Butt Kicked
Posted: December 3rd, 2023 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 4 Comments »The gauntlet finally got ’em. The Eagles had dispatched Dallas. They had kicked Kansas City. They beat Buffalo. But the Eagles could not handle the Niners and lost 42-19 in a wild game.
Since this is the Eagles we’re talking about, there will be some overreaction. As bad as Sunday was, the Eagles still have the best record in the NFL. They still control the road to the top seed in the NFC.
There are two ways to look at the loss. The pessimistic view is that things finally caught up with the Eagles. They did beat Dallas, KC and Buffalo, but easily could have lost those games. Favorable moments in each game helped the Eagles escape with a W. That changed in a huge way against SF. The Niners started slow and then dominated the final three quarters. Dominated. They didn’t punt after the first quarter. Their defense gave the Eagles fits.
The Eagles had been living on the edge. San Francisco pushed them off the edge and then dropped an anvil on them. That’s the bad version of things.
There is another way to look at the loss. SF was coming off a mini-bye (they played on Thanksgiving). The Eagles were on their third game in 13 days, with all three being huge games with real emotional edges to them. The Eagles started fast and then the tank emptied. They missed tackles. They were sloppy on offense and defense. The Niners made them pay for every mistake.
This was also a terrible matchup game. LB is the weakest spot on the Philly roster. Take Zach Cunningham out and things are really dicey. SF is a team that stresses LBs more than anyone. Christian Elliss and Nick Morrow were in over their head and it showed. The Eagles need Cunningham back and it wouldn’t hurt to bring in Shaq Leonard.
Situational football is normally a strength for the Eagles. That was not the case against SF. The Niners were 8 for 11 on third downs. They were 1 for 1 on fourth down. They were 4 for 4 in the red zone. The Eagles only finished 2 for 4 in the red zone. The Eagles couldn’t get SF off the field and the Eagles couldn’t finish drives. That is a formula for getting blown out.
The Eagles ran for 46 yards. D’Andre Swift was 6-13. You aren’t going to win many games when your key RB isn’t a factor. Jalen Hurts was up and down. He had some terrific throws, but also had some bad moments. He lost 15 yards on a pass play in the red zone when he tripped and took an awful sack. Just throw the ball away. That sack meant the Eagles had to settle for a FG.
It was interesting that the Eagles started fast and then fell apart. The modus operandi in recent weeks was just the opposite. Instead, it was SF that had to weather the early storm and then righted the ship. SF’s stars came up big. Brock Purdy had an outstanding game. CMC kept the chains moving and gave the Eagles fits. Deebo Samuel was a monster, going 4-116-2 as a receiver and 3-22-1 as a runner.
The Eagles got out-coached and out-played on Sunday.
This was one game. A bad one, but still just one game. The Eagles are still 10-2. They are still a good team. That nice 2-game lead is gone though and the pressure is on.
*****
The bizarre moment in the game came when LB Dre Greenlaw body-slammed DeVonta by the Eagles sideline. Players got fired up and came together. Big Dom tried to create separation between Greenlaw and DeVonta. Greenlaw didn’t like it.
Big Dom vs Greenlaw pic.twitter.com/nz130WjADt
— Fitz (@LaurieFitzptrck) December 3, 2023
That got Greenlaw ejected. And Big Dom was kicked off the sideline as well. I cannot recall seeing anything quite like that.
