No Time to Panic After One Rare Eagles Loss
Maybe the fans have become spoiled, but the sports world in Philadelphia isn’t going to end with one Eagles loss, Sunday’s 24-10 defeat to the host Seattle Seahawks. The Eagles are 10-2. They are the second seeded team in the NFC, behind the Minnesota Vikings, who are also 10-2. There are two extremes when it comes to looking at this defeat. The first is that people saying there is nothing to worry about with the loss, that the Eagles were due to lose a game.
The second is that the Eagles can’t beat a quality team, citing that they have just one victory over a team with a winning record, the Carolina Panthers.
In this case, both views are more than slightly off.
First off, Seattle is one of the best late-season teams, has an MVP candidate in quarterback Russell Wilson and is a team nobody will want to meet in the postseason, if the Seahawks get in.
Wilson now has a 16-3 record in December.
Forget about the fact that the Eagles were a five-point favorite. Winning in Seattle, especially in December, is a difficult task.
So the Eagles saw their nine-game winning streak end against a quality team.
That said, there is always something to worry about when the Eagles were soundly outplayed.
They can’t just shrug off the loss. Seattle has a strong pass rush and gave the Eagles problems.
The loss of Jason Peters at left tackle is a major loss that has been masked by the Eagles winning. His replacement, Halapoulivaati Vaitai struggled against Seattle, but in fairness, many teams will have problems with one of the better defensive lines in the NFL.
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz completed 29 of 45 for 348 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
To show how much Wentz has grown, that is considered an off-night.
He also rushed for 30 yards on six carries, but also committed the game’s biggest turnover, when fumbled on the Seahawks one-yard line.
The Eagles only ran the ball 26 times and likely need a better pass-run ratio.
In short, it wasn’t a good performance, but in the NFL, teams are going to have games like this.
What is key is whether the Eagles can rebound during Sunday’s game at the Los Angeles Rams.
Like the Eagles, the Rams (9-3) are among the best teams in the NFC, with a young emerging quarterback (Jared Goff) and an emerging defense.
Even if the Eagles lose this game, they won’t be finished, although there will be plenty of suggestions that it is the case.
The Eagles have put themselves in a good position that they know they will be in the postseason.
With the parity in the NFC, there are several teams that could emerge as the Super Bowl representative. The Eagles are one of those teams and will likely remains that way, regardless how their final four games go.
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Author: Marc Narducci
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