punts don't usually happen, but this is the second time the Cowboys have fooled the Eagles on special teams. In 2014, the Cowboys kicked the ball shallow, the Eagles return man, Josh Huff, didn't go to get it and the ball was recovered by the Dallas Cowboys. If memory serves me, the Cowboys scored a field goal on the drive to make the game 20-13.

Number 2: Switching out to cold running backs

One of the things that the Eagles have yet to figure out this season is who their feature running back is. For a few weeks, they have been playing Darren Sproles a lot in the first half because they are worried that Ryan Matthews keeps fumbling the football. This came into play because the Eagles got back up 23-13 and had the ball at around their own 40 yard line. This until on first down and ten, the Eagles gave the ball to rookie running back, Wendell Smallwood, trying to get cute and they fumbled. The Cowboys recovered and then kicked another field goal to make the game 23-16. Now I don't know about everyone else, but when you are trying to ice a game in clutch situations, the last thing you do is give the ball to a back that doesn't have a lot of experience. This would have been a good chance to work out someone like Kenjon Barner, but instead, they put their chances in the hands of a rookie and paid for it.

Number 3: Swing passes for negative yards

Swing passes are a situational thing for most teams. Usually if the defensive backs play off of the line, you can bring a receiver in to block for another one going out on a screen. However, the Eagles don't have any deep threats on the team and Carson Wentz threw short, pretty much the whole game. The receivers even had trouble catching these swing passes and these plays either ended in an incomplete pass or a really short gain. Late in the 4th quarter, however, the Eagles had a 2nd down at the Cowboys 32 yard line with a chance to run the ball and ice the game with a late field goal. However, instead of playing it safe and going forward, the Eagles ran a fake jet sweep, swing pass to Darren Sproles, which lost yards. Now Doug Pederson thought the team was out of field goal range, so he had Donnie Jones punt the ball.

Number 4: Eagles have 3 time outs, but they don't stop the clock

With about 30 seconds left in the game, the Cowboys were deep in their own territory and it was 3rd down. A coach with a lot of experience in game management would stop the clock so that they can have their offense have a chance to win the football game. However, this never happened as Doug Pederson let the clock run down to zero with me yelling at the TV, "CALL A TIMEOUT!" You call a time out, you can make a stop on 3rd down and get the ball back. Why? Because with two or one timeout(s) and about 20 seconds left is enough time to kick a field goal, especially with how short the Cowboys would have likely punted the ball because they wouldn't have wanted Darren Sproles to get a huge return. The time, however, went off the clock and the game ended.

Now the Eagles a 4-3, Carson Wentz had a decent game, it wasn't super impressive, it wasn't horrible. The guy is a rookie on a struggling offense that doesn't have many weapons and hasn't found it's complete identity. The coaching staff has a lot of time to grow as the team is rebuilding even though they are likely not admitting that the team is "rebuilding". The Cowboys really impressed me with how they bounced back because Dak was having a terrible game up until the 4th quarter as he completed less than 50% of his passes. However, when it all came down to it, the Cowboys were more proactive at the end of the game and made more "gutsy" calls to win. I hope this teams learns from this as they build for the long haul through the draft and free agency. Good game Dallas, it was a game for the ages.

Jason Witten score the game winning touchdown in overtime

Philadelphia Eagles Defend Against Minnesota Vikings 21-10

After last weeks game against the Washington Redskins where the Eagles didn't score a single offensive touchdown, the fans were really down. All of the fans that were claiming the Eagles were going to win the division after they defeated the Steelers in week three were claiming the Eagles were going to go 3-13 and every part of the team sucked. However, I think very few fans even thought the Eagles had a chance against the 5-0 Minnesota Vikings coming off of their bye. I heard people say the Eagles would get shut out and the Vikings would score over thirty points total.

Going into the game, I knew the Vikings were a good team. They win their games by running the football, playing it safe, getting good field position, kicking field goals, and capitalizing on the mistakes that you make. If you get down by ten points to the Minnesota Vikings, you are probably going to lose, that just shows how good of a team they are. They don't have a good offense and if you get pressure on them, they will make mistakes. Teams that play them make the mistake of playing too aggressively and forcing passes into tight coverage against their shutdown defense. What they should do is run the football consistently and throw short passes. If the receivers aren't open, take the sack or throw an incomplete pass.

Beginning the game I thought that if Carson Wentz can survive the game without getting splattered all over the field, then it would be a moral victory. Our rookie offensive tackle, Vaitai was still starting but I was hoping that he would get some help. The other story line for the game was the fact that former Eagles Quarterback, Sam Bradford was going to line up with the Minnesota Vikings. He was with the Eagles last year and during the preseason. However, the Eagles traded him for a first round draft pick after the Vikings lost franchise Quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater for the season.

