Furious Rally Falls Short
Things looked pretty grim for the Eagles at halftime.
Trailing 20-3 and with the Falcons opening the third quarter with the football, it appeared as though the Eagles were well on their way to an embarrassing letdown.
However, the momentum changed early in the second half. The Eagles received a gift on a terrible throw by Matt Ryan which was intercepted by Walter Thurmond and returned deep into Atlanta territory to set up an easy touchdown.
The Eagles offense woke up after that really started to look like the group fans thought they were going to see. They engineered a 13-play, 97-yard drive that resulted in a score, and then briefly took the lead with a 60-yard touchdown drive.
However, the Eagles would run out of steam in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. The defense broke down and allowed one more field goal in the fourth quarter, and the Philadelphia offense would stall, leading to a missed field goal by Cody Parkey.
Slow Offensive Start Dooms Eagles
Chip Kelly’s vaunted offense had no problem moving the football and putting up points against the vanilla defenses of the preseason.
However, when the curtain was pulled back to start the 2015 season, Kelly’s offense fell flat on its face to start the game. There were mental mistakes, predictable playcalling, resulting in a sputtering offense that generated two more punts (5) than they had points (3) in the first half.
The entire Eagles offense looked sloppy. There numerous instances where receivers just weren’t ready for Sam Bradford’s passes and weren’t even looking for the ball when Bradford released it. Josh Huff, Nelson Agholor, and even Jordan Matthews were all guilty of this in the first half alone.
DeMarco Murray went into halftime with four carries for -4 yards. Ryan Mathews didn’t receive a carry, but was responsible for one of the most egregious plays of the first half when he dropped an easy pass from Bradford. It was a completely inexcusable drop, Matthews had an open field in front of him and was uncovered, but instead dropped a pass and forced the Eagles into a situation where they had to go for it on a fourth and 1.
The Eagles were able to overcome Mathews’ mistake and extend the drive, but would later stall and be forced to settle for a field goal.
Then Bradford made a terrible throw under pressure before the end of the half, and tossed the Falcons an easy interception that the Falcons converted into another touchdown to go up 20-3 at the half. Throughout the night, Bradford had only been attempting short and intermediate passes, and Atlanta began to clamp down on him. With the pass rush in his face, Bradford rushed a throw and put it right in the arms of the defense.
The Eagles offense came back to life in the second half, but the damage done in the first half proved to be too much for the Eagles to overcome.
Bizarre Defensive Gameplan By Billy Davis
If there was one element of this coaching staff that most Eagles’ fans were concerned about going into the year, it was whether or not Billy Davis is the right guy to be pulling the strings of the Birds’ defense.
It didn’t take long for Davis’ defense to make Eagles’ fans groan collectively.
The Eagles allowed Julio Jones and the Atlanta receivers to go unchallenged at the line of scrimmage throughout the night. Davis kept his corners in zone coverage for the majority of the night, and Matt Ryan and the Falcon offense took advantage by picking the Birds apart.
Julio Jones had eight receptions for 97 yards and two touchdowns in the first half alone. He capped his first half effort by burning Byron Maxwell for his second score.
What was particularly strange about the defensive gameplan was that Davis didn’t take advantage of the talents of his corners. With guys like Maxwell and Nolan Carroll, the Eagles are equipped to play a lot of press coverage. And instead, Davis had them in a zone that at times didn’t even have a cornerback accounting for Jones, which (sure enough) the Falcons exploited all night long.
Parkey Fails In Clutch, But This Game Had Plenty Of Goats
Cody Parkey missed a clutch field goal at the end of the game that would have given the Eagles the lead, but there was plenty of blame to go around in this game.
Malcolm Jenkins played well and made some big plays, but he really killed this team with his two dropped interceptions. Both drives resulted in Atlanta points, and Jenkins had the opportunity to prevent that and failed.
Byron Maxwell did have a good game, and struggled to do anything about Julio Jones.
The offensive line played very poorly in the first half, and committed numerous penalties throughout the night. Every starter on the line was guilty of at least one penalty, and every lineman except Jason Peters had at least one holding penalty.
Quick Thoughts
Offense
- Just eight carries for nine yards for DeMarco Murray. Murray was bottled up early in the game, and while he was able to pick up a couple of redzone touchdowns, it wasn’t a very impressive debut.
- Ryan Mathews wasn’t much more effective in the running game, picking up just four yards on three carries.
- Rough end to the game for Jordan Matthews, who let a ball bounce off of his hands leading to the game-sealing interception. Matthews did record 10 catches for 102 yards.
- Disappointing debut for Nelson Agholor, who was completely invisible in a one-catch effort.
- Nice game for Zach Ertz, who was able to make it back healthy for the opener. Ertz had three grabs for 46 yards, but had a couple of clutch catches that extended key drives.
- I think Chip Kelly made the right decision electing to kick the field goal at the end of the game rather than go for it on fourth down. In that situation, you have to trust your kicker and the defense, take the points and protect the lead.
- Darren Sproles contributed 50 rushing yards and 76 receiving.
- I didn’t like that the passing attack revolved so much around check downs and intermediate routes. The Eagles need to find a way to get the ball downfield and loosen up defenses.
Defense
- DeMeco Ryans looked awful tonight. Ryans missed several tackles, that led to some key plays for Atlanta, including the Julio Jones touchdown.
- Malcolm Jenkins ended up being the team’s nickel corner this week, Eric Rowe and E.J. Biggers were active, but only Biggers seemed to get on the field in dime packages.
- With Jenkins playing nickel, Chris Maragos came off of the bench to fill in at safety. Wouldn’t it have just been easier to keep Brandon Boykin?
- Enormous play in the first quarter by Kiko Alonso, who made a spectacular redzone interception to kill an Atlanta drive, take points off of the board, keep the game close, and get some momentum back for the Eagles.
- Fletcher Cox had a strong game to kick off the season. He picked up a sack, and might have had one more with a forced fumble and a turnover if not for a questionable penalty on Kiko Alonso.
- Marcus Smith was inactive tonight.
