By Chip Keagy, AATSN Co-Host
Watch Chips and Dish every Monday at 9pm
The Eagles woke up this morning and had everybody doubting that they stood a chance in this game. Kansas City played in the Super Bowl last season and Philadelphia....well they did not. Two teams who had identical records going into the day but were on exceptionally different ends of the spectrum. The Eagles did indeed lose today to the Chiefs. Philly put a score in during garbage time to make it look even this close. Each group gets a grade. Time to crack open the teacher's manual:
Coaching Staff: D
This team is still on pace to shatter NFL records in penalties. This has been going on for weeks now and nothing changes. This team has abandoned the run game entirely, forcing their "rookie QB" to throw the ball 48x. This has been going on for weeks now and nothing changes. This defense is allowing an exceptional number of points each game. This has been going on for weeks and nothing changes. Certain players have been called for the same penalty on a weekly basis. This has been going on for weeks now and nothing changes.
One can make the enlargement that the Eagles did look better today. They did and that's why this grade isn't the same as last week. However, the mistakes and problems remain weekly. In order for this team to get better, Sirianni and company have GOT to hold themselves accountable.
Quarterback: B
Jalen Hurts had a pretty good game today. Threw for 387 and 2 TDs. A LOT of timing issues, especially with the RPOs that are supposed to be quick reads which then led to lineman down field. But Hurts protected the ball and led this team. Lots of things to work on but Hurts had a really good day today.
Running Backs: N/A
Second straight week, this group isn't receiving a grade. Miles Sanders went from 2 carries to 7. Kenny Gainwell got a whopping 3. This group is being criminally underused. They aren't being factored into this offense so they aren't getting a grade like the rest of their team.
Wide Receivers: C+
Another good game for Devonta Smith and another TD in garbage time for Greg Ward. Smith has got to work on his technique near the sideline and Jalen Reagor has to take the next step in his development. This group was good today BECAUSE of the numbers that Smith put up.
Tight Ends: B
They FINALLY got the tight ends really involved in the offense! Both Goedert and Ertz had big days. 11 catches between the two of them and they were used as they should be, safety outlets for a young QB. Run blocking didn't happen (or maybe it did since there were not a lot of runs called). If this group continues to hit its stride, it will significantly help Jalen Hurts and his development out.
Offensive Line: D+
This group is tough to grade because the actual blocking was pretty good today. The penalties though were a joke. Andre Dillard got called for a slew of penalties and pulled points off of the board. Some of this is on the broken timing and some of it is on them. For the most part, the Oline kept Hurts upright. They did NOT open up any holes run blocking though. Still a lot of work to do but we are in the 2nd straight year of "who's playing today" with this group. I'm still curious to know about the Lane Johnson personal issue.
Defensive Line: C-
Javon Hargrave is having a fantastic season. Josh Sweat made a good play. Fletcher Cox was a non factor. Ryan Kerrigan got a stat of some kind. Derek Barnett got called for ANOTHER penalty. It was not his fault but at the same time, it was another week of the same issue. Something has to get changed with him specifically and quickly. This group allowed CEH to rush for over 100 yards with runs that were not disguised in any way. The loss of Brandon Graham will continue to plague this team.
Linebackers: C-
Travis Kelce is one of the best TEs in football. He was held to 4 catches. Eric Wilson had an INT. These are good things. However, this group has to hold some of the responsibility for the running game success that KC had. This group is just not talented enough to make any kind of impact against a Quarterback like Patrick Mahomes.
Secondary: D
Tyreek Hill had almost 200 yards receiving and single-handedly beat this Eagles team, today. Nobody in the secondary had the speed or ability to stop the speedy WR. Rodney McCleod and Anthony Harris allowed WR behind them all day, which is exactly what you don't want in a safety. This group was lucky that Mahomes had an off day because this should have been much worse.
Special Teams: C+
For only the 4th time in NFL history, neither team punted in an NFL game. The return team when Reagor was back there, looked great, but Quez Watkins fumbled a kickoff which resulted in terrible starting field position. Jake Elliot was 3/3 kicking FG's, even though they weren't all pretty.
OVERALL GRADE: C-
The Eagles played better than they did the week prior. In a rebuilding year, that is the absolute bare minimum you can ask for. The penalties are getting out of hand and the Defense looks awful, but for a while, they did go toe to toe with the AFC champs. Next week, they go against a Carolina Panther's team, in a very winable game. This week was ALWAYS going to be a loss.
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