And now to the game, the Eagles went three and out and punted to the Vikings. The Vikings returned the favor by going three and out, however, that was all foiled after Trey Burton on the Eagles ran into the Vikings punter and the Vikings got a free first down. However, they got to around midfield and then punted back to the Eagles and the Eagles got the ball at their own one yard line. Three plays later, on a 2nd and 9 play, Wentz threw the ball short intended for Brent Celek, but the ball was intercepted by Andrew Sendejo and the Vikings had the ball inside the five yard line. Now here is where things get very crazy, three plays later, Sam Bradford threw an interception of his own to Rodney McLeod in the end zone and the Eagles took over at their own twenty yard line.

On the ensuing drive, Carson Wentz botched the hand off with Darren Sproles and the Eagles fumbled. However, the game got crazier when on the very next play, Sam Bradford fumbled the ball after getting sacked. Malcolm Jenkins recovered the fumbled and ran the ball in for a touchdown. However, the touchdown was reviewed and Jenkins was actually downed by contact by Vikings tight end, Kyle Rudolph. On the next drive, Wentz made yet another mistake with an interception to Xavior Rhodes. It was a really bad throw on 3rd and 11 because Nelson Agholor was being covered tightly and it is the kind of ball that the turnover hungry Vikings would capitalize off of. The better idea is to throw an incomplete pass or take a sack because you can punt the ball away and win the field position battle, but instead Wentz got too aggressive.

During the next two trading drives, the Vikings punted after six plays and then the Eagles punted after nine plays. However, the Vikings were able to go down the field after a long 3rd down pass to Kyle Rudolph and the Vikings ended their drive off with a Blair Walsh field goal. On the ensuing kick off, Josh Huff took the ball and returned his first kick off for a touchdown for the season. The Vikings were charged with roughing the kicker so Doug Pederson elected to have the Eagles go for a two point conversion. The play was successful after Carson Wentz rushed the ball for a yard straight into the end zone and the Eagles went up 8-3.

Right before the end of the first half, it looked like the Vikings were driving on the Eagles for either a touchdown or a field goal. This was until Rodney McLeod sack-fumbled Sam Bradford and the ball was recovered by Eagles defensive tackle Beau Allen. When the Eagles began their drive at their own 48, I was expecting them to run the football down the field and that is exactly what they did at the beginning, however, they had a 3rd and 2 and Wentz had Trey Burton wide open, however, he threw the ball too high and the ball was incomplete. However, Doug Pederson had confidence in Wentz and the young quarterback repaid his head coach by getting the first down. On the next play, Wentz threw deep to Dorial Green-Beckham and the receiver was being molested down the field, but no flag was called. The one thing I have noticed is that referees aren't calling penalties when it comes to defensive backs playing against Green-Beckham, I was upset, but I remembered earlier in the game, Jalen Mills should have been called on a pass interference on Steffan Diggs, but the officials picked up the flag for no reason at all. This might have been one of those no calls to cancel the last no call out.

The Eagles were, however, able to get the ball deep into Minnesota territory, but the clock was running low and Sturgis was ready to kick a field goal. Knowing that this would be a good time to ice the kicker, Vikings coach, Mike Zimmer, called a timeout. In response, Doug Pederson put the offense back onto the field to run another play, but the ball went incomplete. So during the next play, Sturgis came back onto the field and the ball was kicked straight into the uprights and the Eagles lead 14-3 at halftime. While both defenses were playing well, both Quarterbacks, who had played well during the season to not turn the ball over both had three total turnovers and had completed far less than 50% of their passes.

To begin the second half, the Vikings got the ball first and the defense for the Eagles was ready to play. They were so ready that Sam Bradford was sacked on back to back plays by Jordan Hicks and Nigel Bradham. Unlike last week where the Eagles relied on their front four against the Redskins, they brought the heat and pressure against Sam Bradford and the Vikings. The Eagles got the ball after the punt at their own 23 and methodically drove the ball down the field with running back Ryan Matthews and some inopportune Vikings penalties including one by Trey Waynes against Dorial Green-Beckham and one on Linval for an illegal hands to the face on a Ryan Matthews 27 yard run. After two blotched snaps by Carson Wentz at the end of the drive, he threw a five yard strike to Dorial Green-Beckham for a touchdown to go up 18-3.