- Brandon Graham and Vinny Curry were no-shows tonight.
Special Teams
- Seyi Ajirotutu made a nice open-field tackle on Eric Weems during a punt return in the first quarter.
Final Thoughts
The Eagles can’t afford a slow start, and they let one slip away tonight.
All of the sudden, we’re in must-win territory. As bad as 0-1 looks right now, imagine how much worse things could get if this team doesn’t take down the Dallas Cowboys at home next week?
With Dez Bryant out of action, the Eagles absolutely have to win that game next week.
Follow Denny Basens on Twitter @DennyBasens
Eagles drop next Weeks Game and fall 0-2 with the Cowboys going to 2-0 with a head to head W basically puts the Cowboys up by 3 Games with 14 Left to Play which means Wild-Card for Eagles at Best… Dang..
0-2 would be an enormous disaster. Not impossible to recover from, but it would be one heck of a black eye to fall in that position, especially to a Dallas team without Dez Bryant.
Paulman ur such a flip floppin dildo
Are u pissed again Henski’s because you lost your ass betting on the Eagles again .. When are you going to learn fool..
Ur just a phony paulman look at yourself. Whatever way the wind blows u blow … Ur a flip flopping dildo.
Did lose 300 tonight tho but Paul u are as phony as it goes. U flip flop every day.
And your stillaMoron & Idiot to bet a Dimeon the Eagles… Some Dipshits just never learn..Wasting your $$$ like that.. You deserve it Ass !!!
A sorry display of play calling and coaching. The team doesn’t look any better than last year. The offensive line was bad and the defensive backfield got toasted. The team didn’t look as ready to play as Atlanta with there supposed makeshift O line and suspect D line which outplayed the Eagles.
Offensive line was terrible…and this was an Atlanta defensive front whose only legitimate playmaker is rookie Vic Beasley. Doesn’t bode well for much better defensive fronts that they’ll face in the coming weeks.
The D/Lines of the Cowboys are licking their chops facing this Eagles OL
as will be the Jets, the Bills,Panthers, Patriots, Dolphins, Lions, Cardinals & Redskins D/Lines…
The Eagles Offense in for a long Season
Here goes Paulman overrating nonsense for his troll posts being eerily similar to how he looked like a dumbass going overboard on the Redskins defensive line calling them the best in football crush the Eagles blah blah.
Shut up already.
So after “one” game you’re asserting that all those teams are going to dominate the eagles? “All” those teams showed enough flawless and dominant execution for you to state this? You deserve your moniker of the board flip floppin attention whore.
Both of the Falcons’ lines played better than both of our lines, which is scary since their offensive line is as patched together as any in the league. Our defensive line was bad against the run and worse against the pass.
Chip turned into Andy in the 1st half running the ball 7 times and never getting into a groove. And Maxwell appears to be Asomugha 2.0.
Does anybody have number of snaps played info? Curious how many plays Vinny Curry played.
Too much rust early. I am worried about this O line though. Good to see Pman in mid season flop… I mean form… And all the sky is falling” guys need to slow down.
That 3rd and 18 Run from their own 5 Yard Line by Rookie RB T Coleman was a killer just when Eagles had the momentum
How does a Defense give up a 3rd and 18 on a Hand-off.. Good Grief!!
Yes Paulman..that to me was the play that hurt the most..had we stopped them we would have had such good field position…i nearly threw my tea mug thru the tv!!!!!!
No.
You don’t kick a field goal there.
That was dumb. It was the wrong decision. It’s a decision someone makes when they are trying not lose instead of win.
Paulman the hate you invite is justified. You’re smarter than the cheap troll route.
1.1 YPC for Demarco Murray. 8 carries for 9 yards. Interior O line was awful. Change is not always for the better, just because a guy is quiet and wants to play does not mean he is better than the big mouth malcontent who wants more $. Mathis is better and that move to release him will bite Chip in the butt more than once this year. Scheme and culture is fine, but talent trumps all of that!
Nonsense statement after week 1
That’s your opinion, but you have nothing more than that to back your statement up.
Fact, Murray had 9 yards on 8 carries. 1.1 YPC.
Fact, Mathis is better than Gardner and Barbre.
It’s cool being a fan, take the Eagle green pom pom blinders off though, the interior line was awful. 63 total yards rushing for the much hyped 1 cut and hit the hole 3 headed monster.
Fact, without talent, you have nothing, culture helps, but talent trumps it….period!
What a shitty game. Bradford looked no different than Sanchez. Our o line sucks. We spent a ton of money on a position that is dictated by the offensive line. I thought Murray was the most overrated player in the league last year. Seriously the only optimism I have from this game was the defense in the second half. First half the secondary looked horrid. Thank goodness we traded away a winner (even if he’s ugly) for a true Check down Charlie. I don’t recall more than one less thrown over 15 yards. Might as well play Sanchez. I’m drunk and pissed but fuck chip Kelly and his white collar team.
Pom Pom please you were on the verge of flip flopping just as bad as Paulman.
Don’t switch up your facts if you think McCoy is better than Matthews than say it.
You acting like losing Mathis was a talent crusher shows your your angle and obvious agenda. Mathis is a 33 year old guard that looked like crap yesterday as well.
Have some balls. Say the team is not talented and won’t perform. Don’t potshot to fill some dumbass culture vs talent argument. Both go hand in hand. Only fools who never played sports think it’s one or the other.
Oh here we go with the silly agenda talk as if I am an agent for Mathis..lol. I predicted the Eagles to win 34-20 via a heavy emphasis on the run game, so I guess my agenda would be thinking they would put on a better performance than they did…yeah, how dare I think that. I already stated that they looked worse tonight than they did last year, so there goes that. My issue is not with Murray, I like him, my issue is with the interior of the o line, which I think sucks at the G spot as it is manned by back ups at best which I also stated so my balls are big and working just fine. I like Kelce in space, but not a hole opener in short yardage situations. It’s a long season, but I will judge based on what I see on a week by week basis. Once again, talent trumps culture, but as I also stated, culture helps!
