Eagles News: All aboard the Travis Fulgham hype train

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Eagles vs. Steelers: 13 winners, losers, and I dunnos - BGN
What can be said about Fulgham’s implosion? It was the first 10-catch, 150-yard performance by an Eagles WR since 2014, when Jeremy Maclin had 162 on 12 against the Cardinals. In fact, only seven Eagles WRs since 1970 have ever posted such a day: Maclin (twice), DeSean Jackson, Terrell Owens, Harold Carmichael, Fred Barnett, James Thrash (!), and Kevin Curtis (!!). That’s a good list to be on, though obviously there are a couple of anomalies. Will Fulgham end up another one? Probably — even after his performance today, Fulgham is more likely to be a blip than a franchise piece...but why shouldn’t he have the opportunity? No, really, why shouldn’t he? Wentz showed more trust in him and confidence throwing to him — as well as accuracy — than he has over Greg Ward or John Hightower. It took Fulgham two weeks to become the player the Eagles have been trying to get out of J.J. Arcega-Whiteside for the last two years. He’s a deeper target than Zach Ertz or Miles Sanders. There is no reason to take Fulgham out of the outside WR role, and there won’t be when Reagor comes back, or when DeSean Jackson comes back, until those two players prove their superior playmaking as Fulgham potentially comes back to earth.

The Kist & Solak Show #200: Eagles Drop a Zany One to Pittsburgh - BGN Radio
Michael Kist & Benjamin Solak recap the Eagles loss to the Steelers in Week 5 with thoughts on Wentz, Fulgham, the OL and the frustrating Schwartz coached defense PLUS THREE WORDS from the gentle listeners! Powered by SB Nation and Bleeding Green Nation.

Travis Fulgham’s breakout encouraging for Eagles, even in loss to Steelers - ESPN
Shortly after Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Travis Fulgham hauled in a fourth-quarter touchdown pass from Carson Wentz, CBS analyst Jonathan Vilma said incredulously: “How do you lose sight of that guy? How do you lose sight of Travis Fulgham?” That’s all you need to know about how quickly Fulgham’s stock has skyrocketed. Fulgham, the former Old Dominion walk-on who has already been cut from 2019 teams (the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions) since coming into the league in 2019, exploded for 10 catches and 152 yards in a 38-29 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. This performance is on the heels of a Week 4 game-winning touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday Night Football.

Roob’s observations after another incomplete Eagles showing - NBCSP
3. Travis Fulgham’s performance was seriously one of the most remarkable things I’ve ever seen, and I’ve been doing this a while. This is a guy whose first CAREER catch was last week. And he comes out and doesn’t just catch 10 passes for 152 yards and a touchdown, he makes an assortment of leaping, diving, lunging catches for an offense in desperate need of a playmaker. He single-handedly made Wentz look sharper than he has all year. The Eagles have been trying for years to find a guy to do what Fulgham did Sunday. They’ve tried drafting guys, they’ve tried signing guys, and they found one released by two teams in the last six weeks. I don’t want to go overboard and say Fulgham is going to answer the Eagles’ long-running WR problems, but maybe he will. This wasn’t a fluke.

Handing out 10 awards from the Eagles-Steelers game - PhillyVoice
Despite the loss, there were positives in this game, and the most obvious cause for encouragement came in the form of Travis Fulgham, who had 10 catches for 152 yards and a TD, and looked like a legitimate NFL wide receiver. Fulgham had as many catches against the Steelers as J.J. Arcega-Whiteside has had all season, and Carson Wentz looked confident throwing the ball his way. Of course, this performance comes a week after he made the biggest play of the game in the Eagles’ win over the 49ers. They may have something there.

No Cigar - Iggles Blitz
On the good side, the Eagles put up 29 points on the #2 defense in the league. The patchwork OL protected Carson Wentz well enough for him to throw for 258 yards and a pair of TDs. WR Travis Fulgham had the game of his life, going 10-152-1. Those numbers don’t tell the whole story. We’ve seen receivers light up bad secondaries over the years. This was legit. Fulgham made tough grabs. He worked the outside and the middle. He made a really impressive catch down the deep middle, reaching over a DB for a gain of 31. I don’t think Fulgham will be sitting beside Jerry Rice in Canton, but that was one heck of a game. He’s now come up big in back to back games. It feels good for a young receiver to be showing real talent.

NFL Week 5 PFF ReFocused: Pittsburgh Steelers 38, Philadelphia Eagles 29 - PFF
Although quarterback Carson Wentz left the matchup with two interceptions, it was not all bad for the fifth-year signal-caller. In the red zone, he connected on all five of his throws for 40 yards and two touchdowns. He looked poised under pressure, too, completing 4-of-6 passes for 47 yards and one touchdown. Those were the only situations in which he looked comfortable, though. When he was kept clean and able to read the defense, he had a 55.2% completion rate and a paltry 61.1 passer rating, both bottom-five marks of all quarterbacks who have played in Week 5 thus far.

A show of heart to build upon, but Sunday’s loss still stings - PE.com
Despite everything that happened – the defense struggling to get off the field, the offense turning the football over at a critical time that led to seven Pittsburgh points, the 10-minute period of time late in the second quarter and early in the third quarter when Pittsburgh scored 17 straight points – the Eagles were right there with the game on the line. But a fourth-quarter drive stalled, and then Jake Elliott’s 57-yard field goal went wide right and the Steelers scored a touchdown on the ensuing possession to wrap up a 38-29 win over Philadelphia on Sunday at Heinz Field. So close, and yet so many questions about the Eagles after a fight on Sunday. There are no moral victories in this game and we’ll look at the reasons the Eagles came up short in this one, but the team showed a tremendous amount of heart fighting back from 17 points down. The offense had its best game of the season and the Carson Wentz-Travis Fulgham connection is very, very real.