The Vikings actually had a very good ensuing drive late in the third and early in the fourth. They were able to make it deep into the red zone and I thought they would end up scoring a touchdown, however at the end of the drive the Vikings had a 4th and 1 situation that they were unable to convert thanks to a strong Eagles defense. The Eagles got the ball at their own five and went three and out, but the Vikings muffed the punt and it was recovered by Trey Burton. The Eagles then made it deep into Vikings territory thanks to some hard running by Darren Sproles. While it was a good nine play drive, the drive stalled and Sturgis kicked a field goal to make the score 21-3.

Now here was the problem for the Eagles at the end of the game, after getting the ball on downs, Ryan Matthews was back to his fumbling ways and fumbled the ball. On their final drive, Sam Bradford lead an eleven play, 53 yard drive for a go ahead touchdown pass to Cordarrelle Patterson. While it ended well for the Vikings, I am pretty sure Sam Bradford was sacked and he fumbled twice and the ball was recovered by Minnesota. The last ditch attempt for an onside kick was tried by Blair Walsh, but he failed as the ball rolled out of bounds. Carson Wentz finished the game in victory formation and the Eagles won the game 21-10.

This was one of the craziest games I had ever watched. The moment you thought that one team would profit off of the turnovers of the other team, they would turn the ball over themselves. Sam Bradford had the chance to have the Vikings be the first team to go 6-0 and have the starting quarterback have zero interceptions, but Sam not only threw an interception, but he also fumbled twice. The Eagles played really well on defense and I am specifically impressed with Mychal Kendricks, who was blitzing very well. He doesn't do well covering and he doesn't do well in run defense, but he does do well blitzing. On a sad note, nickel cornerback, Ron Brooks was lost for the season and this really sucks because now they will be using Malcolm Jenkins to cover Cowboys slot receiver, Cole Beasley. When those two teams played last year, Beasley had two touchdowns and consistently gave Jenkins ankle-breakers. Good luck to him next week as the Eagles have the daunting task of playing the 5-1 Dallas Cowboys.

Josh Huff flips into the end zone after scoring a touchdown

Philadelphia Eagles Get Shredded By Washington Redskins 27-20

After the Lions game, I obviously felt that the Eagles were extremely screwed by the officiating, but I cannot say that this time. I want to give a huge shout out to the officiating crew in this game against the Redskins because while the game was not perfect and no game is, I didn't feel cheated after it. The Eagles were given one bad call and the Redskins were given one bad call, that was about it. You see, at the end of the day, I can be a gracious loser and give the other team credit if they were truly the better team. Going into the game, the Redskins were missing tight end, Jordan Reed and the Eagles were finally missing offensive tackle, Lane Johnson, who missed the first game of his ten game suspension for using a banned substance. They were also missing cornerback Leodis McKelvin, who has missed most of the games this season. 

This time, the Eagles received the ball first and after two straight sacks on first and second down, the Eagles called a running play for their first first down of the game, however, they had to punt the ball three plays later on fourth down. Carson Wentz luckily only came out of that drive with a torn jersey thanks to the Eagles starting rookie right tackle, Halapoulivaati Vaitai or "Big V". Unfortunately, "Big V" played like a big void as Redskins edge rusher, Ryan Kerrigan had his way with the young man. Sometimes to the detriment of Carson Wentz as it was truly horrible to watch. And while it wasn't the worst performance for an Eagles offensive lineman in their debut, it was by far the most pathetic. With that said, the Eagles did not give the young man much support and he continued to struggle all game. 

The Eagles defense was actually handling the Redskins high powered offense and stopping the run. However, this was all until Redskins quarterback, Kirk Cousins, aired a pass to former Eagles receiver, DeSean Jackson. The young man was being covered by rookie cornerback, Jalen Mills and the play went for around 30 yards. By the end of the drive, the Redskins had gotten inside the red zone and Cousins had exploited the Eagles man to man defense with a Jameson Crowder passing touchdown. The problem really wasn't the defense at this point, they had previously stopped the Redskins on two drives, it was the fact that once they got another first down, they were at 2nd and 3 and coach Pederson called a passing play that got Carson Wentz sacked. The Redskins are very poor against the run and instead of calling more running plays in these situations, Pederson called a passing play and took the Eagles out of manageable third down position. 

The Eagles punted on that drive and the Redskins lead a masterful drive down the field, which ended in a newly acquired, Vernon Davis touchdown. The Redskins had mastered the running game against the Eagles. At the time I was completely unsure of whether or not Matt Jones or Rob Kelley was running the ball, but it didn't matter because with my poor vision and from where I was sitting, they looked the same. I didn't even know the Redskins utilized a two back system like this. Off screen on that touchdown though, the Redskins committed an excessive celebration penalty when Vernon Davis threw the football through the uprights of the goal post after scoring. So up 14-0, the Redskins kicked the ball off from their own 20 yard line and Wendell Smallwood returned the ball for a touchdown and the Eagles terrible offense was unable to hit the field to stink it up. 