YOU brought up Mathis, even more ridiculous is you don’t like Kelce in short yardage but like him space ….when Mathis is the same exact player! Lol he’s a zone run blocking guard whose lost a step and highly overrated. Knock Gardner and Babre valid argument if you don’t feel they are starting caliber.
Maybe I’m not following you because it’s hard to view football talk from some of you guys innuendo filled culture vs talent nonsense arguments which are utterly ridiculous.
Yes I brought up Mathis because I think he is better talent wise, keep in mind he did not play at all in preseason, is still learning the play book, and guards tend to play at a later age, 33 is not bad for a guard.
innuendo filled culture vs talent talk nonsense…lol. Let me make it clear as I can, The guards are not good enough, they are everything Kelly wants culture wise, but not good enough talent wise, hence 63 total rushing yards, that is not getting it done, especially on a team where the HC wants running the ball to be the staple in his offensive game plan. Talent and culture aside, do you think they need to get better in the interior, or co you think they are good enough as they are presently assembled in the interior?
EHL before I go I don’t think it’s culture regarding the interior but purely scheme fits and in that case talent is not always the deciding factor. If this truly is a downhill rushing attack those two are better suited than Herremans and Mathis were last year. Mathis is a space player he gets mauled at the point of attack.
Gardner is an obvious weak link Barbe I’m fine with for now. I think they both got overwhelmed early. We definitely will see in the next few weeks.
And IMO Barbre is fine it’s Gardner I was more concerned about. Barbre is typical slightly above guard. You can knock the draft on that if that’s the case. It’s a valid argument to make.
The whole line was terrible early and it killed any true evaluation of the running game because once down 17 we were cooked.
IJ i have to respectfully disagree with your assessment of Mathis. I believe ever since his poor play to get more money, his performance and true value have been intentionally diminished (primarily by media and eagles front office) He has consistently been one of the better guards in the league. His run blocking was always better than his pass blocking. Always stout point of attack. Kelce is the one that has always struggled against the bigger stouter def tackles. It wasn’t just Jason Peters mauling people on the left side. Chip created this problem at guard. That’s primarily where the issue was all night. And he also abandoned the run too soon. Very Andy Reid-ish in my opinion.
No prob Brewski. I agree that Mathis was one of the better guards in the league especially in the zone run blocking scene pulling etc his athleticism was a big attribute and in Howard Mudds release and get up the field blocking scheme he really excelled. However I disagree about being stout at the point of attack. I didnt see it. The last couple of years especially holding point of attack was his weakness.
The game plan got woefully out of whack totally agree. And yes I agree that if Mathis wasnt the guy they should have been working for a better solution if they were going to have double turnover at the good position.
EHL I’m still convinced that Chip bailed on the run way too early. He panicked. As bad as those numbers look, didn’t Murray have a big 12 yard loss? My math sucks…lol, but what would his numbers look like if you take that huge negative out? As bad as the interior of our line struggled at times, I believe we still were facing an inferior dline in the falcons. Chip panicked.
I agree with ts you gotta go for it…..that defense was gassed and we had momentum……we can build from this game, but our oline played shit and too many penalties, we gotta go deep at least 2 in a game…..fuck u billy davis another damn 3 and 18 given up by your conservative defense decisions
One blunder nobody touched upon ..Why didn’t the Eagles call Time out ,instead of rushing Cody straight out to make a go ahead kick in a bit of a chaos? All in all the coaches in all 3 levels failed this football team.Thats fixable,but it’s still inexcusable.Why do we allow Bill Davis to take our shiny new toy in maxwell ,and put him in a position to fail? There seems to be real chaos on this O line ..self inflicted ..there also seems to be moving guys around to compensate for a missing nickel guy ..coaching …self inflicted ..that’s the theme ..week one
In that situation in hindsight taking a timeout and missing a fg would’ve been a double whammy.
A 44ydr although I don’t agree with the call should’ve been automatic.
Billy Davis deserves blame but that pass rush was a real killer in the first half. Some of those pass plays were long developing across the field.
However Julio Jones inside break on Maxwell was a thing of beauty. Shanahan out schemed Davis early.
Shanahan out schemed Davis early, that is something we should be used to, throughout Davis’ career, that has been his MO. Why anyone expects different is beyond me, he is not a good D-Coordinator as his history shows.
Billy Davis is Chip Kelly’s worst move by far and not even close. I believe he only got his hands on defense because no top defensive coordinators wanted to put the groundwork in transit intoning 4-3 personnel to a 3-4. If the continue to be mediocre he will be replace in the offseason.
I don’t believe believe he only got his hands on defense because no top defensive coordinators wanted to put the groundwork in transitioning 4-3 personnel to a 3-4. Rex Ryan did it with Buffalo Vic Fangio just did it with Chicago Ray Horton did it with Tennessee Wade Wilson just did it with Denver Rob Ryan did it with the Saints. I believe the staff had alot to do with it most established DC’s want to pick their own staff Kelly had the defensive staff in place before he hired Bum Davis.
Mac Dolo great point. Totally forgot about him hiring people before Davis. That definitely was a major factor. I still think it would be hard to get an established D coordinator who may have gone against what he wanted out of the 3-4 initially. I think him bringing in Undlin shows hes not afraid to start making changes. If they stink Davis wont be here next year. Its been a bad hire flat out.
This Pass Off-Season was the Time to Cut the Chord with Billy Davis
With the New Secondary Coach and rebuilding the Secondary with 3-4 New Players, adding LB’s, this was the perfect Time for a New Coordinator to come in … Transitioning to a 3-4 Scheme being difficult is a lame excuse, It’s what Defensive Coach’s do..
Vic Fangio, Dick LeBeau,Ken Norton Jr, Brad Seeley, Mike Smith, Mike Nolan, Dennis Allen, Jim Haslett, Raheem Moore and a bunch of others were out there who would all be an improvement over the over-matched Billy Davis
IJ, Ken Norton Jr was there for the taking.
