Eagles' Sloppiness Sinks Them To 1-3 After 23-20 Loss To Washington
LANDOVER, MD (CBS) — Jared Goff and Connor Cook are beginning to loom larger and larger in the Eagles' window. Those are the first two quarterbacks that may go early in the 2016 NFL Draft, and the Eagles seem on course in that direction after falling to 1-3 while making Kirk Cousins look like Tom Brady in a disheartening 23-20 setback to Washington on Sunday at FedEx Field.
While the Sam Bradford everyone was hoping to see showed up in the second half, the defense faltered during the most crucial time of the game, allowing Cousins to befuddle them on a 15-play, 90-yard drive that led to the deciding score, a Cousins-to-Pierre Garcon 4-yard touchdown strike with :26 to play.
Once again, the Eagles' play was uneven. It's a team that lacks an identity. Over 16 quarters this season, they've played well in six (Atlanta second half, New York Jets first half, and second half against Washington). The Eagles were 4-for-12 on third-down conversions, and 12-for-50 on third-down conversions for the season. Three of their four third-down conversions came early in the second half, and no third-down conversions in the fourth quarter.
"We didn't sustain anything in the first half offensively," Chip Kelly said. "That's what we talk about all of the time. In the second half, we protected Sam better and gave him an opportunity to throw the football. We saw what he can do when we can do that. We didn't do a good job of protecting Sam in the first half. We couldn't convert third downs in the first half. In the first half, we didn't handle their movements very well up front. We're not executing. I think we play with great effort, but we're not executing. I don't fault any of them from an effort standpoint. They all played hard. Certain things we have to do when we have to execute. We had a couple of key drops in the fourth quarter. We catch those balls those drives stay alive."
There were some things to like about the Eagles on Sunday. The second-half version of Bradford looked decisive. After a so-so first half, following the course of how Bradford has looked this year, he came out completing 10-of-19 in the second half for 194 yards and three touchdowns. And this came even after All-Pro left tackle Jason Peters was lost for the game in the first half with a quad injury.
Second-half Sam threw with confidence, and accuracy. He had a command of what he was doing, and it showed, especially when he hit Brent Celek for a 10-yard touchdown, with 8:17 left in the third quarter tying the game at 13-13. Bradford, sensing the pocket collapsing around him, scrambled right to find time, and eyed Celek coming across the field.
Bradford finished 15 of 29 for 264 yards and TD passes of 62, 39 and 10 yards. But the two Bradfords haven't put a whole game together yet.
"I wish I knew how to explain it, because then we'd get it fixed, but it seems to be the story of these first couple games, it's like we're two completely different offenses," Bradford said. "Once we get it going, we're pretty good. You just go back to work and keep grinding, and out in the time. It's not like we're light years away from getting things to where they need to be. I just think it's some small details here and there. Everyone just has to get on the same page."
Is it panic time, being in this 1-3 hole?
Kelly says no.
"We're not concerned with that, we have to go win a football game," said Kelly, whose defense was on the field for 41-plus minutes. "We're not concerned with holes or anything like that. We have to make plays, and we're not making plays right now. We're not getting consistent execution. We have to go win a game."
The Eagles haven't won consistently since last November. The downward spiral continues. The Eagles, reaching back to the final four games of last season, are now a combined 2-6 over their last eight games under Kelly, while the malaise of the Eagles' fanbase continues to grow.
