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.