I find it funny though that Connor Barwin, gets a pass from you guys. He is suppose to be the superstar on the Defense, and he was totally ineffective, and yet no one has mentioned his name for some of the blame….but will kill Graham, and Curry……Though, Curry will have more sacks this year than Barwin.
I want to hear some criticism of him, because it is deserved.
Cliff you probably can’t comprehend it but barwin will be asked to drop in coverage this year … I know you don’t understand the nuances but …
Oh, I comprehend very well Ciggy.
I comprehend, you guys like to make excuses for him. I watched the whole game, and he wasn’t in coverage that much, he was trying to get pressure on Ryan, and couldn’t because he is limited skill wise with that..
Please stop the exaggerating this year. He should be covering Jason Witten in coverage today, and if he gets burned….please don’t try to save face for him – just accept that he is limited, and average – that’s all.
That aberration of a season he had last year will not repeat itself this year – just like I told you – and it won’t be because he is in coverage – that’s bull
Ts that whole fg thing didnt feel right I believe it was rushed and chip didnt really didnt want to do it, it was a hurry up kick….should have just let bradford hand it off……player of the game my man sproles
Pman dude do u like being a troll, u gotta give it up man, flip floppin is for lil bitches, u a man right
Z this whole site was flipflopping lol. It was pathetic.
Bradford goes 20-22 in the second half and fools are comparing him to Alex Smith and that he’s horrible.
This site is sad.
I didn’t have any issue with Bradford. As a matter of fact, he impressed me with his toughness. Besides the first pick he rushed and threw of his back foot, he accounted for himself rather well considering the amount of duress he was under. he was excellent in the second half. Shit, I don’t have an issue with the rbs. It’s Chip’s job to set the tone offensively, and he never allowed Murray and Mathews to develop any rhythm. I place this loss squarely on the shoulders of Chip. Chip didn’t adjust. He exposed Sam to far too many hits with the 900 passes. He’s better than the slop called coaches on the Atl side. He hired the putrid Billy Davis.
On point Brewski.
Correct Brewski, Bradford wasn’t the reason for this loss at all. Her did play well. He was focused. Our Guard play was horrible.
Defense is still weak without a real pass rush, against one of the worst Offensive lines from last year….inexcusable.
Izell going for it would be better then a fg……trust me I could feel it….im a football player man I just felt the momentum in eagles to get that 1 yd
I agree with you I only go for the fg if the game was tied. Not to be up two and possibly not get the ball back.
Demote davis to linebacker coach and sign a ryan somewhere
LMAO…sign a Ryan somewhere. Davis is the elephant in the room, all the moves made to upgrade in the off season and still the defense looks no better than it did last year in 3rd and long, d backs getting beat all over the place etc. Davis has to go, Chip will not exit him before the season ends, but if Davis can’t do any better than this, he has got to erase him.
Nope Z, I nominate you for that position. I want Davis nowhere near this team. His shortcomings have been obvious his whole career. They have been glaring his whole time with us. I see no upside with this bum. Let me know when I can pick you up to replace him.
Yo EHL I’m crashing. Good debate. Yo Z, loss sucks homie. We smash Dallas Sunday and we start anew.
Aiiight IJ, hopefully next week the convo will be different, I don’t mind eating humble pie if that means the team is doing well.
EHL no humble pie homie, interior line play is a legit critique and weak spot on this team. Hell I had to eat humble pie or Graham and my boy Vinny Curry tonight. Cirry was a huge letdown.
EHL I believe we bounce back and slap the ish out of dallas.
Coldbrewski, I am going to the Dallas game next week so I want to see just that!
I was mad that I couldn’t watch the game because I work nights, seems I just saved myself a bunch of aggravation…
I knew the secondary was still shit, but I was looking at the “depth” that Kelly talked about in Rowe, Biggers and Evans. But if Maxwell is as bad as he looked in this game, it just makes the Boykin trade even more idiotic.
Another idiot move in cutting Evan Mathis also reared it’s head in this game, while letting 2 Pro Bowl receivers go in consecutive years surely has made the receiving core worse. Of course, Kelly also talked up the depth at receiver too. He should have been adding to the Pro Bowlers on the roster, not getting rid of them and claiming he created more “depth”.
Bradford is the only acquisition on offense that gives our offense a chance to be better.That’s alot to hang on a guy who just had “precautionary” x-rays after the game. Otherwise it’s just a bunch of lateral moves at RB and actual downgrades at WR and OG.
As for the defense, it will continue to underwhelm as long as we play this garbage 2-gap system that focuses on stopping the run in a passing league. Whether 3-4 or 4-3, we should be a 1-gap attack defense. Take the damn shackles off our dline and lbs. And they still don’t understand that in this league, you give help on players like Julio Jones, and you give the one on one matchups to the lesser players. Even if Maxwell plays better, as long as defensive gameplans don’t focus on taking away the other teams best players we will continue to be unable to stop good qbs while looking great against the lesser ones.
Big wake up call. Credit to Dan Quinn, he has brought an energy to the Falcons similar to what he did in Seatle.
IMO:
– DeMeco and Peters both looked old and slow. Let’s hope that is not a sign of things to come.
– Sproles is a stud. Flat out stud.
– Very disappointed in the play of the defensive backfield. Thought new players no new coach would have made more of an improvement. Jones and White should not have been a suprise. This unit needs to get better fast.
– Offensive line….ugh.
– That missed field goal is on Kelly. His indecisive move putting Parkey out there late , an already shaken Parkey, lead to the miss.
One game, but next week against a depleted Cowboys team is as close to a must game as you can get in week 2.
Not a great start….but…. GO BIRDS !!
Eagles were not ready to Play for the first 30 Minutes as Simple as that ..
I blame Chip Kelly and his Staff & Players for this… There is no Flip-Flopping about this the Eagles did not match the Intensity or Energy that the Falcons had coming out… You cannot play like a dog for 30 Minutes and expect to Win in the NFL…they were very fortunate that 2 bad passes by Matt Ryan kept this from being a Blow out ..
