I’m going to go out on a limb here and say this is not what Chip Kelly expected.
The man labeled a ‘genius’ has seen a lot of his innovations grind to a halt as the Eagles have gotten off to a less-than-spectacular 1-3 start.
The voices started to be raised after last week’s infuriating 23-20 loss to the Redskins.
What would a 1-4 start mean? I don’t even want to think about it.
The problems are many. Too many new faces, not enough time playing together, too many injuries.
The Eagles ground game has been almost non-existent; their passing game not a lot better as Sam Bradford, who looked so sharp in the preseason, has instead looked very much like a guy who missed almost two full seasons with successive knee injuries.
Bradford started to put it together in the second half against the ‘Skins, throwing three TD passes and finally looking down the field, instead of the dink-and-dunk arsenal he had been employing.
The Eagles have been MIA in parts of every game they’ve played this season.
What they really need is to put four quarters together, starting Sunday vs. Drew Brees and the Saints.
Seeing Brees will likely be painful for Kelly. That’s what he imagined for Bradford, beating the odds and coming back from an injury to re-establish himself as a star quarterback. So far it hasn’t worked out that way.
The Eagles certainly have not been helped by injuries, including their offensive line. They need that group to pull it together and set the tone early against the Saints, whose defense is not that good. If the Eagles are ever going to run the ball, this might be the week. Getting out to an early lead instead of taking the first half off again would certainly help.
The Pick: Make it Eagles 23, Saints 13. They likely won’t send the film of this one to Canton either, but it’s one the Eagles desperately need. Unfortunately, you could easily make the same argument for the Saints, who sport the exact same 1-3 record. The edge goes to the Eagles, who do not want to lay another egg in front of an already edgy home crowd.
Last Week: The Eagles once again played a half of football, not showing up for the 1 p.m. in D.C. start until about 2:30. They climbed out of an early hole, only to see their dead-tired defense, which had been on the field the whole game, give up an incredulous 90-yard, 15 play drive to Kirk Cousins, of all people.
Season Record: At 1-3, the Eagles don’t even want to think about the possibility of being 1-4 and seeing the season go down the drain. Amazingly, they are still only one game behind the leaders of the NFC Least. I say they scratch out a win here to go 2-3. I don’t want to get off the bandwagon just yet. I really thought this was a good - possibly very good - playoff caliber team. I’m beginning to have my doubts, which has something to do with that 1-3 record I’m also sporting.
Game by Game: Cowboys 20, Eagles 10 (My Pick: Eagles 31, Cowboys 26.
Falcons 26, Eagles 24. (My Pick: Eagles 37, Falcons 26)
Eagles 24, Jets 17. (My Pick: Eagles 27, Jets 23)
Redskins 23, Eagles 20. (My Pick: Eagles 26, Redskins 13
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