Andrew Ortenberg
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In what seemed like a last stand for their season, the Philadelphia Eagles fell flat on their faces on Monday Night Football. This was their one big chance to show the world they still had something left in the tank, at home and in primetime, but the Seattle Seahawks controlled the game from the start. Philly is still alive in the NFC East, but it’s going to be an uphill climb, to say the least. Here are our main two takeaways from the 23-17 defeat which wasn’t nearly as close as that final score might indicate.
Stick a fork in the Eagles
I thought there was a chance the Eagles would come out with an all-out effort with their backs up against the wall. Instead they came out with little energy, played sloppy right off the bat, and didn’t put up much of a fight until it was too late. To say the offense started slow would be an incredible understatement, as they got a three and out on each of their first five drives.
It wasn’t until there were just a few minutes left in the first half that they finally got a first down. That was against a Seattle defense that had been historically bad through the first half of the season, mind you. Carson Wentz has regressed beyond recognition, and even though the circumstances are far from ideal there is no good excuse for his play at this point. You can’t blame *all* the missed reads and bad throws on pass protection or lack of weapons.
It’s clear Wentz isn’t in a good mental space, and there are no good answers for a quarterback who has lost his confidence. Fans are clamoring for more Jalen Hurts, but with Wentz still having more than $50 million guaranteed on his contract, Doug Pederson is in a tough spot. Of course, Wentz isn’t the only issue on the team.
The offensive line is a mess and the outside receiver situation is a joke. The secondary is exploitable, as they got carved up by Baker Mayfield and Daniel Jones in the two weeks before this game. Then D.K. Metcalf ran wild on them. Looking ahead, things are going to get worse before they get better. Their next three games are against the Packers, Saints, and Cardinals, so things could get pretty ugly. It feels bizarre to say, but I think it’s the Giants and Washington’s division to lose at this point.
Carson Wentz to throw an INT -150 💰
Who cashed? 🔒
— Pickswise (@Pickswise) December 1, 2020
The Seahawks’ defense is getting better
As I just mentioned, the Seahawks’ defense was on pace to be one of the worst of all time in the first half of the season. That being said they’ve quietly been improving, and could be peaking at the right time as we enter the stretch run. I don’t think their strong performance on Monday night was only due to the Eagles’ offensive ineptitude.
They held Wentz to a pitiful 4.8 yards per attempt, and a good chunk of those yards came in garbage time when the game was decided. Things were never as bad as they seemed, as they suffered a rash of injuries on that side of the ball early in the year, including to stud safety Jamal Adams who is now back and wreaking havoc.
Don’t expect this just to be a one-week fluke, as they’ve been trending up for a while. Last week they held Kyler Murray to 6.4 yards per attempt, limiting the Cardinals’ high-flying offense to only 21 points. The week before that they played a decent game again, limiting the Rams to only 23.
Russell Wilson has had to carry the team heroically for much of the season, but that might not be the case much longer. The run defense has been solid all year, allowing only 3.6 yards per carry, the third-best mark in the league. If the secondary can keep this recent strong play up then the sky is the limit for this team.
Russel Wilson inching closing to hitting his (2.5) over TD prop bet 👀
— Pickswise (@Pickswise) December 1, 2020
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