We’ll see how Good these Eagles,who now have now dug a hole for themselves, are or can be.. Their Defense was much more aggressive in the 2nd Half but was too little too late and could not Stop the Falcons Running Game when it really counted late in the Game…
Eagles WR’s as a group need to step up and improve, only J Matthews looks like a legitimate WR and only threat (Cooper,Austin, Huff scare no Secondaries) and Agholor is a Rookie and finding his way..
Zac Ertz & DeMeco Ryan’s are not ready to Play and hurt the Team by being out there and should have been Inactive
Lots of Issues moving Forward, Eagles are Fun to Watch but will struggle versus the better Teams and Defenses on their Schedule …
They Lose to Cowboys next week and to Drop to 0-2 and it will be an uphill battle to make the Post-Season
This is a minor hiccup– the falcons have a premier QB and a premier WR– They had a funk about them similar to how the eagles did at the end of the AR era– Quinn came in and gave them fresh air, the same way chip did– on the road, monday night-yawn, its not a huge deal.
It was good to see them wake up, adjust and play well in the second half-
Cigar,
This is not just a hiccup. This game exposed us offensively and defensively and we are in trouble. The tempo is way to fast and there’s no way to build timing and chemistry with an offense that is that quick. Cowboys may have lost Bryant but their star next week will be Cole Beasley. Our weakest link on the secondary is nickel and their strength going into this game is the slot player. I can’t even say it’s the players it’s just the scheme. That scheme is horrible. Peters may be on decline and our line is just bad. We took Lane Johnson early in that draft and he isn’t that great. We waited all year to see this team hit the field and it was a major disappointment. I don’t think we can recover from an 0-2 start. Our schedule only becomes more difficult from here on out
Epidemic, you are correct. The season is over, all is lost. The good news is now you don’t have to be a slave to your TV since its so bad.
dude, its really 1 1/2 of 1 game…. THE FIRST GAME ON THE ROAD!!– but i see for you and others the panic has set in… absolutes have been assigned–
BTW you must not have watched johnson last night.
Man all I am saying is if we can handle Falcons front line which consists of two rookies what do you think we will do against Cowboys D line? Crawford is a beat in that 3 Tech. Lawrence can rush and their linebackers aren’t that bad. This defense is not playing the right scheme. In my opinion. Cox should be a monster in a 3 TECH. But instead we have him playing a two gap system. We had no pass rush against this Falcons team. Do you think we will have a pass rush against Tyron Smith, Travis Frederick, and Martin. Trust me I love the Eagles and would never jump onto another teams bandwagon. I’m just tired of having really good players and not using them to the best of their ability. I want to be wrong but I don’t think we will have a really good season. I loved Bradfords composure and Jordan Matthews is a beast. I hope I’m wrong
Oh now you want to acknowledge the premier wr after Jones scorched the Eagles. Funny how that works.
I never said he wasn’t a good receiver …YOU MADE THAT UP– what i said was that having a overpaid WR doesn’t typically lead to long term team success… I still believe that.
I never said that you did not say he wasn’t a good receiver YOU MADE THAT UP. Your stance about receivers appears to be that they are not that important as you have stated many times that premier receivers do not win. You stated he only won 6 games last year, to which my response was the coach only won 6 games. My point is that overall, you do not think premier receivers are important, your past post speak to that as your position.
For long term and ultimate success no they aren’t– a lot of the top 10 (usually arrogant me first guys) don’t necessarily win–
jones is a very good receiver- maybe the best in FB right now- but even with a great receiver they only managed to win 6 games– They are a piece to the puzzle but really teams do seem to win with pedestrian receivers… I don’t think they are worth the salary cap hit in many cases… a $20 million QB plus a $15 million WR is hell on the cap.
Silly argument…no position except QB will at an elite level sustain longevity in terms of success…and even then a good o line with some weapons or an elite defense is necessary to sustain winning. Then coaching must be very good too.
I make the argument to simply counter those that whine about needy an elite WR , those that whined at Jackson being cut and trust me Jackson is no jones… Not even close … It’s an over valued position by many on here . Offensively tackle is more important
Thoughts:
A couple people have mentioned this, but the missed kick was all on the coaching staff. The FG unit didn’t leave the sideline until 16 secs left on the playclock. They were at the LOS at 7 seconds. I knew it was going to be a miss just by looking at the clock. Too rushed. Kickers are like golfers. They need their stupid routine. Rushed shit like that always fumbles. Can’t use a TO there because it’d be needed later. Coaching staff has to make the decision to kick or go for it BEFORE the previous play. I think a FG att was the correct call, but it came wayyyy to late.
Turning point was probably the 3rd and 14 Falcons converted out of their endzone. Falcons didn’t even try, running a draw play and the guy scampers for 20?? Is that not inexcusable?
$100 million dollars on running backs and Sproles is the best player on offence.
The offensive line looked like shit. What do you expect when you don’t draft a player there for 2 years.
You know who Sam Bradford reminded me of?
Sam Bradford.
(That one got a good laugh from my boys mid way through the 3rd)
I thought his performance in the 4th was encouraging….at least he didn’t fold up….but lets be serious, the guy hasn’t thrown deep for 5 years, so why expect him to start now? Dink dunk dink dunk…will that work long term?
Well….maybe as long as its Sproles catching them.
Comparing Bradford style of play to Alex smith through 1 game is justified. I don’t think I remember seeing one deep shot last night. And I’d guess 70+% of his passes were under 10 yards.
To those saying we shouldn’t have kicked the fg and went for it, please explain why? The way I see if you can’t trust ur kicker to make a go ahead fg then you gotta cut him.
Also another reason u can’t go for it is chip is allergic to short yardage runs. He just doesn’t have short yardage goal line type runs in his playbook. Runyon was talking about it pregame they just don’t practice the o line lining up and getting physical and pushing the d line around and that’s a huge problem and flaw.
Billy Davis still can’t figure out how to defend 3rd and long plays. I’m more confident with our d in 3rd and short. He gotta figure that out or get canned at years end
Compared Bradford to Smith was laughable. No better than Paulmans over the top troll comparisons you point out all the time.
