Grade the Eagles’ awful loss to Washington

The Eagles lost to Washington in Washington by a score of 27-20. It was not very good football, but I watched it all, so I’m sure as hell going to write things about it.

Pass Offense: C

Carson Wentz was pressured pretty heavily for the majority of the afternoon, when he was allowed to set foot on the field. Halapoulivaati Vaitai did Wentz no favors by getting dominated in his first professional start, especially in the first half, and Wentz’s knowledge that his pocket wasn't as strong as previous weeks led to a few extra-high throws from the rookie quarterback.

He eventually settled in, especially in the second half, and made a handful of big, long throws to keep the Eagles around late in the game. His 54-yard throw to Jordan Matthews, for example, was on a rope. Unfortunately for Wentz, this is a group grade, and the passing offense as a group was very middling. At least three drops led to missed first downs, or missed opportunities at points. Zach Ertz was invisible for the majority of the game. Overall, it was the passing offense’s most disappointing game of the season.

Run Offense: C-

Very little to talk about here. They broke a few big runs on the ground, but in general a 21-carry, 94-yard performance from your run game isn’t what you’re looking for in a divisional matchup. Of course, everything works better when you have the ball for more than 25 minutes.

Pass Defense: D

Malcolm Jenkins returned an interception for a touchdown. That was the only good thing the team did against the pass, writ large, on Sunday. Sure, Jalen Mills won a few plays in the red zone. But the Eagles’ secondary was largely bad, allowing receivers to come completely open on certain plays. Jenkins was beat in coverage numerous times, Rodney McLeod sat too deep on a few plays and allowed big gains underneath, and Nolan Carroll struggled again. On the whole, when you allow Kirk Coupons to throw for 263 yards and only intercept him once, you’re having a bad day. The Eagles missed Leodis McKelvin in a big way.

Run Defense: F

The Eagles’ front seven did almost nothing well against the run. Losing Bennie Logan didn't help the unit, of course, but even before Logan left the game the Eagles’ run defense was porous. Washington used a good, balanced rushing attack and piled up 230 yards on 33 carries, bludgeoning the Eagles’ line with speed and clean cuts. And the Birds didn’t help themselves one bit, missing tackles and failing to bring guys down when they made initial contact. It was easily the team’s worst run defense showing of the season. The fact that Matt Jones broke a huge run to ice the game was the most fitting thing I’ve seen in quite some time.