After a disappointing 1-3 start, the Philadelphia Eagles are now an even 3-3, having defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-20 yesterday. With the Dallas Cowboys winning their Sunday night game against the Washington Redskins, the Eagles remain tied for 1st place with the Cowboys in the NFC East, while the 'Skins fell to 1-4 and the New York Giants remain winless at 0-6.
Overall, the Eagles played quite efficiently on the offensive side of the ball, and just good enough on the defensive side of it to come out with the victory.
In Nick Foles' first start of the season, he completed 22 of 31 pass attempts for 296 yards (9.5 per), and 3 touchdowns, for a fantastic quarterback rating of 133.3. LeSean McCoy led the rushing attack with 116 yards on 25 carries (4.6 per), and added 55 in receptions (27.5 per). Riley Cooper actually led the way as far as receivers went, catching 4 passes for 120 yards (30.0 per), and a touchdown. DeSean Jackson added 6 catches for 64 yards (10.7 per) and two scores.
The defensive unit played fairly solid bend-but-don't-break defense, in allowing just as many field goals as touchdowns. They sacked Tampa Bay quarterback Mike Glennon two times, hit him 3 times, deflected 7 passes, hit Glennon three times, and forced one turnover (even in the turnover battle for the game). Over the past couple of games, this unit has shown signs of improvement from their first four games, especially when it comes to forcing turnovers and trading touchdowns for field goals.
It was a mixed bag on special teams, The Eagles coverage units allowed some decent returns both on kickoffs and punts, but were decent on their own returns. Alex Henery made his only field goal attempt - the game clincher. Punter Donnie Jones may have been the best special teams player on the day for Philly, as he knocked Tampa inside the 20-yard line on 3 of 5 punts, and averaged 49.8 yards per kick.
With Foles playing so well in this game, there will be plenty of talk on who to start at quarterback for the Eagles in their coming game with co-NFC East leader Dallas. Granted, the decision may largely depend on Michael Vick's health, but regardless, it will likely be a tough decision for head coach Chip Kelly to make. I think it really depends on what Kelly's strategy is going to be. If he wants more of a run-first, clock-draining kind of offense, then Michael Vick would likely be the more suitable option. If he wants a pass-first kind of offense, then it's anybody's guess. If he wants to mix things up and give both quarterbacks playing time in games, depending on the situation, then that's another possible option. It'll be interesting to see what Kelly decides to do at quarterback and with his offense in general. In any case, Chip Kelly has to be quite happy with the set of quarterbacks he has at his disposal. I still have a hunch management sees Matt Barkley as more of the team's quarterback of the future than Nick Foles, but Foles illustrated some much needed improvement in his intermediate- to deep-passing game in yesterday's showing. If he continues to improve, then it may be Barkley on the outside looking in.
When looking at the Eagles season, I think it's quite fitting that the team is 3-3, because to be perfectly honest, I have no idea how good they are. Let's look at the team's resume for a moment. The Eagles three wins have come against teams with a combined record of 1-15. Their three losses have come against teams with a record of 14-3. No, those aren't typos. They've played competitively in every game except for their 52-20 loss to the 6-0 Denver Broncos (they're not the only ones to look bad against Denver). The defense has shown some signs of improvement, as has the offense, and the special teams have been up and down more than a person with bipolar disorder. I think this coming week's game against Dallas will show a much clearer picture of who the Eagles are as a team than any of the preceding games. Three of the team's next five games are against NFC East foes - with only one such opponent after that point. They're 2-0 against division foes to this point, so this could very well be a make-it-or-break-it stretch for the team. While I think Dallas may have the best all-around team in the division, if the Eagles continue to show signs of improvement on both sides of the ball, they'll have as good a chance as anyone to win the NFC East.
Overall, the Eagles played quite efficiently on the offensive side of the ball, and just good enough on the defensive side of it to come out with the victory.
In Nick Foles' first start of the season, he completed 22 of 31 pass attempts for 296 yards (9.5 per), and 3 touchdowns, for a fantastic quarterback rating of 133.3. LeSean McCoy led the rushing attack with 116 yards on 25 carries (4.6 per), and added 55 in receptions (27.5 per). Riley Cooper actually led the way as far as receivers went, catching 4 passes for 120 yards (30.0 per), and a touchdown. DeSean Jackson added 6 catches for 64 yards (10.7 per) and two scores.
The defensive unit played fairly solid bend-but-don't-break defense, in allowing just as many field goals as touchdowns. They sacked Tampa Bay quarterback Mike Glennon two times, hit him 3 times, deflected 7 passes, hit Glennon three times, and forced one turnover (even in the turnover battle for the game). Over the past couple of games, this unit has shown signs of improvement from their first four games, especially when it comes to forcing turnovers and trading touchdowns for field goals.
It was a mixed bag on special teams, The Eagles coverage units allowed some decent returns both on kickoffs and punts, but were decent on their own returns. Alex Henery made his only field goal attempt - the game clincher. Punter Donnie Jones may have been the best special teams player on the day for Philly, as he knocked Tampa inside the 20-yard line on 3 of 5 punts, and averaged 49.8 yards per kick.
With Foles playing so well in this game, there will be plenty of talk on who to start at quarterback for the Eagles in their coming game with co-NFC East leader Dallas. Granted, the decision may largely depend on Michael Vick's health, but regardless, it will likely be a tough decision for head coach Chip Kelly to make. I think it really depends on what Kelly's strategy is going to be. If he wants more of a run-first, clock-draining kind of offense, then Michael Vick would likely be the more suitable option. If he wants a pass-first kind of offense, then it's anybody's guess. If he wants to mix things up and give both quarterbacks playing time in games, depending on the situation, then that's another possible option. It'll be interesting to see what Kelly decides to do at quarterback and with his offense in general. In any case, Chip Kelly has to be quite happy with the set of quarterbacks he has at his disposal. I still have a hunch management sees Matt Barkley as more of the team's quarterback of the future than Nick Foles, but Foles illustrated some much needed improvement in his intermediate- to deep-passing game in yesterday's showing. If he continues to improve, then it may be Barkley on the outside looking in.
When looking at the Eagles season, I think it's quite fitting that the team is 3-3, because to be perfectly honest, I have no idea how good they are. Let's look at the team's resume for a moment. The Eagles three wins have come against teams with a combined record of 1-15. Their three losses have come against teams with a record of 14-3. No, those aren't typos. They've played competitively in every game except for their 52-20 loss to the 6-0 Denver Broncos (they're not the only ones to look bad against Denver). The defense has shown some signs of improvement, as has the offense, and the special teams have been up and down more than a person with bipolar disorder. I think this coming week's game against Dallas will show a much clearer picture of who the Eagles are as a team than any of the preceding games. Three of the team's next five games are against NFC East foes - with only one such opponent after that point. They're 2-0 against division foes to this point, so this could very well be a make-it-or-break-it stretch for the team. While I think Dallas may have the best all-around team in the division, if the Eagles continue to show signs of improvement on both sides of the ball, they'll have as good a chance as anyone to win the NFC East.
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