Then the Redskins went down the field to around their 40 yard line, then called a triple reverse play. It appeared that struggling linebacker, Mychal Kendricks took down Jameson Crowder, but according to the replay, he didn't and the Eagles got away with a phantom tackle. Didn't matter because a few plays later, Kirk Cousins threw a pick 6 to Malcolm Jenkins and the Eagles were able to tie the game up. However, my pleasure with the play ended when Cousins was able to redeem himself, get the ball down the field, challenge the Eagles at the goal line, draw a Fletcher Cox roughing the passer call, and then on 3rd and short they ran the ball with Rob Kelley for a short touchdown. After this horrid chain of events, the second quarter ended and the Eagles offense barely had the ball.

The Redskins started their first drive of the second half by stalling very early after good kick coverage by the Eagles special teams. However, after Kirk Cousins ran for yet another first down, he was able to get the Redskins down the field. You see, while the defense bent, they didn't break as they forced Dustin Hopkins to kick a field goal. While on the next drive, the Eagles showed promise, they were called on an illegal block in the back on Wendell Smallwood, which negated a 38 yard pass to Dorial Green-Beckham. It was a bad call, but it was the worst call the Eagles were given on the day, which was a shame because it was a really good play. On the Eagles ensuing drive, the Eagles were able to get the ball down field and Jordan Matthews had a really nice 54 yard catch, best I have ever seen from him, however, the Eagles were only able to get a field goal after Barner was unable to pick up a four yard first down on third down.  

The Redskins had an ensuing drive that was a lot like the field goal drive before, more good running yards and more throwing to wide open receivers on crossing routes across the field. At this point in time, the Eagles line was weak after Bennie Logan got injured and the linebackers were still unable to make tackles. It was almost as if the running backs were still moving their legs even after getting tackled. The Redskins again, made it into the red zone and stalled, they then finished the drive off with another Hopkins field goal. The Eagles still showed that they had some fight though. Especially after Wentz finally completed a pass to Dorial Green-Beckham for 23 yards and then to Zach Ertz to the 22 yard line. The drive later stalled after Wentz was unable to connect with Ertz for a touchdown because the young tight end dropped the ball yards before the goal line. 

After the Redskins punted on the ensuing drive, all the hope rested on Carson Wentz and the offense to tie the game up. And while the young quarterback tried to rally, he was unable to as the Redskins sacked him two times in a row and the Eagles were unable to get the ball back. This game stunk to watch because the Eagles were unable to do anything on offense. The Redskins were next to last when it came to stopping the run and the Eagles barely used their running game and were not putting the offense in a good situation to win. Those two returns for touchdowns were also a double edged sword because while the Eagles got enough points to tie the game up, the defense was left on the field for more time than they needed to be. Also, throwing a rookie tackle onto the field with no help didn't do the offense any favors as Vaitai was a turn style and it really hurt the momentum of the offense. On a final note, while the game was called much more fairly, it came out at the end of the game that the Eagles were penalized more than any team has in a two game span, so that is always great. I expect to see more of the same when the Eagles play the 6-0 Minnesota Vikings. 

Carson Wentz gets his jersey ripped off by Ryan Kerrigan

Philadelphia Eagles Get Clipped By Detroit Lions 24-23

I am sitting here, writing this, not happy about this game. Not just because the Philadelphia Eagles played extremely poorly against what should have been an inferior opponent, but also because of the truly inept officiating. I wish I could come out here and congratulate the fan base of the Detroit Lions, but alas I cannot one hundred percent do that. With that said, I will attempt to do this review without mentioning the poor officiating despite it being the worst officiated game I have watched since January of 2014 in an NFC Championship Game between the 49ers and the Seahawks.

The game originally started out with the Lions getting the ball first and with it, they used running back Theo Riddick to get the ball down the field (with two possible holding calls not called, I told you I couldn't let that go) and eventually gave the Lions a go-ahead passing touchdown to go up 7-0. On the opposite side of the spectrum, the Eagles got the ball on the kickoff, the returner muffed the kick off the bat and were only able to get the ball to inside the 15 yard line. While Carson Wentz played well in this game, the Eagles were unable to get a drive together and they punted the ball back to Detroit and Detroit went on to have another long drive for another Theo Riddick receiving touchdown from Matthew Stafford to go up 14-0.

