The Philadelphia Eagles were defeated by the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday evening in a preseason game that ended early due to a lightning storm. Read on for observations!

OFFENSE

First drive: Cody Kessler gets the start at quarterback. The whole starting offense is on the field minus Carson Wentz, Brandon Brooks, and Lane Johnson. Corey Clement gets the start at running back and takes a carry for four yards. Then he takes another for a first down. Good to see him back healthy. The Eagles get into 4th-and-3 and Kessler takes a sack. Turnover on downs.

Second drive: Kessler can’t get much going — aside from an 18-yard completion over the middle to JJ Arcega-Whiteside — and the Eagles have to punt. Honestly, I’ve seen enough of Kessler.

Third drive: Mercifully, Josh McCown comes into the game. McCown’s 3rd-and-11 screen pass is knocked down and the Eagles go three-and-out.

Fourth drive: Clement still taking all the running back work so far. McCown’s 3rd-and-7 pass to Joshua Perkins is dropped. Not great for Perkins, who has an opportunity to step up with Richard Rodgers injured.

Fifth drive: Eagles go three-and-out with McCown targeting Perkins #ShortOfTheSticks on third down.

Sixth drive: McCown connects with Arcega-Whiteside on a slant for a first down. Is that allowed? McCown goes back to JJ for an 8-yard gain. McCown hits Perkins in the flat for another first but Andre Dillard is flagged for lining up wrong. No matter because McCown connects with Greg Ward for a first down.

Getting in a rhythm here. McCown throws to Carlton Agudosi while facing pressure and it’s ruled incomplete but Doug Pederson successfully challenges to bring up another first down. McCown takes off running for five yards to bring up 3rd-and-7 from the Ravens’ 24-yard line. Solid mobility from the 40-year-old there. Can the Eagles convert this crucial third down?! Maybe not. Stefen Wisniewski — who’s having a bad summer — and Jordan Mailata get flagged for back-to-back false starts. That’s Mailata’s third penalty this half. McCown’s third down pass for Ward is complete but #ShortOfTheSticks. Then Jake Elliott misses his 41-yard field goal attempt. Woof.

Seventh drive: McCown takes a knee to end the first half.

Eighth drive: McCown makes a nice throw to Mack Hollins for a first down. Then another to Ward, plus a highly questionable “lowering the helmet” penalty to put the Eagles in the red zone. McCown floats a ball to Ward in the end zone, who can’t quite come down with it. The play is called back anyway with Arcega-Whiteside getting flagged for a pick play. Bad mistake by the rookie. But he makes up for it with a real nice touchdown catch on a beauty of a fade throw from McCown. Gorgeous.

Ninth drive: McCown continues to target JJAW and, hey, guess what, it’s working! The rookie receiver logs a big catch-and-run on fourth down.

Eagles move into the red zone. McCown throws to a wide open Josh Adams in the flat and the running back drops a would-be touchdown. Womp. McCown has an unblocked rusher in his face and he floats it into the end zone for Alex Ellis. Another great ball by the veteran quarterback. The Eagles go for two and Adams waltzes up the middle with no resistance for the conversion. Nice bounce back for the Eagles to get the game to 26-15 after being down 26-0.

Tenth drive: Clayton Thorson in the game now so McCown’s night is done, as it should be. Eagles have to punt.

DEFENSE

First drive: Rodney McLeod gets the start at safety. Brandon Graham comes up with a huge tackle for loss on a jet sweep to Marquise Brown. The Ravens settle for a field goal.

Second drive: Nothing much going for Trace McSorley and the Ravens.

Third drive: Rasul Douglas whiffs while trying to tackle Miles Boykin, which leads to a big Ravens gain. McLeod makes a good tackle for loss on a McSorley run to bring up 3rd-and-11. The Ravens settle for a Justin Tucker field goal.

Fourth drive: The Eagles’ starting defense is out of the game. L.J. Fort breaks up a McSorley downfield attempt. Baltimore moves into the red zone with a beastly play from Mark Andrews.

The Ravens gets to 3rd-and-goal and McSorley runs for a touchdown. The Ravens go for a two-point conversion but Daeshon Hall draws a holding penalty and the Ravens have to settle for an extra point instead. Hall just makes plays, man.

Fifth drive: Tre Sullivan badly whiffs (a regular occurrence) while trying to tackle Justice Hill but the Ravens get called for holding. McSorley chucks it to Michael Floyd, who roasts Jeremiah McKinnon, for a touchdown. McSorley looking a lot better in this game than he did in joint practices this week.

Sixth drive: McSorley leads another good touchdown drive for the Ravens. This one ends with McKinnon getting beat once again. Rough night for No. 38.

Seventh drive: Fort makes a good open field tackle on a Ravens running back reception; diagnosed it all the way. Then it’s Alex Singleton who picks up a tackle for loss. Singleton again for a third down stop. It’s about time.

Eight drive: Hall lands a big shot on McSorley as the quarterback’s third down pass is incomplete. Three-and-out.

Ninth drive: Eagles force another punt.

Tenth drive: It’s raining now at the Linc. Old friend Joe Callahan is in at quarterback for the Ravens. And now the game is getting delayed with 11:43 left in the fourth quarter because there was a lightning strike. Womp. ... aaaand that’s the game. The NFL officially called it.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Miles Sanders is back as the Eagles’ kick returner on the opening kickoff.

Boston Scott is back on the Ravens’ first punt return.

Marken Michel draws a flag for failing to get inbounds (unsportsmanlike) during a punt coverage snap. Depth receivers need to be good at special teams so that’s not a good mark for Michel.

Jake Elliott misses a 41-yard field goal.

Alex Ellis makes a big hit on a Ravens kickoff returner.

THE QUARTERBACKS

Carson Wentz: DID NOT PLAY

Nate Sudfeld: DID NOT PLAY

Josh McCown: 17/24, 192 yards (8.0 average), 2 TD, 0 INT, 122.2 passer rating

Cody Kessler: 3/5, 34 yards (6.8 average), 0 TD, 0 INT, 80.4 passer rating

Clayton Thorson: 0/1

Kessler started the game and stunk. Playing him is a waste of snaps since we all know he’s getting cut anyway.

McCown looked really good, especially after only joining the team last Saturday. He’s gonna be the top backup quarterback behind Carson Wentz. Sorry, Sudfeld.

The game ending early was too bad for Thorson, who could use the reps.

INJURY UPDATES

The Eagles didn’t announce any in-game injuries. Great development.

UP NEXT

The Eagles’ next media availability is scheduled for Sunday. Keep in mind that practices are no longer entirely open to the media since the team’s training camp schedule is over.

The Eagles will spend the upcoming week preparing starters for the regular season and backups for the fourth preseason game against the Jets next Thursday, August 29. The Eagles will need to trim their 90-man roster down to 53 players prior to 4:00 PM Eastern on Saturday, August 31.

As always, stay tuned to BGN for more Eagles coverage.