Dink & Dunk for 330 yds..It’s what the defense was giving him and he was taking it decisively and they were moving the ball. If Crossing routes and check downs are successful and gaining yards and scoring points…why is there a need to go downfield ? That style of play was working for that game.
Thats just Vinnies agenda because he wants to start trolling Koolbreeze. Hes the Canadian Paulman.
im not saying that is awful or anything GLI im just saying sams style last night was just like smiths. the falcons D in that first half had the box stacked and was forcing bradford to go deep and he didnt. 2nd half falcons backed up which is typical when a team is up 3 scores…
Lol henski i truly dont understand why in the world cant this idiot billy davis defend 3 and long but does a good job on 3rd and short……someone should let him believe its always 3rd and short…..I am gonna murder billY DUMBASS MYself if he gives up another 3 and long
billy davis had a long track record of being awful prior to coming here. i dont understand why chip hired him, and dont know why he hasnt fired him the past 2 years either
I dont blame sam at all….for a guy that aint lplayed in 2 years he was mostly on point for the night….that int was terrible other then that i give him a solid B
I dont think a premier receiver leads to long time success either……i mean look at detroit…..calvin has been the best wideout in the nfl and yet no playoffs…..but I would take one in a minute, its a tough argument
I don’t blame Parkey. Making that kick would have been irelevant. What on earth would possess someone to think that this piss poor defense could protect a two point lead for almost three minutes?? The last team with the ball wins that game. By kicking you conceded to make Atl the last team with the ball. Chip is supposed to be this smart guy. Why did he not choose to keep the ball away from Atl for a little longer and go for fourth and a half yard? If you miss the kick you lose. If you make the kick, you lose later with your lousy defense. If you get the first down, you might win. Parkey missing is irrelevant. There was a 95% chance the Falcons would run the clock out and kick a short FG as time expired. You have to go for the first down.
I blame Parkey…he should have made the field goal…its the smart play to take the points. The offensive line, the defensive front seven has to play a whole lot better. If you dont get pressure on Ryan, and he has all day to find one of the premier receivers in the league-Julio Jones-of course your secondary is going to get burnt..The corners are taking the heat today but the front seven stunk and better play a whole lot better against Dallas!!
Nonsense analysis. There were no deep plays early. The line was a mess and in order to complete deep you have to protect longer than a 3 step drop. You show me where that was the case in the first half? You cant.
Once you go down 17pts the run game is shot to hell. The Falcons went two deep safety with umbrella coverage keeping everything in front of them. You destroy that defense just like they did in the second half with crossing routes and action in the middle of the field making the defend the sideline out.
Have some real analysis stop making nonsense up.
They will have deep shots in this offense when the run game is rolling(and lets hope the interior line play steps up) and safeties have to play in the box. All their coverage was bail out coverage you can see plain as day with the cornerbacks playing off and their linebackers attacking the flat.
Morons on this site.
Your talking about after they were down, but before that they were not running the ball effectively at all period. It’s hard to get anything going in the pass game period whether short or deep when you can’t get a damn thing going in the run game. I seen the Eagles get away from the run much earlier than what you are saying.
Mac Dolo they had plays early. They were pitiful timing wise and it showed. I can agree you probably wanted to run more early but I also think with how poorly they were playing as a whole it wouldnt have mattered. They werent prepared early and it showed.
I am sorry that you consider asking legit questions “trolling”
pass deep left (15 yards to no one)
pass short middle
pass short left
pass short left
pass deep right (15 yrds)
pass short middle
pass short right
pass short right
pass short right
pass short right
pass short left
pass short left
pass deep right (another 15 yarder)
pass short left
pass short left
pass short left
pass short left
pass short right
pass short left
pass short left
pass short left
pass short left
pass short left (interception…are we suprised…78 pass short lefts in a row
pass short left
pass short right
That’s the box score….cut and pasted.
Is it trolling to point out exactly what Bradford did???
Those are his 1st half attempts. 3 “deep” passes of about 15 yards each. (remember the box score counts anything over 10 yards as “deep”) and 22 short passes (under 10 yards)
I am not surprised by this because this is exactly what he has done his entire career. Guy just doesn’t pull the trigger.
Eagles run “4 verticlas” all the time. Its not “4 hooks” Its “4 verticals”Can he not just toss one to try and back the safeties off? Get em backpedaling a bit?
Can an offence like this work? I dunno.
I was encouraged that Bradford wasn’t fazed by the deficit, and was playing hard in the 4th…..
but it was more of the same…with only 2 “deep” passes against 25 short passes attempted.
Im sorry you dont understand common offensive philosophy against a two deep zone when you have to pass. But then again throw deep on verts on two deep safeties and see what happens.
How deep was Moore (the safety) on the 1st half int?
Sitting 7 yards off. Deep safeties indeed.
Lmao Vinnie please stop talking. You mean the interception where the Eagles had stacked WR on the right side CB had TE responsibility and the Eagles ran Sproles in the flat. Which gives the safety on that side of field roam responsiblity and anything crossing into the middle and the opposite safety was play high coverage and the Cornerback was playing off the line of scrimmage.
But according to Vinnie the Eagles run 4 verts all the time lmao….bruh stick to generic posts about “moxie” and “it” dont make up nonsense.
Not all the time, just once.
LOL…Did he show some Moxie Vinnie ??
