Eagles-Chargers PFF Grades: Philadelphia’s offensive line makes up 4 out of the top 5 players

Pro Football Focus releases the top five graded players from each team after every single NFL game. Here’s what PFF had to say about the Philadelphia Eagles following their Week 4 win against the Los Angeles Chargers.

C Jason Kelce, 90.0 overall grade

CB Patrick Robinson, 87.1 overall grade

T Lane Johnson, 86.8 overall grade

T Jason Peters, 86.7 overall grade

G Brandon Brooks, 86.1 overall grade

THE OFFENSIVE LINE

It’s no surprise to see four offensive linemen featured in the top five this week. The Eagles absolutely mashed the Chargers up front.

Philadelphia was able to open giant holes in the run game, as seen in the picture at the top of this article. The Eagles ran for one touchdown and 214 yards on 42 attempts (5.1 average). Philly’s run game was especially clutch late in the game when the Eagles had a two-point lead with 6:44 left in the fourth quarter. The Birds just kept pounding the rock until they ran out the clock.

When it came to pass protection, the Eagles only allowed one sack. That’s impressive considering Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram had combined for 23.5 ever since they started playing together in 2016. Jason Peters and Lane Johnson held both of them to zero sacks in this matchup.

After finishing as the second highest graded Eagles player in Week 3, Kelce finished first this week. Talk about a bounce-back season.

When the play calling was kept to the Eagles bread and butter of zone runs, their offensive line led by Jason Kelce presented a platform for their backs to dominate. Kelce comfortably got the better of his matchup with Brandon Mebane and, along with double teams from the guards and tackles either side of him, consistently cleared a path for the ground game and was a key factor in the Eagles closing it out with an outstanding drive to wind off nearly the last 7 minutes of the game.

As we all know, PFF was very high on the Eagles’ offensive line heading into this season. They said Philly had the best OL in the league.

Well, so far Kelce ranks second out of 47 centers graded by PFF this year. Peters and Johnson rank second and fifth, respectively, out of 68 tackles. Starting guards Brandon Brooks and Stefen Wisniewski rank 10th and 17th.

Chance Warmack hasn’t played enough snaps to qualify in the rankings. His current grade would put him at 43rd, which is one spot under a familiar name ... Allen Barbre. I keep saying the Eagles should really just stick with Wis but it seems like they’re insistent on getting Warmack in there.

Here’s some offensive line porn for your viewing pleasure.

PATRICK ROBINSON

Robinson has finished in the top five graded players three times now this season. Who could’ve seen that coming?

While rookie CB Rasul Douglas struggled, veteran Patrick Robinson continued his string of solid performances with a coverage grade of 87.0. Robinson was on the field for 27 total coverage snaps and was not targeted a single time, he also recorded a pass break up on a play where he wasn’t the primary defender. Robinson provides some stability to the Eagles young secondary and looks to continue his strong season as the weeks progress.

Robinson ranks fourth out of 111 cornerbacks this season. Eric Rowe is still dead last at No. 111.

Robinson has only allowed one reception for every 14.3 coverage snaps, which ranks fifth best in the league. In 100 slot coverage snaps, Robinson has allowed seven catches for 128 yards and one touchdown. He also has an interception and four passes defensed. Robinson has tackled well; he ranks second overall in PFF’s “stop percentage.”

The Eagles’ secondary has their fair share of issues but Robinson isn’t a major one. He’s turned out to be a good bargain-bin signing for Philly.

CARSON WENTZ

Wentz didn’t make the top five but PFF included another mystifying blurb on him.

Another game of ups and downs from Wentz, with some big plays down the field to Zach Ertz and an early play to Nelson Agholor that were offset by some dangerous throws that on another day would have led to interceptions. Wentz’s completion percentage dropped to 35 percent under pressure today, and for the season it is at 39 percent. Greater efficiency under pressure will be crucial to the Eagles and Wentz taking a step forward as the season wears on.

It may seem like PFF hates Wentz, but it’s worth noting he’s ranked 11th out of all 32 quarterbacks this season. Still, this seems too harsh.

Sure, Wentz didn’t post a sexy stat line on Sunday. But anyone who watched the game knows he played well. Wentz’s impact goes beyond the ability to make plays with his arm. He did a great job of being in total command of the offense; making audibles at the line of scrimmage, shifting protections, etc. Wentz also dropped some absolute dimes on those deep passes he was previously struggling with this season. The second-year quarterback’s numbers would have looked a lot better if Torrey Smith didn’t drop some of his passes.

Here’s a look at some of the bright spots from Wentz’s performance.

HONORABLE MENTION

Beau Allen received a shoutout for his performance while starting in place of Fletcher Cox.

Beau Allen had his best game of the season and gave the interior of the Chargers offensive line fits, he totaled five pressures on the day with four hurries and one sack. Allen finished with a pass-rush productivity (PRP) of 16.0, which currently ranks first among interior defenders for Week 4. Among the three interior offensive linemen for the Chargers, Kenny Wiggins had the best pass-block grade at 74.0, so Allen can expect to see stiffer competition as the season progresses.

Allen obviously isn’t a guy the Eagles want starting all 16 games but he’s more than a capable fill-in guy. It’ll be interesting to see what the Birds do with him this offseason when Allen is scheduled to be a free agent. The Eagles reportedly had contract talks with him earlier this year but nothing materialized.

DISHONORABLE MENTION

PFF didn’t mention it in their recap but the Eagles’ secondary deserves a dishonorable mention here. Starting outside cornerbacks Rasul Douglas (67th) and Jalen Mills (88th) are far from perfect in coverage. Douglas was especially victimized in this Eagles-Chargers game. The safeties aren’t much better. Malcolm Jenkins (50th) and Rodney McLeod (79th) are having issues as well.