There is only one word to describe Sunday's game in D.C. -- *fart noise*. Everything was fine in the first half, in fact, the first half was great! Then the 2nd half just turned that whole game into a [redacted] show.
Keeping that in mind, this article will explore the few bright spots the team had Sunday and recap the players that failed to step up.
STUD: Darius Slay
Slay's debut was much better than high-paid corners of the past like Byron Maxwell and Nnamdi Asomugha. He shadowed Terry McLaurin for most of the day, and he kept the speedster to just 61 yards on five catches. If he can maintain that type of play he will work out just fine in Philadelphia.
DUD: Carson Wentz
He was a stud in the first half, but everything fell apart in the second half. Inaccurate throws lead to momentum-turning interceptions, some sacks were his fault (including one that directly led to a field goal coming up short and three points off the board). He just never got comfortable with what his o-line was giving him. Let's pray that Lane Johnson comes back soon to fix the mess on the o-line.
STUD: Jalen Mills
There were no complaints on the Green Goblin on Sunday, which was a little shocking considering his change to safety. He picked up five tackles against Washington, and may have found his calling at his new position.
DUD: Fletcher Cox
Cox had been dominant his entire career against Washington. Sunday though he was an absolute ghost. Sure he sometimes plugged the middle and the running game, but the Eagles need him to be a violent pass rusher for their defense to succeed as a whole. He generated virtually no pass rush, recorded just two tackles, and the biggest concern was him getting bullied on the go-ahead touchdown by Washington's RG.
He better put father time on hold real soon, or else there will be murmurs of the team moving on from him after the season...
STUD: Malik Jackson
Jackson showed on the first two drives why he is here -- wreck havoc. On the first drive he forced an early throw when hitting Dwayne Haskins.
He also helped force a punt with a big play on a 3rd-down on Washington's second drive. He disappeared a little bit in the pass rush after that, but those flashes showed that he can play at a high level next to Fletcher Cox. He and Cox will need to figure out their chemistry to make the most out of their pass-rushing abilities.
DUDS: O-Line
I honestly thought the first half play by the o-line wasn't too bad, especially with the Eagles offense getting 17 points. But Washington made some adjustments and the o-line never adjusted to those adjustments and that is what cost them the ball game. Ryan Kerrigan made Carson Wentz's life hell as he abused Jack Driscoll and Nate Herbig. Jason Peters didn't really look that well either. There was one play where it looked like Peters' legs were stuck in concrete and moved about six inches off the line, which allowed Chase Young to fly right by him and hit Wentz. Like I said earlier, let's pray that Lane Johnson comes back soon to fix the mess on the o-line.
STUD: Dallas Goedert
Goedert had his first 100-yard receiving day on Sunday, reaching that many yards on eight receptions. He was Wentz's most reliable target, which is weird considering that Zach Ertz played the whole game. Speaking of Ertz....
DUD: Zach Ertz
Ertz got things started with a touchdown grab early on. That is pretty much the only time he showed up on Sunday, as he finished with three receptions for just 18 yards. In the 4th quarter Carson Wentz needed Ertz to come up with a short-yardage catch to move the chains on 4th-down. Ertz got open enough to catch the ball, but a costly drop ended any hope for an Eagles comeback. Those contract negotiations must be in his head...
STUD: Jalen Reagor
He only made one play, but boy was it an impressive one. Reagor flashed his acceleration and speed to catch a 55-yard bomb from Carson Wentz. He also came close to another home run play later in the game, but Wentz slightly overthrew him. It's really early, but Reagor could become a game-changer for the Eagles offense if he can take the top off of defenses consistently.
DUD: Doug Pederson
Pederson was outcoached by Ron Rivera on Sunday. Rivera's team went into the half down 17-7 and made the necessary adjustments to get his team to play better in the second half. Pederson never adjusted his game plan even when everything went completely south. I don't know why he still had Carson chucking balls downfield later in the game with the constant pressure that was on him. He should have adjusted the play calls and called for shorter throws/slants to get Wentz back into a groove and avoid hits.
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