Maybe the Falcons are just legit this year – maybe they win 10plus games. Either way thinking the season is in turmoil after week 1 is for people that don’t know shit about NFL football. Did you guys see the Giants/Redskin/Cowboys? you could easily win this division with 9 games maybe even 8. Cowboys could easily start the season 3-7 without Dez
Just waking up here on the left coast and read all your comments.If There is trueaccountability,some shining lights ,need be shed on the coaching staffs.Coaches schemes ,and game plans in the first half were “kotite-ean.”My personal piñata ,BD..sucks .I can’t stand the son of a bitch ,I pray hell coach anywhere in the NFC ,other than my squad.Once again ,personnel ,is being under utilized ,creative thoughts are devoid,and as many mentioned 3rd and long is totally baffling.The special teams had a terrible game in comparison ,to there Gold standards.Rushing a kicker is like premature …well you get my point..Anxiety for any precision player in any sport is a sure fire ,f–k up.The offensive line was exposed ,that is one area of great concern.You can’t convince me ,we haven’t regressed ,by plugging the holes with “just guys”. Now the head man ,the GM ..He decided to spend a huge amount of his wad on running backs ,and he under utilized them ? What was his vision? Why would he spend all that skin in the game ,and not draft or pursue a stud O lineman?We can’t accept the “culture” mantra ,if we continue to pile up ,what we saw in the first 30 minutes of this game.The media was stunned ,the fan base was stunned ,and now I’m hoping the coaches start to feel the heat ..they’ve been pretty much ,Teflon..it’s there pile of s–t..cleaning it up ..is there job..get to work ,we have a perfect foil ,coming in ,let’s dominate the and right the ship.
You show me single high safety with one on one coverage to the outside where he missed open Wrs of didnt pull the trigger, I HAVE NO PROBLEM with critiquing.
The middle of the field was what was open. Taken vert shots where WRs had no deep plays is football idiocy.
If they are running the ball and he is blowing 8 men in the box looks then say something.
The one vert they had open was early in the game to Austin that I think he missed although Austin should have made a play on the ball.
Kelly ran the ball 6 times early…run game obliterated.
You’re talking to a brick wall Izzell. I’ve tried explaining that coverage dictates where the ball goes. You’re opponents in a two deep shell? You have to use the middle of the field or throw to the flats. If the coverage is single high or the dbs are pressing, you attack vertically. That lesson still hasn’t sunk in.
Bradford is fine. The OL? We got problems. Wide receiving core? Kinda hard to be great when you let go of Pro Bowlers two years straight. Secondary? While Maxwell was never a number 1, the garbage defensive scheme hangs the dbs out to drive. Too much single high, not enough attention given to the opponents best weapon again, I don’t know if Billy Davis is even aware that you can play two safeties deep.
hangs em out to drive
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Most of the night the Falcons were in a three deep zone, or cover three. So you can still have a strong safety dropping down into the box – the corners playing deep thirds – and the free safety in the deep middle.
That defense makes it very hard to to throw the ball deep, but it leaves open a lot of soft spots underneath.
After the half Chip and Bradford picked it apart.
I agree IrishEagle….it was either cover 3 or two deep. Why people can’t grasp this boggles my mind. Depending on the lineup one safety had the ability to roam middle of the field but no safeties were in the box at all.
Its the Same Scheme that Seahawks employ which held the Eagles to 160 Yards of Total Offense last Season when Dan Quinn was their DC..
He is Familiar with Kelly’s System and will give him all the Dink & Dunkshe wants underneath.. The Key is Sound, Physical Tackling which the Falcons did for the most part… Matthews and SProles made some big YAC but for the most part its a Contain and Run to the Ball Defense..
Any Offense should still attempt a Deep Ball or Two to keep them honest at the minimum ..
Also note the Falcons OC Kyle Shannahan is also familiar with Billy Davis and the Eagles Defense and dialed up those 1st Down Play Fakes Passes which take 5-6 Seconds to develop as they hit on just about every one…
You see many Team employ this against the Eagles base Defense which gets zero pressure from the DL and the QB all day to look for his Options..
..
Vin..it’s not that simplified.Coach ,himself admitted as much in his P.C. He admitted that they avoided the long ball ,because he had concerns about protection scheme breakdowns? If that’s not an admission by the G M that the O line is a concern..than we aren’t watching and listening.Does Murray look at stretch plays behind this mess and wonder ,what have I done? I thought we were getting downhill runners ? What happened to that?
Coming with the west coast thunder DE. Spot on.
The emperor wears no clothes ..chip ,has been exposed by Quinn..give credit ..coaching matters ..
Yeah paying very little attention to your offensive line for 2 years straight will leave you completely exposed. If they sustain any major injuries to the line they are in serious trouble.
The coaching staff SUCKED in the first half.
and late in the game too…
The Coach’s were good for about 15-20 Minuted and Sucked the other 40-45 Minutes in my Opinion
Vinnie played good your attacking the wrong part of the game….makes you look dumb and agenda written
If you looked earlier, you’d see that I concentrated on the coaching vis-a-vis the missed kick. Completely on the coaches for not being prepared and sending out the unit late.
On the oline, who we shouldn’t be surprised is struggling as they’ve added zero draft picks to the unit over the past 2 years (inexcusable)
About how they spent $100 (whatever it was) million on RBs and Sproles is still the best player 5 on O.
How the run D was abysmal, especially on the 3rd and 14 when they let Atlanta’s capitulation draw play (they were prepping to punt) go for 20.
AND, on top of that….that Bradford has spent 5 years throwing nothing but 6 yard passes and continued that long-standing trend last night.
He’s always been agenda ridden, you guys act like you’re new to gcobb. That’s all he’s ever been.
He doesn’t know shit about football other than his noodle arm savior who’s now in St. Louis.
Sorry bradford played good
Ridden
But bradford played good with his 5 yd throws, if the offense calls for 5 yd throws because protection is bad and running game is bad then why waste your time with how bradford cant go pass 5 yds…..u keep saying the same shit but not realizing the reason why he thtew 5 yd passes the whole night…..why dont u understand is beyond me…..listen to what we are telling you
Great. Fantastic. So you’ve explained why he never threw deep last night.
Now explain why he’s never thrown deep in his other 47 games.
BTW – the All-22 is going to show that it wasn’t all “2 deep safeties” like you think it was.
LOL…Lane Johnson talking about how the Falcons kept a safety up at the line of scrimmage all first half.
2 deep safeties indeed.
Hey Vinniedamoron, you have to have protection to get the ball down the field. Doesn’t matter if a safety is in the box if you can’t block the guys up front you won’t get the ball down the field. It was the 2nd half where they backed off and switched to two deep shell, which is why there were a bunch of underneath completions.
The all-22 will be out. You won’t find any that shows Bradford, with time in the pocket, checking down or outright missing a receiver open downfield.
