Eagles can't create big plays ... or stop them

In the Philadelphia Eagles' latest loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, the Eagles gave up an inexplicable 34-yard touchdown toss from Joe Flacco to Steve Smith (the good one) with 16 seconds to go in the first half.

Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz put the blame on that play on the shoulders of safety Jaylen Watkins.

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"Yeah, I mean, that situation there, there's 16 seconds left; it's a game we're holding on to a one-score lead," explained Schwartz. "We don't want to let them get a field goal. They've got a field goal kicker that can hit from just about anywhere. The wind was really an issue there, too. We don't want to let it get any closer. And we played a man-to-man coverage with two deep and Jaylen Watkins is a young player, but he made a rookie mistake right there. The quarterback pumped him and was able to make a big play on us. But that's one of those things, we're playing tight coverage.

"First of all, we don't want to let them get out of bounds, so we're playing outside technique. If we can get them in bounds, they are going to have a hard time getting another play off. Second of all, we should be over the top on that. That wasn't very good. I never like to blame execution on a play, but I know Wat [Jaylen Watkins] would like to have that one back."

As you can see in the gif below by Josh Paunil of PhillyMag, Watkins bites up on the underneath route, leaving Smith open for the deep score up top.

In 2014, the Eagles gave up 72 pass plays of 20 or more yards, which was the third-most in NFL history. That was one of the biggest reasons for the Eagles' failure that season and the chief culprit was former safety Nate Allen. Former coach Chip Kelly said the defense had to be more 'lactose intolerant,' and stop 'biting the cheese.'

That has been a theme in 2016 as well. For example, the Falcons got a long touchdown when Leodis McKelvin bit the cheese on a double move, again via Paunil:

This season, the Eagles are once again among the league's worst in giving up big plays. On the season they have given up 52 pass plays of 20+ yards, which is tied for third-worst in the NFL. They have also given up 13 pass plays of 40+ yards, which is tied for second-worst.

Conversely, the Eagles' offense has produced just 37 pass plays of 20+ yards (tied for seventh-worst) and five pass plays of 40+ yards (sixth-worst).

In other words, the Eagles have allowed 15 more pass plays of 20+ yards defensively than they have produced on offense. That -15 differential is second-worst in the NFL, behind only the dreadful San Francisco 49ers:

Has anyone mentioned that the Eagles' biggest needs this offseason are wide receiver and cornerback?

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