This must have made Carson Wentz and the Philadelphia Eagles mad as they took the ball, went all the way down the field to set up a short yardage catch by Ryan Matthews for a touchdown to rally at 14-7. While I thought this might have lit a spark into the defense, it didn't stop the Lions from going off on the Eagles. The Lions at one point had a 3rd down and long deep into Eagles territory, but after Bennie Logan basically de-helmeted Matthew Stafford on what should have been a sack, the Eagles were called on a personal foul and the Lions got another chance. After what should have been an illegal touching in the back of the end zone by Marvin Jones, he stepped out of bounds and caught the touchdown. You cannot be the first to touch the football if you step out of bounds. There is no guarantee they don't score a touchdown on the drive, but they would have been heavily backed up.

You can clearly see the receiver in the back of the end zone stepping out of bounds before the ball was thrown to him, he shouldn't have been allowed to catch the ball first. Look at the ref, he is right there, it should have been called but it wasn't.

So the Eagles are down 21-7 with only a few minutes left to go in the half. They receive the ball and then get to the 50 yard line. Once they get to the 50 yard line, they are called on a chop block by Darren Sproles. Now in the picture you are about to see, you can see Sproles at close to the bottom of the screen blocking the defender with another lineman near him, he is double teaming him with another lineman. Obviously this officiating crew doesn't know what a chop block is because it is when two offenders are going one high and one low on the defender. That isn't happening here as Sproles is merely engaging in a block. 

Then even more bull sh*t took place as the Eagles were called for an ineligible receiver down field, but it was called on #98, who was a defender, so the officials called ineligible receiver downfield on a member of the other team so they basically forgot who was on offense. They later picked the flag up after announcing it and never explained what they were doing. I wasn't watching the game with sound so I didn't know what was going on. Then they called Zach Ertz on offensive pass interference, but because they never showed the replay I cannot tell you whether or not it was a good call or a bad. The drive ended when Carson Wentz re-connected with Zach Ertz and Caleb Sturgis kicked a long field goal to make the game 21-10 at halftime. 

In the second half, outside linebacker, Nigel Bradham was allowed to come back into the game. You see, because he went to the airport with a loaded gun in his carry-on bag, he was suspended for the first half. After Carson Wentz scored on a 75 play drive, Nigel was able to force a fumble against Matthew Stafford. The ensuing drive lead to a field goal to make the score 21-20, Detroit. There is a controversy over whether Eagles receiver Dorial Green-Beckham was being interfered with in the end zone, but it was left completely uncalled, you decide whether it should have been called or not... 

After this drive, the Eagles were able to get the ball back at their own 20 after a touchback and they went down the field with a good mix of run and pass and were able to get to around the 35 yard line. Ryan Matthews had a really good rush up the middle, but it was called back after a Brandon Brooks' "phantom" holding call. Again, the following pictures show that this is NOT holding, but again, this is what I and all other Eagles fans had to deal with this officiating crew...

Notice the guy flailing the arms? Yeah, he might be acting like he is being held, but he isn't, that is a perfect block. 

Instead of getting a chance to score a touchdown, the officiating crew screwed up again because instead of calling a spot of the ball penalty, they pushed the Eagles back an extra ten yards and the Eagles kicked another field goal. After the Lions had another stalling drive, the Eagles had a chance to ice the game. However, after calling a toss play to Ryan Matthews, he fumbled and it was recovered by the Lions. It took a while for the officials to review the call because apparently if an offensive player is touching the ball and is touching out of bounds linr, then the ball is dead. However, the replay officials said that there was no evidence that Jason Kelce, center on the Eagles, was touching the ball. However, I don't understand how anyone could say that he wasn't because look at this...

The arrow is where the ball is, clearly it is between Jason's legs and he was touching the out of bounds line. If he isn't touching the ball, then he had to have had a force field between him and the ball because he has fat legs. The Lions then went down the field and kicked a field goal after a VERY suspect personal foul on Malcolm Jenkins where he hit the receiver while he was running. I am pretty sure you are allowed to do that, if you aren't, then how is he supposed to tackle? 

On the ensuing drive, the Eagles lined up and Carson Wentz threw a deep pass and it was intercepted by the Lions and the game ended. Wentz played well despite the interception, at some point it was bound to happen, but he still sits up there as one of the better Quarterbacks in the league. This loss stung and honestly I won't forget it for years. When all was said and done, the Eagles almost won despite the inept officials. However, a loss is a loss despite all of the evidence of the one sided officiating because the Eagles have a loss on the record sheet. I am honestly kind of worried about the Eagles chances next week at FedEx Field against a Redskins team that the Eagles haven't defeated in two calendar years. I hope the offense and defense can get it together because I don't think that I can take another game of 14 penalties and two called on the other team. The Lions weren't called ONCE for holding despite the fact that I saw their offensive line hold twice on the first drive and once on the first play! Believe me, I am very salty, the sodium levels are at 500 mg on this one. 

