Eagles vs. Vikings Final Score: Philadelphia Suffers Letdown Loss to Minnesota, 48-30

No good excuses for the Eagles to have a letdown today. They're hot and the Vikings are not. Minnesota is banged up and missing numerous key players. Time to get the job done. Let's get it started.

FIRST QUARTER

Eagles win the toss, but defer. Vikings to receive the opening kick. Eagles kick away from dangerous rookie return man Cordarelle Patterson.

Vikings up and slowly driving down the field. Matt Asiata is filling in at RB in place of the injured Adrian Peterson and Toby Gerhart. Minny moves into FG range but then faces a fourth down. Vikings kicker Blair Walsh attempts a 55 yard field goal and it's no good. Good stop for the Eagles.

Philadelphia's first possession. Three and out. Zach Ertz fails to make a play on a catchable ball and the Eagles have to punt. Donnie Jones nails a beauty that puts the Vikings inside their own 10.

Donnie Jones has landed 30 punts inside the 20-yard line this season, which is the 2nd-highest total in team history. Feagles had 31 in 1993

— Brett Strohsacker (@BStrohEagles) December 15, 2013

Vikings ball. QB Matt Cassel connects on a deep pass to Greg Jennings for a 57 yard TD. Well, that's no good. Patrick Chung was trailing in coverage. Get well soon, Earl Wolff. 7-0, Vikings.

Eagles on offense. A pass down field for Jason Avant is incomplete but there's an offensive pass interference call on Avant. Nick Foles runs to pick up a first down. You can't stop him! That slide is still awful.

That's a new career high for rushing yards in a season for LeSean McCoy. Pervious high was 1,309

— BleedingGreenNation (@BleedingGreen) December 15, 2013

The Eagles move into scoring territory but a Jared Allen sack forces the Eagles into fourth down. Alex Henery drills a 37 yard kick to put the Eagles on the board. That's one more yard than Foles had in rushing yards on this drive: 36. 7-3, Vikings.

Vikings take over, and they're moving the ball down the field yet again. End of the first.

SECOND QUARTER

Vikings in the red zone, but a third down pass attempt into the end zone falls incomplete. A major bend but don't break effort from the Eagles. Walsh hits a close FG to extend the lead. It's worth noting that Patrick Chung was benched for Kurt Coleman on this drive. 10-3, Vikings.

Time for the Eagles to match the score. Foles delivers a good pass to convert a third down while taking a hit after the throw. Eagles driving. Eagles face a 4th and 1 in scoring position and they go for it... brilliant play. Double reverse to DeSean Jackson goes for a touchdown! But a peelback block from Foles wipes out the score. Rough. Dumb play from Foles. Didn't even need to make that block because DeSean had space. Eagles pushed back and Henery hits a 51 yard FG. 10-6, Vikings.

Vikings ball. Bennie Logan destroys Matt Cassel on a throw that's completed to Greg Jennings anyway. Vikings driving down the field and converting on third down. Into field goal range. A Cordarelle Patterson reverse play moves Minny into the red zone. Eagles defense is struggling. And now a highly questionable pass interference call gives the Vikings a new set of downs at the one. Real rough. The official closest to the play wasn't even the one who threw the flag. Vikings get a TD on the next play, which is an Asiata run. 17-6, Vikings.

Eagles up with about a minute to go in the first half. Driving down the field, trying to get into FG range. A LeSean McCoy screen moves the Eagles into position. A 33 yard Henery FG is good. 17-9, Vikings.

THIRD QUARTER

Eagles get the ball to start the second half. Time to turn things around.

Philly on offense. Foles holds onto the ball too long on second down which sets up a long third down. Foles misses Avant on third down and the Eagles have to punt. Not a great way to start the second half. Again, Foles needs to improve his accuracy on some of these throws.

Vikings ball, and it's a deep pass down the sideline that's completed. Yikes. A couple plays later, Cassel runs it in up the middle for an easy TD. Nine straight games of the Eagles holding their opponent to 21 points or less is over. Vikings dominating. 24-9, Vikings.

Eagles up. Can they get something going? Well, no. After a few plays to move the chains, Nick Foles throws an interception. Foles was targeting DeSean deep on the play. It's the second interception for Foles on the season. Former Eagle Shaun Prater, who the Eagles cut in the middle of the season (yeah.), made the play.

Vikings get the ball back but have to punt.

