My biggest early season fear (other than catastrophic injuries) was that Philly hadn't really faced significant adversity. All teams need to learn to fight back in its face at some point. Well, the Birds finally faced adversity today; tough early start resulting in 14-0 hole, several injuries (Slay, Maddox, Mailata, Seumalo, Elliott), terrible conditions, dicey officiating (several missed offensive holding calls that would have slowed Jacksonville down, including the big gainer to Kirk that set up their final score). I'm happy to report that Philly weathered the test. Let's hand out a few grades:
QB grade: C-. This was almost certainly Hurts' worst game of the year so far, between the pick six (a terrible pass into double coverage) and general lack of productivity. Certainly the weather had a lot to do with the struggles, which is why the grade isn't lower. I'm not sure but it seemed that he tweaked his ankle in his collision with Driscoll in the 3Q. On the plus side I have to say that Hurts' gutsiness was on full display.
RB grade: A-. Miles Sanders had his best game as a pro (27 carries for 134 yards and two scores). Trey Sermon had a couple decent touches in his Eagles debut. Kenny Gainwell's six touches only went for 17 yards but he did score.
Pass Catcher grade: B. Brown had a couple really nice YAC moments that bailed out the offense, and Goedert made his presence felt. Smith had a quiet game and I didn't notice Watkins or Pascal at all. Goedert did drop a TD in the fourth quarter that could have been a killer.
OL grade: B. This grade has less to do with the performance, which was good overall, and more to do with the injuries. We'll have to see how bad things are for Mailata and Seumalo. I suspect either could have returned if absolutely necessary; thankfully Jack Driscoll and Sua Opeta filled in ably. I was particularly impressed with Driscoll, who held up reasonably well against an elite set of pass rushers.
DL grade: A. Solid run D and three more sacks, including those two critical strip sacks by Reddick. I noted that Brandon Graham had a monster play where he bullied their left tackle into the ball carrier on a screen in the fourth quarter. The DL seems to be asserting themselves more and more.
LB grade: B-. Another game, another solid effort for TJ Edwards. I didn't really notice the other guys, except that I think I saw White get lost on a pass play early on that led to a Jaguars touchdown.
DB grade: A. Given that Philly was missing both Slay and Maddox for most of the game, I think this group did just fine. I did note that Josiah Scott got lost on back to back plays on Jacksonville's final scoring drive, mistakes that led directly to the touchdown. He's been around for awhile but just doesn't seem to be a player.
Special Teams: B+. It's hard to fault Jake Elliott for his XP miss in the second quarter; the wind clearly caught that kick. His field goal in the second half was gutsy, both in those conditions and off the penalty that clearly dinged him up a little. Britain Covey got loose for a couple decent returns. Good effort overall.
Overall grade: B. Not a lot to get upset over, unless any of these injuries prove to be significant. Few of these players are guys I'd like to play without for very long. It's this possibility that keeps the grade below an “A”. If I'm nitpicking about anything else, I wasn't totally comfortable with the pass on the 4th and three at the end of the game. I felt a field goal had a better chance of success, but thankfully it didn't end up biting them. As I said in the open, I believed that the Eagles needed a game like this to learn to push through adversity. Good work, guys; we're the last standing unbeaten for a reason. On to Arizona!
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