The Eagles dropped to 9-4 on the season after falling to the Seattle Seahawks by a final score of 24-14. The Eagles are still in first place in the division, due to the tiebreaker win over the Cowboys last week. They play the Cowboys again next week, with a win putting them in a great situation to seal up the division.
But back to the game. The Eagles had a tough time moving the ball through the air against the Seattle Secondary, with Sanchez going for just 96 yards passing on 10 completions. He did throw for 2 touchdowns, with Maclin catching a 1 yard TD reception and Zach Ertz going for a 35 yard TD reception. Sanchez only threw one interception, but it was during a crucial drive late in the second half.
Foles looks healthy enough to be back soon, so it will be interesting to see what direction Chip Kelly will take on offense. My recommendation is to turn it over back to Foles. Sanchez has been a solid replacement for the last few weeks, but Foles has proven that he can take this offense further than Sanchez can.
LeSean McCoy struggled a bit on the night, rushing for just 50 yards on 17 carries. There weren't too many openings on the line to cut through, as Seattle's line kept all the running lanes clogged up throughout the night. Knowing that the Seahawks had one of the best secondaries in the NFL, McCoy and the running game needed to step it up in order to win.
Ertz was one of the the main targets tonight for Sanchez, going for 39 yards and a touchdown on 2 receptions. Jeremy Maclin also saw a few targets, catching 3 passes for 21 yards and a touchdown.
The Eagles had a tough time on offense, but it was a good test to see what the Eagles will need to do to defeat a Super Bowl contender. Although, if the Eagles play the Seahawks in the playoffs again, it could possibly be on the road in Seattle, where the Seahawks have fared much better in the last few years.
On defense, however, the Eagles looked pretty decent in containing Wilson and co. They forced a fumble on Marshawn Lynch, and sacked Wilson twice, courtesy of Barwin and Vinny Curry. Wilson is incredibly elusive out of the pocket, which makes it tough to record a sack on him. Barwin has been a monster on defense this season, now reaching 13.5 sacks on the season (2nd in the NFL).
Entering the season, the Eagles' supposed weakness was their pass rush. Drafting Marcus Smith in the first round, but the biggest reason for improvement was each veteran on the unit stepping up and playing better this year. Barwin is an obvious example of that with his sack total. His previous high was 11.5 for the Texans in the 2011 season, but didn't record more than 5 in any of his other 3 seasons.
Overall, it's never good to add another loss to your record, but this wasn't as soul crushing as a loss last week would have been. But while the Eagles remain the favorite to win the NFC East, tonight's loss was a real setback in gaining any type of home field advantage in the playoffs. With the Seahawks, Cardinals, and Packers not only ahead in the standings, but having a head to head tiebreaker win over the Eagles as well means obtaining the #1 seed in the NFC is out of the question, unless the birds win out or these guys start dropping some games.
By: Dan Goggin
Follow us on twitter @BroadStBeat
Foles looks healthy enough to be back soon, so it will be interesting to see what direction Chip Kelly will take on offense. My recommendation is to turn it over back to Foles. Sanchez has been a solid replacement for the last few weeks, but Foles has proven that he can take this offense further than Sanchez can.
LeSean McCoy struggled a bit on the night, rushing for just 50 yards on 17 carries. There weren't too many openings on the line to cut through, as Seattle's line kept all the running lanes clogged up throughout the night. Knowing that the Seahawks had one of the best secondaries in the NFL, McCoy and the running game needed to step it up in order to win.
Ertz was one of the the main targets tonight for Sanchez, going for 39 yards and a touchdown on 2 receptions. Jeremy Maclin also saw a few targets, catching 3 passes for 21 yards and a touchdown.
The Eagles had a tough time on offense, but it was a good test to see what the Eagles will need to do to defeat a Super Bowl contender. Although, if the Eagles play the Seahawks in the playoffs again, it could possibly be on the road in Seattle, where the Seahawks have fared much better in the last few years.
On defense, however, the Eagles looked pretty decent in containing Wilson and co. They forced a fumble on Marshawn Lynch, and sacked Wilson twice, courtesy of Barwin and Vinny Curry. Wilson is incredibly elusive out of the pocket, which makes it tough to record a sack on him. Barwin has been a monster on defense this season, now reaching 13.5 sacks on the season (2nd in the NFL).
Entering the season, the Eagles' supposed weakness was their pass rush. Drafting Marcus Smith in the first round, but the biggest reason for improvement was each veteran on the unit stepping up and playing better this year. Barwin is an obvious example of that with his sack total. His previous high was 11.5 for the Texans in the 2011 season, but didn't record more than 5 in any of his other 3 seasons.
Overall, it's never good to add another loss to your record, but this wasn't as soul crushing as a loss last week would have been. But while the Eagles remain the favorite to win the NFC East, tonight's loss was a real setback in gaining any type of home field advantage in the playoffs. With the Seahawks, Cardinals, and Packers not only ahead in the standings, but having a head to head tiebreaker win over the Eagles as well means obtaining the #1 seed in the NFC is out of the question, unless the birds win out or these guys start dropping some games.
By: Dan Goggin
Follow us on twitter @BroadStBeat
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