Philadelphia Eagles Deplete Pittsburgh Steelers 34-3

Going into week three, most fans of the NFL were talking about how the Eagles haven't played any team with value after taking out both the Browns and Bears by a lot of points. One of the biggest worries was that rookie Quarterback Carson Wentz was going to cool down after recording around 400 passing yards and three touchdowns, but after watching film during a date with his girlfriend, Eagles fans became more confident. On the other hand, the Steelers still were coming off a big division win against the Bengals and were not looking past the Eagles. Head Coach Mike Tomlin and Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger raved about how impressed they were about Carson Wentz and the Eagles defense so we all knew that nobody was taking anyone lightly.

Starting out in the game, the Steelers received the kickoff and drove the ball down the field after a long Roethlisberger pass to rookie receiver Eli Rogers. However, after stalling on the drive, kicker Chris Boswell had a field goal blocked by Bennie Logan. Afterwards, Darren Sproles caught screen pass that eventually lead to a Caleb Sturgis field goal. On the Eagles second drive, Carson Wentz went down the field, mostly passing the ball because Ryan Matthews was constantly getting stopped, and ended up throwing a 12 yard touchdown strike to Jordan Matthews to put the Eagles up 10-3.

One bright note for the Steelers in the first half was the fact that Ben Roethlisberger was able to exploit the biggest weakness in the Philadelphia Eagles defense. This weakness was rookie cornerback, Jalen Mills and the Steelers were putting Antonio Brown on his side and passing to him early and often. Antonio Brown lead the Steelers in receiving with 140 total receiving yards, the only problems were the lack of a rushing game by DeAngelo Williams, the lack of receiving ability by Markus Wheaton, and the fact that the Steelers were called on many times for offensive and defensive holding. This took the Steelers out of their game plan and out of good field position.

I really enjoyed the fact that the Eagles scored on all of their drives but their final in the first half. Another tactic the Eagles used to their advantage in order to win the field position battle was kicking the ball off short so that the Steelers returners had to bring the ball back and most times they couldn't even make it to the 25 yard line. With that said, the Eagles lead the Steelers 13-3 at halftime and I really felt good about the game. While the running game was terrible, the Eagles still lead by two possessions and Carson Wentz was able to control the game with minimal dropped passes by the wide receivers.

To open up the second half I thought that the Eagles were going to keep it to a tight game and maybe the Steelers would get some points in the fourth quarter, but I was dead wrong. On a 3rd and 7 play on the Eagles 27 yard line, Carson Wentz connected with Darren Sproles again on an improvised wheel route, which lead to an Eagles touchdown. This was the turning point in the game because Ben Roethlisberger would be sacked four times, fumble once, and threw an end zone interception to Rodney McLeod that basically wrapped up the game. Meanwhile, the young running backs for the Eagles got things started in the third and fourth quarters as both Kenjon Barner and rookie, Wendell Smallwood scored rushing touchdowns and Smallwood scored the first of his career.

At the end of the day, there were many Steelers sidelined and their best edge rusher, Lawrence Timmons went to the hospital because of a shin injury. While Jalen Mills allowed a lot of passing yards and catches to Antonio Brown, he didn't allow the receiver into the end zone and Carson Wentz continued his streak of zero turnovers in a game, while at the same time putting up over 300 total passing yards and two touchdowns. This was an example of how the Eagles won as a team and completely demolished their instate opponent. Don't get me wrong, I think the Eagles have played well, but I don't think they are head over heels better than the Steelers. The Eagles were going to win this game, no matter who they went up against. They have a lot of work to do this week as the real "test" is their bye week.

Darren Sproles after scoring a 73 yard receiving touchdown

Philadelphia Eagles Hunt Down Chicago Bears 29-14

Before I begin the review for the game I want to discuss the environment around the Eagles fan base because as a fan, I feel like I have an ear to the ground. Before the game even started, there was talk by starting Safety, Malcolm Jenkins that he was going to kneel during the "Star Spangled Banner" at Soldier Field and he was going to be joined by fellow defensive back Ron Brooks. There was a lot of outrage about this in the fan base and how people weren't going to watch the game because people were "disrespecting" the flag, but that is their protest. If they want to say that players are not "American" by protesting, then okay, thats fine, you are not a "real fan" if you do not watch the game! Jenkins, Brooks, and fellow defender, Means did protest, but they did so by putting their fist into the air signaling "Black Power"! Again, I don't mind this as I would be just as okay if a white person said "White Power", those are their beliefs and that is perfectly fine with me.

