November 02, 2016
As we know, power rankings are kind of pointless, but we click them anyway. Here's a roundup of where the Eagles "rank" a week after their overtime loss to the Cowboys.
The Eagles have dropped three of their past four games, but all of the losses have been close (seven points or fewer), and all have been on the road. QB Carson Wentz will prove his mettle in upcoming weeks, though, as the Eagles take on the Giants, Falcons, Seahawks and Packers.
#JimmyNote: The Eagles are up two spots from 12th a week ago here.
Didn't it seem like the Eagles were going to win Sunday night? Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz had Dak Prescott more off-balance and out of sorts than he has been all season. Carson Wentz was leading a conservative offense that was popping enough Darren Sproles runs to maintain control of the game. My gosh, Sproles was brilliant. Philly receivers continued to fight the ball, failing to come up with a couple of tough catches to help their rookie quarterback. While there was nothing fluky about the loss, the Eagles definitely showed they will be contending for the NFC East.
#JimmyNote: Again, the Eagles drop just one spot. Are we giving the Cowboys too much credit?
They don't have a rusher or receiver who ranks in top 30. A 28th-ranked offense needs to find ways to reduce load on sterling defense.
#JimmyNote: Yep, the Eagles' skill players are noticeably bad to nationally, too.
Carson Wentz’s strange game – per Pro Football Reference, it was the first time in NFL history a quarterback attempted 40 or more passes, hit on 70 percent or higher and averaged fewer than 5 yards per attempt (h/t REDACTED) – makes you wonder if the coaching staff isn’t letting him do enough, the receivers aren’t good enough or if Wentz is too hesitant to throw downfield. It isn’t just Sunday night; all season Wentz hasn’t been too keen on pushing the ball downfield.
#JimmyNote: It's not that Wentz isn't keen on pushing the ball down the field. It's more that his receivers can't get open down the field, and on the rare occasions they do, they drop his passes.
It’s hard to knock the Eagles too much for their loss to Dallas, but they absolutely should have won that game. They had opportunities put it away, but fumbled away a chance at a win and took themselves out of field-goal range late. Not to mention, Carson Wentz threw one pass more than 15 yards downfield, which is concerning. Still, he played mistake-free and looked comfortable in the spotlight.
#JimmyNote: It is absolutely easy to knock the Eagles for losing that game. The Cowboys are far from some sort of unbeatable juggernaut.
At some point, they have to get the ball down the field in the passing game. Or it will show up every week like it did last week at Dallas.
#JimmyNote: I don't see that happening, personally. Not with their receivers, anyway.
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