Eagles turn. Maybe time to get the offense going? Third down, and Shady runs. It looks like it's good, but a terrible spot makes it 4th down. Chip goes for it. No good. Looks like another bad spot. The Eagles challenge the spot, but the ruling stands. Turnover on downs.

Vikings take over in scoring position. They get a FG. 27-9, Vikings.

On the kickoff, Brandon Boykin goes down with what seems like a head/neck injury after the way he was tackled on the return. Not good. Boykin walks off the field wit help after being on the ground for a while.

Eagles on offense. Foles missing throws, yet again, to start the drive. That is, until he finds DeSean Jackson deep for a 30 yard TD pass! Now that's a much better throw. It's still a game. 27-16, Vikings.

DeSean Jackson now has 20 career 100-yard receiving games. His 9 receiving scores this year tie a career high set in 2009.

— Brett Strohsacker (@BStrohEagles) December 15, 2013

Injury update: Brandon Boykin questionable to return, Kurt Coleman ruled out.

Vikings ball. Up to the Eagles defense to get a stop or make a play. And that's exactly what they do! A Cassel ball is deflected off of Bennie Logan and is picked off by Mychal Kendricks. Huge play.

Eagles take over. A Brent Celek screen goes for a big gain and puts the Eagles near the goal line. Next play, Zach Ertz one handed touchdown catch! This is crazy. Good throw and catch. Eagles going for two after the TD, but don't get it. It's a one score game! 27-22, Vikings.

Injury update: Brandon Boykin won't return.

Vikings get the ball with a few seconds left in the third quarter. Minny has good position due to the Eagles' kickoff strategy of squib kicking and not kicking it deep.

FOURTH QUARTER

Kendricks sacks Cassel on the first play of the fourth quarter. Vikings face a 3rd and 14... and the Eagles give up a big play. A Chase Ford catch is good for a new set of down. Crucial missed opportunity for the Eagles. Vikings in scoring position and an Asiata TD opens the lead. 34-22, Vikings.

Eagles turn. Nothing going. Nick Foles is sacked on third down after holding onto the ball. Punt.

Vikings ball and it's a big play to start their drive. The Eagles' secondary is looking atrocious. Somehow, the Eagles force the Vikings to punt.

Eagles ball, and they're pinned deep in their own territory. Foles airs out some throws that aren't even close to a receiver. Eagles have to punt.

Vikings take over. The Vikings offense cut through the Eagles defense like a hot knife through butter, aided by some penalties on the Eagles. Vikings, 41-22.

Eagles up. A big play from DeSean Jackson moves the ball into scoring position. Jason Avant catches a TD from Foles. Riley Cooper catches a pass to complete the two-point conversion Vikings 41-30.

The Eagles go for the onside kick. Henery's kick is good: it sailed in the air with a chance for the Eagles to recover, but they just couldn't get the ball. Vikings recover.

Vikings drive down the field and Asiata gets a garbage time TD. Vikings 48, 30.

That's pretty much game.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

The Eagles fall to 8-6.

Letdown game. The Eagles had a great chance to make it six straight wins in a row but they blew it. The Vikings played well and Philadelphia couldn't do much about it. Credit to the Vikings. They were missing a ton of players due to injury but they overcame adversity and played well.

The Eagles offense got off to a slow start in the first half. Nick Foles did not have his sharpest game. He missed some easy throws. His penalty that cancelled out DeSean's first TD hurt. He took too long to throw at times which led to sacks. It could have been worse, though. Foles was better in the second half. He finished with 393 yards on 30/48 passing for 428 yards, 3 TD, and 1 INT, 103.5 passer rating.

LeSean McCoy wasn't utilized in the ground game. He finished with 8 carries for 38 yards.

In more positive news, DeSean Jackson had a great game: 10 catches, 195 yards, and 1 TD.

The Eagles' defense looked really, really bad. The secondary couldn't stop anyone and there wasn't any kind of consistent pass rush on Matt Cassel. Bill Davis's unit has a lot to work on after this kind of performance. They didn't do their job today.

The officiating was not to blame for the Eagles' loss. The Vikings were the better team on Sunday. That said, it wasn't the best day for the officials.

This loss hurts for Philly, but it's hardly season ending. This result puts pressure on the Eagles to come up big in their final two games against Chicago and Dallas. Reminder: the Eagles still control their own destiny.

Stay tuned to BGN for more Eagles coverage.