Last Weeks Eagles lost to Jets 20 to 14

[LeonardRachiele]

To say last week's game was a big letdown would be putting it mildly. It reminded us of several points in just about any sport. They are not new but deeply critical in both short and long term planning. I use the word Eagles rather team just to avoid confusing myself.

1. Philadelphia cannot continually turn back their opponents from our own Red Zone. Sooner or later our opponents are going to score unless the Eagles put some points on the board.

2. Quarterbacks Sacks are always a key indicator of who wins; but turnovers are also important. Sacks and turnovers are virtually twins that support each other. The Eagles showed that on Sunday with sacks but no steals. The Eagles did not get a turnover in both the Rams or Jets game.

3. I hate to bombard people with additional figures but holding penalties on the opponent's offensive line can be a real drive killer. It also shows how good the Eagles defensive line is forcing our opponent to extra legal tactics. Showing this as a separate line item would help us in evaluating the game.

4. Winning is not good enough if you passed up scoring touchdowns or maybe just field goals. No team can live on the edge, continually winning without playing their best ball. Eventually, they will fall perhaps even for a few weeks. The Eagles did this in the five game winning spell before falling to the earth last Sunday.

5. To further expand. Back in 09, the Eagles had a six game winning streak going from 5-4 to 11-4. In three of these games, the Eagles passed up many scoring opportunities. We missed the luxury of giving reserves much needed playing time, resting the regulars, and causing only limited anxiety for our fans. In the last week of the season, Dallas shutout the Eagles 24 to 0. Both had identical records of 11-5 but Philadelphia became a Wild Card team by losing both games to the Cowboys. In the playoff game at Dallas the following week, the Eagles lost 34 to 14. The Cowboys won all three games with the Eagles.

6. To further expand, Doug Pederson in 2017 and Nick Sirianni last year put some reserves in the game when the Eagles were comfortably ahead. Unfortunately, he made them just run a few plays and told Nick Foles in 2017 to just take the knee. In the NFC Championship that year, Pederson did not allow Nate Sudfelt to pass. I realize this strategy delays the end of the game and may screw up network programming; but these reserves need experience and it is good planning for the future.