That was a Foles Gold special though. There is A TON of all-22s with him doing just that.
Don’t get mad Vinnie because you can’t break down a play lol it’s okay when you cut and paste your knowledge it happens. Stick to the vague and deep analysis of play with words like “moxie” and “it”. Lmao clueless.
Even funnier is Vinny acting like downfield throws and reads were missed…then last year that wasn’t the case. It was all about being tough and standing in the pocket….like when Foles bailed and threw off his back foot into double coverage…REPEATEDLY lol.
MOXIE!
Listen shit for brains….all I am saying is that a couple times a game you’ve got to let one rip. You have to back those guys off.
But there is 5 years of tape on Bradford that says you don’t ever have to be afraid of getting beat over the top, because he’ll never pull the trigger.
That’s why Atl played ONE high safety, and crowded the LOS. (which, if you remember, all you clowns were saying was what teams did to the Birds last year – well, get ready, because that’s going to get a lot worse)
The tape is going to show, from what I’ve heard, that there were several guys streaking alone downfield, mostly off wheel routes…Bradford had the time…and he dumped it off.
AN NFL QB must toss one or 2 deep balls a game, just to let other teams know he can.
Awww don’t get sensitive now….wheel routes are plays that are designed to attack teams on the edges when you are eating them up in the middle of the field.
Referencing your own article from Grantland MORON lmao…
“when the Falcons went to heavy zone coverage in an attempt to squeeze Philadelphia’s success throwing to the middle of the field, Sproles torched them on the edges.”
Or my moronic Canadian clown…how about…THE SHORT PASSING GAME WAS BY DESIGN. LMAO IDIOT.
“The short passing was game-plan specific and predicated on a Falcons defense that emphasized not getting beaten deep, Chip Kelly said Tuesday”
You are absolutely right.
Every single player who ran a pattern did so under 10 yards.
Kelly gave specific instructions to Bradford. Every pass under 10 yards or you’re on the bench. Those wheel routes down the sideline? Ignore them. I don’t give a shit if he’s running alone down the sidelines! Fuck him.
Short passes only!!
You mean the designed wheel routes to running back and that were consistently open and targeted in the 2nd half and Darren Sproles had a field day?
Those wheel routes that were part of 20-22 on consecutive drives and 14pts….those wheel routes that helped engineered a penalty filled 17play drive that still ended up with a score?
LMAO. Stick to “moxie” and “it” arguments. Oh and skewing article references that no way say what you implied.
Vinnie, as you have pointed out correctly a ‘get me the ball’ high priced receiver is over rated– i agree- and chip agrees- chip doesn’t want to have the force the ball anywhere– he believes that the D can’t take everything away- so he takes what is given-
I’m going to hold off on calling bradfor dink and dunk for a few weeks.
A stud WR is still a stud WR if you can get one early without breaking the bank(draft) they can change an entire offense. However normally what happens is a great WR can inflate an average to above average QB(Stafford(Johnson)-Cutler(Marshall) So you don’t win anything long term with them ultimate example Randy Moss – Daunte Culpepper.
Vinniedafoolass…what did I tell ya’ll? There are fools here who will be against the team no matter what…Bradford played within the design of the offense and according to how Atlanta’s defense played…he made quick, decisive decisions. He wasn’t holding the ball, he didn’t just chuck deep into coverage taking foolish chances, he wasn’t throwing off of his back foot, he wasn’t confused
Bradford despite the extremely poor play from the offensive line, despite this being his first regular season game, gave us some excellent QB play, showed character and heart, taking hits, leading the team back into the game.
But fools like Vinnie wants Bradford to chuck deep no matter what the coverages, no matter what the situation…just chuck it deep!
Damm, Fools and Idiots…
he played excellent?? fine or average i can agree with. excellent nah not at all.
adjective: excellent
1.
extremely good; outstanding.
NAH
Bradford choked twice in the 2 minute drill –
Halftime interception under 2 minutes.
4th quarter interception under 2 minutes
First int defender coming right at him, horrible blocking from his right guard. Rushed throw of his back foot. Still Sam’s fault. Second int he hits Mathews dead in the hands. Mathews pops it up resulting in int. Not Sam’s fault. Neither pass comes anywhere close to choking.
3 Major Issues moving Forward for the Eagles to Address This Week if they want to contend for the Post-Season in 2015
1) Interior OL Play (Center & Guards) get little movement on Run Blocking therefore negating the Downhill Running Styles of both Murray & Matthews
Center Kelce pulls out great on the Screens and Sweeps Plays but straight ahead and short-yardage he loses almost every battle when man on man..
2) Outside of Jordan Matthews, the WR Corps are weak and will struggle to get open and will get abused and manhandled by Starting Caliber DB’s around the NFL..
3) Lack of Pass Rush – Eagles cannot generate any unless they Blitz leaving their Pass-Defense even more vulnerable …
Eagles getting to Double-Digit Victories will be an Uphill Battle in 2015
They Play some very Physical & Talented Defensive Fronts this 2015 Season so the Road is not going to get any easier
Already flip flopping. The Boone attention whore strikes again.
I’m done with the Chip bashing he is what he is, I’m disappointed with the run game, I’ve been saying day 1 Sam is the king of Charlie Checkdowns now he played great in the 2nd half. I agree with Vinnie pay no attention to the oline you reap what you sow. Where was Marcus Smith, lol and they cashed out on Maxwell and Thurmond is the better player. But what the hell do I know. Let’s beat the Cowboys and all will be right in the world.
Eos thats bs that last interception is not on bradford he threw right in matthews hands….thats not a choke….that first one was all on bradford but dude dont make up shit
The first half was hard to watch on both sides of the ball..Everyone played like ass, that includes Bradford…Coaches all across the board were horrid the first 2 quarters……If this offense plays inconsistent like this and Davis continues to be stubborn and not make adjustments from down to down or even possession to possession, I am concerned..II still say Chip should have went for it on that 4th down play…Parkey should of made the kick regardless, but I think a TD should of been the though process on that drive.
Cliff… Was that sack over rated