After defeating the Cleveland Browns in their home opener, the Eagles must have been extremely pumped and excited. Not only did they destroy the Browns, they also injured their starting Quarterback, Robert Griffin III, and it might be possible that he is out for 10 to 12 weeks as of now. However, I think that Eagles fans and players knew that the Bears would be a much greater test than the Browns, offensively and defensively. The game began very slow with the Eagles forcing a three and out on the Bears and then driving down the field for a field goal in the red zone. Carson Wentz was nearly flawless passing on this drive in the empty set and the no-huddle offense. ESPN's color commentator, Jon Gruden boasted that Chicago's defensive coordinator, Vic Fangio had a very stingy defense in the red zone and this was true as the Eagles were only able to convert on three first half field goals.

Later on in the second quarter, the Bears warmed up on offense as Jay Cutler was called on to throw a 35 or 40 yard pass to Wide Receiver Alshon Jeffrey on a stop and go pattern. He easily burned the closest Eagles defensive back and after a pass interference penalty in the end zone, Bears Running Back Jeremy Langford ran in a one yard touchdown. This was the only offensive score of the game as the Bears missed a field goal earlier in the game. On the Eagles side, I was very impressed by the receivers until the last two plays of the first half. Carson Wentz was really able to get the ball to them and they were able to hang on to it. Despite the fact that the Bears were dialing up the blitz, he got the ball to Matthews, Agholor, and Burton, whom was in reserve for injured Tight End, Zach Ertz. However, at the end of the first half, Wentz threw a perfect pass to Jordan Matthews that would have gone for a touchdown if he had caught it and Caleb Sturgis hit a 53 yard field goal to finish the half 9-7.

The second half is where things started to get interesting. Right off the bat on the Eagles first drive, they went three and out with the exception of the fact that the referee that was watching the play, blatantly missed the defensive back interfering with Nelson Agholor during the pass. This happened right in front of the referee and he ate his whistle. This wasn't the only point in time where the officiating missed penalties as the Eagles were being held many times and it wasn't called, but they had no problem calling it on the Eagles. With that said, the Bears made it up to the 50 yard line by running the football, but on the next passing play, Cutler was sacked by Defensive End, Destiny Vaeao and the ball was fumbled and got recovered by Jordan Hicks. And while this drive didn't lead to anything, the Eagles were the recipients of another Jay Cutler interception by Strong Side Linebacker Nigel Bradham. This lead to a Carson Wentz two yard pass to Trey Burton to put the Eagles up 22-7.

After that interception, the Bears took Jay Cutler out of the game where he was checked for a right thumb injury and was replaced by Brian Hoyer. And while Hoyer was more efficient, Jeremy Langford did fumble the football at around the 50 yard line and Ryan Matthews was able to to run the ball down to the goal line and punch it in for a touchdown with some tough running. The last points of the game came off of a Bears punt return for a touchdown by Eddie Royal to close the gap 29-14, but it wasn't enough for the Bears to come back on. The Bears played really well on defense, they able to rattle Carson Wentz a good deal, but in the end, he hung in there and made the plays he needed to. To be honest, Wentz, best play was called back on a holding call by Center, Jason Kelce, where the Bear brought a blitz, Wentz stepped up and delivered a pass to Celek in the middle of the field. He showed great awareness on the play and got it to his target. As a rookie, that is all I expect him to do. While he played well, the game ball goes to the defense, they kept the Eagles in the game when the offense wasn't able to do anything.

Nigel Bradham after catching a Jay Cutler interception.

Philadelphia Eagles Steam Roll Cleveland Browns 29-10

Going into this game I was really excited to see how the Eagles first round pick, Carson Wentz, was going to play. The Eagles drafted him back in April because they knew that they needed to get younger at the Quarterback position and that former Quarterback Sam Bradford didn't have much of a future with the team. Because of this, they traded a bunch of draft picks to get to the number two selection, where they chose the FCS Quarterback from North Dakota State. Also, because of a rib injury in the preseason, Wentz was sidelined and Bradford and backup Chase Daniel got a chance to have more playing time.

