Eagles-Cardinals PFF Grades: Philadelphia's secondary remains a problem

Pro Football Focus is everyone's favorite site that grades NFL player performances. Let's take a look at what they had to say about the performances from the Philadelphia Eagles loss to the Arizona Cardinals. [Recap]

PFF offers explanation on their grading system on their website. Read more about that here.

OFFENSE

Best

Lane Johnson +4.3
Jeremy Maclin +2.5
Brent Celek +1.3

Analysis:

Lane Johnson was a stud in both pass protection and run blocking. The second-year right tackle had an especially good open field block on an Arizona defender during Jeremy Maclin's first touchdown catch. Speaking of the Mac, he obviously had a great day: 12 catches, 187 yards, 2 touchdowns. Maclin got the best of his match-up with Patrick Peterson.

Tight end Brent Celek had another strong game as a run blocker.

Worst

Matt Tobin -2.8
Todd Herremans -2.4
Jeff Maehl -1.6
Jordan Matthews -1.3
Josh Huff -1.3

Analysis:

Left guard Matt Tobin allowed 1 quarterback hit and 3 quarterback hurries. Right guard Todd Herremans was marked down for 3 hurries allowed. Wide receiver Jeff Maehl was marked down for his penalty on a Jordan Matthews screen. Matthews caught 6 passes on 10 targets for 51 yards (8.5 average) so I'm not sure why PFF graded him this low. Josh Huff, on the other hand, was called for a penalty on a pick play and also fumbled in the red-zone.

Nick Foles finished with a negative passing grade but a positive run grade. Of NFL quarterbacks that have played at least 75% of their team's offensive snaps, Foles now ranks second to last in PFF's grading system. Only New York Jets quarterback Geno Smith, who was benched on Sunday, has been graded worse than Foles.

DEFENSE

Best

Cedric Thornton +2.9
Nolan Carroll II +2.7
Malcolm Jenkins +1.6
Nate Allen +1.4

Analysis:

Defensive end Cedric Thornton was effective in limited playing time. He recorded 1 hurry, 1 batted pass, 1 tackle, and 1 run stop in just 28 snaps played. Nolan Carroll II was effective when the Eagles shifted to their dime package. Carroll II only allowed 2 receptions on 4 targets for a total of 3 yards gained. He also recorded 1 pass defensed along with 4 tackles and 3 run stops. Starting safety Malcolm Jenkins recorded 1 pass defensed on a third down and only allowed 1 catch for 4 yards on 2 targets.

Nate Allen being graded positively is obviously a surprise. Allen's positive grade comes from his run defense where he recorded 3 tackles and 1 run stop without missing a tackle. He also came up with that crucial forced fumble and recovery on Cardinals running back Andre Elligton. Allen struggled in pass coverage, however. Interestingly enough, PFF assigned the blame for John Brown's late-game touchdown on cornerback Cary Williams and not Allen.

Worst

Fletcher Cox -3.3
Bradley Fletcher -3.1
Trent Cole -2.8
Brandon Boykin -2.0
Mychal Kendricks -1.4

Analysis:

Cox graded badly due to a lack of pressure. He only recorded 1 quarterback hit in 44 pass rush snaps. Trent Cole, on the other hand, struggled as a run defender and missed a tackle. Mychal Kendricks, who was playing through injury, was marked down due to a penalty called on him early in the game.

In coverage, Bradley Fletcher and Brandon Boykin struggled the most. Fletcher allowed 2 receptions on 5 targets for 87 yards and 1 touchdown. Boykin allowed 4 receptions on 7 targets for 69 yards. John Brown and Larry Fitzgerald were too much for Philadelphia's lackluster secondary.

Pass coverage has obviously been a weakness of the Eagles and it needs to be fixed moving forward.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Cody Parkey +1.7

Parkey was a boss. He hit a 54-yard field goal when the Eagles were down 14-7 to make it 14-10. Parkey kicked a touchback on all five of his kickoff attempts.

Perspective: former Eagles kicker Alex Henery had 37 touchbacks on 90 kickoffs in 2013. Cody Parkey already has 27 on just 43 attempts.