ANOTHER tough loss to swallow.
EAGLES 17 – Jaguars 19
EAGLES STATS:
Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (21/40 – 52.5% – 220 – 1 – 0)
Rushing: RB Dameon Pierce (11 – 14 – 1.2 – 0 – 0)
Receiving: WR Darius Cooper (3 – 2 – 71 – 35.5 – 1)
Drive Killer: CB Quinyon Mitchell (1 Interception)
Sack Leader: DT Jalen Carter (2.0 – 2 – 5)
Special Teams Ace: KR Britain Covey (3 – 92 – 30.6 – 0 – (42))
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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: JAGUARS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Possess the Ball: Run the ball and give our Defense time to rest. So the play-calling looked like 40 pass attempts, 2 scrambles and a sack, vs just 16 handoffs. That’s 43 passes to 16 runs, behind a line that featured two brand new starters in the interior.
The Eagles run game vs the Jaguars
Well at least short, ball-control routes were called, so that Hurts could get the ball out of his hand quickly. AAAAAANT! Wrong. WRONG! I’ve been preaching patience for Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion since the season started, but something has to happen here. He’s a rookie and he clearly needs some sort of assistance, or guidance. (NOT DONE)
2) Involve the TE More: The call was for eight or more pass attempts to the TE position. Between TE Dallas Goedert (9 – 6 – 38 – 6.3 – 0), TE Zach Ertz (2 – 0 – 0 – 0.0 – 0), and TE Johnny Mundt (1 – 0 – 0 – 0.0 – 0) the position saw twelve targets. (DONE)
3) Win On the Ends: While Jalen Carter was a terror on the inside, our DE’s were basically M.I.A. in this one. They generated no sacks, and no QB hits. Even worse, they kept letting the opposing QB extend plays with his legs. They weren’t even a force against the run.
After Jalyx Hunt (3 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) was injured on the last play of the first half, OLB Arnold Ebiketie (3 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) came in and generated 2 QB hits. That however only really happened when the Jaguars LT was injured in the second half. (NOT DONE)
4) Challenge Routes: Play was feisty on the corners, but the middle of our defense was sill wide open for business. Even when the ball was popped up in the air, there were no Eagles around to catch it. Good luck is being in a position to take advantage of an opportunity. The Eagles aren’t doing the work needed to put themselves in those positions. So it’s no wonder it always seems like luck is against them. (NOT DONE)
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This week’s Four Things score was 1 of 4. Next week we’re home against a .500 Panthers team coming off their Bye. It’s a winnable game, but we have to win it. Carolina won’t just hand it over.
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DT Jalen Carter getting one of his two sack/fumbles on the day. (The Eagles recovered neither.)
Game Hero: DT Jalen Carter – With 3 tackles for losses, 2 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles, the man was out there leading the Defense by example.
Game goat: K Jake Elliott – At first blush, it’s easy to blame Head Coach Nick Sirianni for losing this game. His decision to have Elliott kick to the returners, instead of kicking for a touchback, led to the Jaguars winning on a 57 yard FG. However, upon further thought, blaming Sirianni is outright bullshit.
Even with the ball going to a return man, a kick return generally will result in a tackle, resulting in that team starting their drive earlier than the forty yard line. On a typical kick return, you don’t start off in range for a 57 yard field goal. This one only happened that way here, because of some missed tackles on the return. I don’t recall Sirianni missing a tackle.
The reason I put this on Elliott, is because he’s the guy on the field. Sirianni isn’t the guy with a decade of Special Teams experience. And don’t hand me “Elliott was just following orders”. No counter-recommendation, no audible. Nothing to indicate that a decade of experience was dialed-in and trying to provide better options. Just nothing.
On The Whole: Everyone assumed we were going to get shit-canned. Instead we were in this game until every second had ticked off the clock. We almost won a game that we were given zero chance in.
We had seemingly more players out than in, and with our leading RB for the day, having been signed off the street, two offensive linemen making their first NFL starts and our RT now making his second career start. Adding insult to injury, we suffered several more injuries during the game. And still kept fighting.
Anyone giving the Eagles up for dead, isn’t really paying attention, and doesn’t know the character of this organization. While the loss, the way it happened, was ghastly, it’s still just one loss. We’re 2 – 3, the division leader is 3 – 1 – 1, and there are still 12 games to be played. And that division leader still has to play us, twice.
It’s only over for the quitters. Fly Eagles Fly.