Eagles Survive

Posted: November 3rd, 2024 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 2 Comments »

The Eagles won. We have to focus on that fact because there is a lot of complaining to do about a lot of things. No game is perfect, but this one was especially wild and it feels lucky that the Eagles were able to hold on and win.

Things started off well with the Eagles turning a muffed punt into a first quarter TD. Those were the initial first quarter points of the season. The lead went to 10-0 and eventually out to 22-0. Life seemed pretty darned good.

The Jags offense came alive when they started playing with tempo in the third quarter. They drove down and scored a TD to make it a 22-8 game. The Eagles were still in control. Then Saquon Barkley ran the ball and fumbled. Or not. But JAX picked the ball up and ran it back for a TD. I was yelling at the TV that the play was coming back. A defender had touched his foot/ankle. Barkley was down by contact.

Instant replay reviewed the play and upheld the fumble and TD.

WTF?????????????????????????????????

You could see the defender make contact. The pool reporter after the game spoke to the officials. They explained that Barkley hit Landon Dickerson after the contact with the defender. They considered the play a stumble and not a tackle. When Barkley went to the ground and the ball came out, it was live. I have been watching football for a long time and I’ve never heard of such an interpretation. Is that really in the rulebook? If that is legit, okay. But I’m shocked. A defender made contact and the RB ended up on the ground 2 seconds later. If there was an extended period, the ruling might make more sense.

The comfortable lead was gone and the game was now 22-16. I worried that the Eagles might fall apart. They didn’t. They kept things closer than I would have liked, but made the key plays to win the game and advance to 6-2.

Players made some huge plays in this game. Barkley was 27-159-1 on the ground and also had a 20-yard TD catch. His reverse leap over a tackler left everyone speechless. That was freakish.

Wow.

DeVonta Smith must have gotten inspired by that play and pulled off some magic of his own.

I thought Jalen Hurts was throwing that ball away. Nope. He put it in a spot where Smitty would have a shot to make a miracle catch. And that’s just what he did. Amazing grab.

The defense didn’t want to be left out so Nakobe Dean decided to make his own highlight play.

With so many great moments, this felt like a blowout. The Eagles out-gained the Jags 447-215. Again, that makes it feel like a blowout.

But it wasn’t.

The Barkley fumble hurt. There was a fourth down stop that ended a drive in scoring territory. There was a missed FG. The Eagles also went for a couple of 2-point conversions and failed on both. The Eagles kept blowing chances to put the game out of reach (with help from the officials). Thankfully Dean picked off the pass at the end to secure the win.

Nick Sirianni had two good weeks, but will catch a lot of flak for his decision-making in this game. He was very aggressive and the decisions didn’t work. I’m okay with most of what he did, but the play-call on 4th & inches was horrible. The Eagles went play-action instead of running the Brotherly Shove. The shove had been stopped twice, but not on 4th & inches. That just isn’t the time to try to throw the ball.

The Eagles defense had another good showing. They only allowed 17 points and 215 yards. They had 2 INTs and 2 sacks. Both of the picks were by ILBs (Dean and Zack Baun). When is the last time the Eagles had 2 INTs by LBs? I have no idea. Baun was especially outstanding. He had 10 tackles, a PD, a TFL and the INT. Not bad for a guy learning how to play ILB.

There is plenty to clean up from this game. There were too many penalties. The coaches need to see what went wrong on the push plays. Jake Elliott missed a long FG, which has become an issue this year. There is a question about AJ Brown’s health. He left with a knee injury. He looked fine walking off the field, but this offense needs him.

The Eagles found a way to win despite all the ups and downs in the game. They are now 6-2, winners of four in a row. Next up is a trip to Dallas to take on the 3-5 Cowboys.

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2 Comments on “Eagles Survive”

  1. 1 The Linc - Saquon Barkley is “performing as well as any skill player in the league” - SportSourcio said at 8:04 AM on November 4th, 2024:

    […] Eagles Survive – Iggles Blitz […]

  2. 2 The Linc – News247Planet said at 11:15 AM on November 4th, 2024:

    […] Eagles Survive – Iggles BlitzNick Sirianni had two good weeks, however will catch plenty of flak for his decision-making on this recreation. He was very aggressive and the choices didn’t work. I’m okay with most of what he did, however the play-call on 4th & inches was horrible. The Eagles went play-action as an alternative of operating the Brotherly Shove. The shove had been stopped twice, however not on 4th & inches. That simply isn’t the time to attempt to throw the ball. The Eagles protection had one other good displaying. They solely allowed 17 factors and 215 yards. They’d 2 INTs and a pair of sacks. Each of the picks had been by ILBs (Dean and Zack Baun). When is the final time the Eagles had 2 INTs by LBs? I do not know. Baun was particularly excellent. He had 10 tackles, a PD, a TFL and the INT. Not dangerous for a man studying learn how to play ILB. […]