TE Dallas Goedert scores on a 43 yard catch and run, His second score in the game.
WE got some work to do.
EAGLES 24 – Commanders 22
EAGLES STATS:
Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (14/25 – 56.0% – 203 – 3 – 0)
Rushing: RB Saquon Barkley (15 – 83 – 5.5 – 0 – 0)
Receiving: TE Dallas Goedert (5 – 4 – 77 – 19.2 – 2)
Drive Killer: N/A
Sack Leader: LB Jihaad Campbell (1.0 – 0 – 9)
Special Teams Ace: P Braden Mann (7 – 361 – 51.5 – 0 – 4 – 64)
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I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for these Four Things articles. It’s to point out what we need to address BEFORE the game. Then AFTER the game, there’s a no-bullshit assessment of whether or not the Eagles did any of what they needed to do, to ensure the win.
So how much of what I mentioned in Four Things: COMMANDERS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Use the Kerrigan Plan: The Eagles barely tried to work the Flats, or throw Outs to the TE. Instead, everything seemed to be “hold ball for 20 seconds and throw deep”. We escaped with the win, but we also had seven punts. Being that inconsistent, is not how to build a championship Offense. (NOT DONE)
2) Force Passes Deep: We did a really good job of keeping them in 3rd and long, and forcing QB Jayden Daniels (18/34 – 52.9% – 164 – 2 – 0) to hold the ball too long, and then just throw passes away. We hardly gave him anywhere easy to go with the ball, and as a result he spent much of the game under 50% passing. (DONE)
3) Blow Up the Middle: We spent much of the game flushing Daniels from the pocket and into bootlegs. Our DE’s however were never able to capitalize on that, mostly due to overrunning their rush and losing outside contain, over and over and over. We got outflanked a lot in this game. That has to get fixed.
While the Commanders did run for 132 yards, it was never in a consistent or reliable sense. Aside from a handful of QB scrambles, their ground game produced just 101 yards on 27 carries (3.7 ypc), with the longest run being 11 yards. Had our Offense not allowed the game to stay so close, the Commanders would have long abandoned the run game. (DONE)
4) Exploit Loaded Boxes: Can’t say that we did this. Then again, I can’t say that they ever loaded the box. With the Eagles lining up WR’s in bunches near the ends of the Offensive Line, it naturally draws defenders closer, in order to cover the receivers.
The result is the defense isn’t spread out, and it makes it that much harder to find room to run. Did you notice how hard it was to generate rushing yards today? (NOT DONE)
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This week’s Four Things score was 2 of 4. Next week we travel to Tennessee to take on a Titan’s team that just got corn-holed, at home, by the Jets. The Jets! We have no business struggling against the Titans in any fashion.
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Game Hero: Jalen Hurts – He protected the ball, and made plays with his legs (7 – 46 – 6.5 – 0 – 0) when he was needed to. I said in THE 12: #10 that we would need this from him, and right out of the gate, I was shown to be right.
A.J. who? WR Dontayvion Wicks catches his first touchdown as an Eagle.
Game goat: The Offensive Line – Penalties and an inability to keep defenders from hitting Barkley in the backfield, handicapped our attack all afternoon. I don’t know yet if this something to blame on the players; or new Offensive Line Coach Chris Kuper; or just the growing pains of switching systems, without the starters playing a single snap in the preseason. (So then, wouldn’t I have to blame Head Coach Nick Sirianni?) Whatever. It’s Week One. Let’s be patient.
At least for now.
On The Whole: We didn’t win this game, so much as we survived it. We spent entirely too much time in Shotgun, when we were told that we’d operate primarily under Center now. Seeing a drawn-up WR Screen, thrown behind the line of scrimmage, was enough to elicit from me, a diatribe of colorful metaphors, questioning the genealogy of our Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion.
At one point on Facebook, I asked if Sean Mannion was Kevin Patullo’s new legal name. I can’t speak for you, but to me, at times it was hard to see a difference between what we did today, and the shit we rolled out last year.
But! At the end of the day we sit at 1 – 0. Tied for first place in the NFC East; with the 1-0 giants who beat a Cowboys team, that many said would win this division. So yeah… We got work to do.