_
[…] Butt Kicked – Iggles BlitzThere are two ways to look at the loss. The pessimistic view is that things finally caught up with the Eagles. They did beat Dallas, KC and Buffalo, but easily could have lost those games. Favorable moments in each game helped the Eagles escape with a W. That changed in a huge way against SF. The Niners started slow and then dominated the final three quarters. Dominated. They didn’t punt after the first quarter. Their defense gave the Eagles fits. The Eagles had been living on the edge. San Francisco pushed them off the edge and then dropped an anvil on them. That’s the bad version of things. There is another way to look at the loss. SF was coming off a mini-bye (they played on Thanksgiving). The Eagles were on their third game in 13 days, with all three being huge games with real emotional edges to them. The Eagles started fast and then the tank emptied. They missed tackles. They were sloppy on offense and defense. The Niners made them pay for every mistake. This was also a terrible matchup game. LB is the weakest spot on the Philly roster. Take Zach Cunningham out and things are really dicey. SF is a team that stresses LBs more than anyone. Christian Elliss and Nick Morrow were in over their head and it showed. The Eagles need Cunningham back and it wouldn’t hurt to bring in Shaq Leonard. […]
[…] Butt Kicked – Iggles BlitzThere are two methods to have a look at the loss. The pessimistic view is that issues lastly caught up with the Eagles. They did beat Dallas, KC and Buffalo, however simply may have misplaced these video games. Favorable moments in every sport helped the Eagles escape with a W. That modified in an enormous manner towards SF. The Niners began sluggish after which dominated the ultimate three quarters. Dominated. They didn’t punt after the primary quarter. Their protection gave the Eagles matches. The Eagles had been residing on the sting. San Francisco pushed them off the sting after which dropped an anvil on them. That’s the unhealthy model of issues. There’s one other manner to have a look at the loss. SF was coming off a mini-bye (they performed on Thanksgiving). The Eagles have been on their third sport in 13 days, with all three being enormous video games with actual emotional edges to them. The Eagles began quick after which the tank emptied. They missed tackles. They have been sloppy on offense and protection. The Niners made them pay for each mistake. This was additionally a horrible matchup sport. LB is the weakest spot on the Philly roster. Take Zach Cunningham out and issues are actually dicey. SF is a group that stresses LBs greater than anybody. Christian Elliss and Nick Morrow have been in over their head and it confirmed. The Eagles want Cunningham again and it wouldn’t damage to usher in Shaq Leonard. […]
[…] Butt Kicked – Iggles BlitzThere are two ways to look at the loss. The pessimistic view is that things finally caught up with the Eagles. They did beat Dallas, KC and Buffalo, but easily could have lost those games. Favorable moments in each game helped the Eagles escape with a W. That changed in a huge way against SF. The Niners started slow and then dominated the final three quarters. Dominated. They didn’t punt after the first quarter. Their defense gave the Eagles fits. The Eagles had been living on the edge. San Francisco pushed them off the edge and then dropped an anvil on them. That’s the bad version of things. There is another way to look at the loss. SF was coming off a mini-bye (they played on Thanksgiving). The Eagles were on their third game in 13 days, with all three being huge games with real emotional edges to them. The Eagles started fast and then the tank emptied. They missed tackles. They were sloppy on offense and defense. The Niners made them pay for every mistake. This was also a terrible matchup game. LB is the weakest spot on the Philly roster. Take Zach Cunningham out and things are really dicey. SF is a team that stresses LBs more than anyone. Christian Elliss and Nick Morrow were in over their head and it showed. The Eagles need Cunningham back and it wouldn’t hurt to bring in Shaq Leonard. […]
[…] Butt Kicked – Iggles BlitzThere are two ways to look at the loss. The pessimistic view is that things finally caught up with the Eagles. They did beat Dallas, KC and Buffalo, but easily could have lost those games. Favorable moments in each game helped the Eagles escape with a W. That changed in a huge way against SF. The Niners started slow and then dominated the final three quarters. Dominated. They didn’t punt after the first quarter. Their defense gave the Eagles fits. The Eagles had been living on the edge. San Francisco pushed them off the edge and then dropped an anvil on them. That’s the bad version of things. There is another way to look at the loss. SF was coming off a mini-bye (they played on Thanksgiving). The Eagles were on their third game in 13 days, with all three being huge games with real emotional edges to them. The Eagles started fast and then the tank emptied. They missed tackles. They were sloppy on offense and defense. The Niners made them pay for every mistake. This was also a terrible matchup game. LB is the weakest spot on the Philly roster. Take Zach Cunningham out and things are really dicey. SF is a team that stresses LBs more than anyone. Christian Elliss and Nick Morrow were in over their head and it showed. The Eagles need Cunningham back and it wouldn’t hurt to bring in Shaq Leonard. […]