Zach Ertz’s struggles continue in Steelers loss. What’s happened to the Eagles’ Pro Bowl tight end? - Inquirer
Ertz has to play better. He would be the first to admit as much. There will be speculation that his unhappiness with his contract situation is factoring into his recent slide, and while it is fair to at least ask that question, there is no proof that it’s in his head. He said before the season that he won’t allow it to affect his performance. Unfortunately, he has only spoken with reporters once — partly because of COVID-19 restrictions — since he publicly questioned the front office’s long-term commitment to him. One can only assume that he is frustrated and confused by his inefficiency. Ertz needs only look to late last season when he put up numbers similar to Fulgham’s. The only numbers that matter are 1-3-1, but Ertz getting his would likely go a long way in adding to the win column.

Chase Claypool shows off his talents on the field, and behind the keyboard - Behind The Steel Curtain
Claypool showed some fancy editing skills as he put his helmet over that of Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady’s for the famous photo of Brady not knowing the exact result of the play on Thursday Night Football.

It is hard to have any winners and losers after the Dallas Cowboys win against the New York Giants - Blogging The Boys
Perhaps you believe that Andy Dalton is capable of leading the Cowboys to the top of the smallest mountain in the NFL in the NFC East. It is possible (arguable, debatable, however you’d like to term it) that he is the best quarterback in the division at the moment. Reality is that we do not know a lot about who Andy Dalton is in 2020 although he had some nice moments in Sunday’s comeback. It’s hard to be excited about a team that’s only two wins are largely in courtesy of some special teams gaffes by their opponent. It is incredibly easy to be excited about the prospect of CeeDee Lamb both in the here and now as well as the future.

Instant analysis: The Giants will win when they deserve to win - Big Blue View
0-5. That is the New York Giants’ reality after a gut-wrenching 37-34 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. It’s a reality no one likes. Sunday’s was a game the Giants coulda/shoulda/woulda won if they had just made a couple more plays or eliminated some costly mistakes, two penalties that ended up costing them 11 points and yet another Daniel Jones fumble that cost them seven. This was a loss. Yet, coach Joe Judge tried to see the big picture after the best overall game his team has played this season.

Washington loses to the Rams in an unwatchable 30-10 slopfest - Hogs Haven
Chase Young made his return to the field, but that wasn’t nearly enough to overcome the bad play from Washington’s offense and defense. They lost to the Rams 30-10 and it could have been a lot worse than that. It was a wet and sloppy day at FedEx Field that also saw the incredible return of Alex Smith. After the initial shock wore off, we saw an offense that couldn’t move the ball or protect the quarterback. The defense allowed multiple big plays and couldn’t stop anything today. Awful effort all around.

Strong expectation Dwayne Haskins traded before deadline, and some rival execs are already watching film - CBS Sports
Washington coach Ron Rivera spoke last week about quarterback Dwayne Haskins having a future in the organization despite being benched just four games into this coaching regime, but few executives around the NFL are buying it. The situation between the quarterback, who was drafted 15th overall just 16 months ago, and Rivera’s staff is already fairly toxic, and multiple sources within the organization believe a trade by the end of the month is the most likely outcome. Some rival executives have already begun looking at film of the former Ohio State star, anticipating him being moved in the coming weeks, with Kyle Allen — who has deep ties to this coaching staff — taking over as starter, veteran Alex Smith now the No. 2 quarterback and Haskins demoted all the way to third string.

The Winners and Losers of NFL Week 5 - The Ringer
It feels crass, but mandatory, to note that Smith does not appear capable of playing in the NFL right now. He finished 9-for-17 for 37 yards—just 2.2 yards per attempt, the lowest mark of Smith’s career. When we factor in sacks, Washington gained 6 yards on Smith’s 23 dropbacks. (I also suspect that 89-year-old pizza delivery guy is not particularly effective at delivering pizza.) I wanted Smith to succeed, but felt physically sick watching him needlessly endanger himself struggling to play a game his team had no hopes of winning.

Alex Smith’s return to football was incredible and nerve-wracking at the same time - SB Nation
Alex Smith suffered one of the most gruesome injuries in NFL history when he broke his tibia and fibula during a Nov. 2018 loss to the Houston Texans. Smith’s fracture would become infected, which had doctors seriously considering amputating his leg. Instead, Smith endured 17 surgeries and had to re-learned how to walk and run, all with the goal of getting back onto the field. It’s finally happened. Smith replaced injured starter Kyle Allen for Washington in Week 5 against the Los Angeles Rams, creating a surreal moment for a player who at one point feared losing his life because of the injury. Smith completed his first pass, and had his family there in the stands to cheer him on.

America’s newest wave of Covid-19 cases, explained - Vox
A new wave of Covid-19 cases is building across the United States, a harbinger of difficult winter months ahead. America is now averaging nearly 48,000 new confirmed cases every day, the highest numbers since mid-August, according to the Covid Tracking Project. More than 34,500 Americans are currently hospitalized with Covid-19 in the US, up from less than 30,000 a week ago. Nearly 700 new deaths are being reported on average every day, too — and while that is down from August, when there were often more than 1,000 deaths a day, deaths are going to eventually start increasing if cases and hospitalizations continue to rise. It’s a pattern we have seen before.

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