Context on Carson

Posted: September 25th, 2020 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 1 Comment »

I just finished rewatching the loss to the Rams last night. Before posting my game review, I wanted to write something about Carson Wentz. He had another bad game and there were some really frustrating moments.

But we do need context in some cases of a player struggling and I think this is definitely one of them.

Jimmy had a reasonable take. Bryn hopped right on the hyperbole train. He’s not the only one, but his was the first I found.

As bad as Wentz has been…as much as the offense struggled…the Eagles scored 17 and 19 points the first couple of weeks. I think some of you have forgotten your Eagles history.

There was a 2-game stretch in 2013 when the offense put up one field goal. That is awful offense. The 2012 team had a 6-game stretch where they only got beyond 19 points once (23). Remember how explosive the 2010 team was? They scored 14 points in a brutal loss to the Vikings (on a Tuesdy night!) and then put up just 16 in the playoff loss to Green Bay. The 2008 team, which almost made it to the Super Bowl, was held to single digits twice. The 2007 Eagles were held to 16 points or less in 5 of the first 6 games.

As for QB play, Wentz is struggling. But something funny happened as I watched the Rams game. My expectations were so low due to the hyperbole that I was surprised to see some nice throws and some good plays. Wentz still has incredible talent. He still makes some big time throws. He’s just maddeningly inconsistent and picks the worst moments to make mistakes.

The INT to JJAW in the end zone was torture. The decicision was bad. The throw was just as bad. His front foot got ridiculously out wide and got him off-balance.

Wentz tried to hit Goedert when the TE got behind Jalen Ramsey. Big play potential. Wentz almost jumped as he threw that and the ball was off target.

There were other plays where I yelled at the TV. It was frustrating.

But again…we need context. This is not awful QB play.

1993 – Bubby Brister vs the Bears – Bubby threw 2 INTs…both to DL. The Eagles scored 6 points that day. This was the first game after Randall Cunningham’s season-ending injury. Miserable day.

1994 – Randall Cunningham vs the Steelers – Check out this stat line…9-27-59. I don’t even know how that is possible. The Ultimate Weapon was Incredibly Awful. The Eagles piled up 105 yards and 3 points.

1998 – The entire season.

1999 – Doug Pederson vs the Bills – Remember  him? Doug went 14-26-137. He didn’t throw any picks. The Eagles gained 169 yards and were shutout.

2003 – Donovan McNabb vs the Giants – McNabb was dealing with a wrist injury. He went 9-23-64. The Eagles won the game, amazingly, when Brian Westbrook had his punt return for a TD miracle.

2006 – McNabb vs the Jags – Donovan was healthy, but played like he was hurt. 18-34-161. The Eagles lost 13-6 in a miserable game.

2011 – Michael Vick vs the Cards – Another miserable loss. Vick struggled as a passer, going 16-34-128. He threw 2 picks. Vick was outplayed by John Skelton, something no one thought was possible.

2013 – Nick Foles vs Dallas – Foles was dreadful. He went 11-29-80 that day. He was knocked out of the game and Matt Barkley played better than Foles when he took over. Lost 17-3.

I’ll stop there. I’m fairly depressed at this point. Those were some nightmare games. Some awful QB play. Wentz is a mess right now, but you still see flashes of his talent. There are drives when the offense looks good and you buy in. Then they have some breakdown and things fall apart.

This is fixable.

Pederson is desperate to get his star QB back on track. Hopefully this is the week he finds the right message for Wentz.

The talent is still there.

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One Comment on “Context on Carson”

  1. 1 Context on Carson | SportSpyder | said at 9:12 AM on September 25th, 2020:

    […] Context on Carson […]