A change in the Eagles plans occurred when Vikings Quarterback Teddy Bridewater suffered a season ending leg injury and the Vikings traded a first and a fourth round pick for Sam Bradford. Eagles General Manager Howie Roseman then promised that the rookie from North Dakota State would play in the week one matchup against the Cleveland Browns. Carson Wentz had been healing from a rib injury so there was a small question that he might not have been the starter in the game. I myself wanted to see Carson, but I also wasn't expecting much because I know how hard it must be for a rookie to come in and shock the world like most fans would want him to. I also didn't want him to play too well because the fans would expect too much in future games and would call him a bust if he didn't play as well.

Before the game, a member of the Browns Front Office came out and said that the reason why the Browns traded their pick away was because they wanted first overall pick Jared Goff (drafted by the Rams) and that Carson Wentz wasn't even graded in the top 20 Quarterbacks to be picked in the draft. I think everyone looked at that as material for the game and some might have laughed knowing that the Browns have a horrible track record of drafting Quarterbacks. I know this because the Browns have previously drafted Brady Quinn in 2007, Colt McCoy in 2010, Brandon Weeden in 2012, and Johnny Manziel in 2014 and none of them panned out.

I was actually really surprised to see Carson Wentz come out there on his first drive and complete 4 passes for 5 attempts with two catches by tight end Zach Ertz, one catch by tight end Brent Celek and a 19 yard touchdown strike to Jordan Matthews to put the Eagles up 7-0 in the first quarter. The reason why the first drive worked so well was because of the touch passes that Wentz made and his accuracy. He also was able to lean on his running backs, Kenjon Barner and Ryan Matthews. Finally, a neutral zone infraction on the Browns allowed the Eagles to gain a first down and extend the drive.

The first drive for newly acquired Quarterback Robert Griffin III was not such a good one as he lead the Browns to a three and out with two stuffed runs and a dropped pass by tight end Gary Barnidge. This would be a theme for the Browns as they would struggle to extend drives and the Eagles defense lead by Fletcher Cox and Connor Barwin. The only great play that the Browns had was a 44 yard pass to Terrelle Pryor where he had three defenders on him, but only he came back for the ball, not to mention a horrible pass interference penalty on Eagles defender Malcolm Jenkins that lead to a two yard Isaiah Crowell run.

In the second Quarter, the play of Carson Wentz really stalled as I think he was getting into a groove with the speed of the game despite dropped passes by Darren Sproles and Josh Huff, as well as runs not going for as many yards. However, the defense managed to stop the Browns on a key fourth down play, that was an ill advised call by Browns Head Coach Hue Jackson, which lead to a Caleb Sturgis 38 yard field goal before halftime. Sturgis had already made a shorter field goal and missed his first field goal wide right because Wentz was sacked on the previous play.

After halftime, the game sped up as the Eagles were finishing more drives for touchdowns and the Browns were punting on every fourth down. Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz was really bringing the pain as the Eagles recorded three sacks on RG3 in the second half. There was even a play where the center for the Browns hiked the ball over Robert Griffin's head and the play lead to a safety and two points on the board for the birds. Carson Wentz was also able to connect with second year receiver Nelson Agholor on a 35 yard pass that put the Eagles up by two possessions. Finally, Ryan Matthews finished the game off with a well deserved one yard touchdown.

At the end of the game, the Eagles suffered a few injuries, starting cornerback Leodis McKelvin and tight end Zach Ertz were injured along with Browns Quarterback Robert Griffin III. Eagles Quarterback Carson Wentz finished completing 22 passes out of 37 for 275 passing yards and 2 touchdowns and Griffin completed less than 50% of his passes for no touchdowns and a Rodney McLeod interception in the second quarter. In the end, the Eagles offense had control of the ball for around 40 minutes, which is unheard of because of their poor time of possession stat from last season. They ran the ball 34 times for 177 total rushing yards and from what I remember only had two dropped passes.

I am very happy with the way Wentz played in this game, he wasn't too spectacular, but he took care of business against a really bad Browns team. I am hoping that going forward, he improves on his decision making and steps up in the pocket to avoid contact. There was one play where he dropped the snap, picked the ball up and threw an ill-advised pass that could have been intercepted. A veteran quarterback would have taken the sack, but otherwise I was really happy with his showing and I hope to see vast improvement as the season goes on. This was a team win, the line blocked the quarterback, the backs took the pressure off with some impressive runs, the receivers caught the ball, and the defense spotted the offense 10 points and when that happens, your team is probably going to win. The Eagles play the Bears next week on Monday Night Football at Soldier Field so I am hoping that we do not see too much drop off but it is a transitional year so I am not expecting much record-wise, but I am expecting the defense to step up like it has and help the team win some games.

Carson Wentz (#11) throwing a pass in Sundays game