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I apologize in advance. This is a tough read. Watching the Eagles’ offense back was quite enjoyable because of how well they played. This was not fun. Let’s just get into it.
Defense
This is bad. Really bad. Every single number here is significantly above average, even for the Chiefs’ offense. The Chiefs’ offense is elite but the Eagles’ defense made them look like the best offense of all time. The numbers that stand out for me are the early rush and early pass numbers. The Eagles’ defense is normally really good on late downs but they just couldn’t get the Chiefs into these situations because of how bad they were on 1st down. These numbers are absurd.
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The Field
I do not want to comment on the playing surface throughout the article because it feels like making excuses. I do think it impacted the Eagles and I think it’s a disgrace that the Super Bowl was played on this field.
I charted slip/sod-gate:
— Ollie Connolly (@OllieConnolly) February 14, 2023
- The Eagles' defense had a player slip on 38% of Patrick Mahomes' dropbacks -- five times they had multiple slippages.
- The Chiefs' defense had a player slip on only 14% of Jalen Hurts' dropbacks -- with no multiples
However, the field was not why the Eagles lost. So I’m not going to talk about it anymore.
Pass Defense
I actually don’t think the Eagles' game plan against the pass was terrible but I hated this call. The Eagles’ defense under Gannon just hates to double other teams' elite weapons for some reason. Playing cover-1 hole against the Chiefs is fine if you have one of your best defensive backs on Travis Kelce who can win one-on-one. Out of all members of the Eagles’ secondary, Marcus Epps is the last one you want on Kelce one-on-one. Yes, Travis Kelce motions inside but there is no reason Darius Slay cannot stay with Kelce. This is just way too easy for the Chiefs. Epps vs. Kelce was always going to be a huge mismatch. Andy Reid destroyed Jonathan Gannon in this one.
#2 I hate this call. I know Kelce motions, but if you're playing cover 1 hole anyway just keep Slay on Kelce. You end up with Epps on Kelce and no help at all. It's the worst possible matchup for the Eagles secondary. The route/throw are brilliant but this is a poor call. pic.twitter.com/YnYDSL9cuo
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
Andy Reid knew what the Eagles’ defense was going to do and had so many perfect calls. This is the perfect play to run against the Eagles cover-4 and by having no one on Darius Slay’s side of the field they basically have the best Eagles’ defensive back covering nobody on this play. TJ Edwards was made to look a bit silly on these throws over the middle of the field but it is a really tough ask on him. I think either James Bradberry or CGJ has to help him out on this play by leaving the vertical route. It’s just too easy for the Chiefs’ offense.
#3 This is the dream call against Eagles cover 4. They just leave Slay covering no one. TJ Edwards was killed here but he needs help badly. I think Bradberry has to come off the vertical route quicker or CGJ needs to leave the deep route to Bradberry and watch out for Kelce. pic.twitter.com/HpZPxvODzN
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
When the Eagles managed to stop the Chiefs on early downs, you could see the pass rush succeed. This is the only time I saw Reddick run a stunt and he got pressure instantly. The major issue was by losing on early downs, the Eagles couldn’t get the Chiefs into obvious passing situations like this enough. If we are going to complain about the holding call later, it’s only fair to point out that there is holding on this play that wasn’t called.
#5 This is holding btw, but it's one of the only times the pass rush won because it was 3rd & long so the Eagles could let Reddick rush from the inside. This Eagles D is elite in obvious passing situations but the Chiefs avoided them consistently with short gains on 1st/2nd down. pic.twitter.com/Y9OTNSfzKS
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
As bad as the Eagles’ defense was, sometimes you just have to accept that Patrick Mahomes is the best player in the NFL and can do ridiculous things. Jordan Davis manages to collapse the pocket enough to prevent Mahomes from escaping but he somehow gets this ball off to Travis Kelce. I have no idea how he even saw Kelce here and how he gets this throw-off. This is absurd.
#7 This throw is absurd. Totally absurd. Jordan Davis actually gets some push and Mahomes somehow does this. When does he even see Kelce is free?! How on earth does he get this ball off. My goodness. This is ridiculous. pic.twitter.com/H22vHeQ88i
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
However, it wasn’t just Mahomes being ridiculous all game. The Eagles made it so easy for him at times. This is the kind of play that drives me insane. Why are you playing this far off on 2nd and 7? The Chiefs do not have elite receivers and the Eagles have really good cornerbacks. Let them press and disrupt the timing! The Eagles' cornerbacks just do not challenge receivers at the line of scrimmage and giving up plays like this are just so frustrating. It’s safety first and on the biggest stage, Gannon went back to his passive style.
#8 OK, this is the kind of stuff that drives me nuts. It's 2nd and 7 and the CBs are so far off you just give up an easy 8 yards. I know the Chiefs WR are close together but you have good CBs and you have a safety deep. Take a chance and press these WRs. This is just too soft. pic.twitter.com/USTQ9kOTXr
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
This Eagles’ defense has a serious problem with motion. Whoever the defensive coordinator is next season must look at this. To be beaten twice on consecutive drives by motion is awful. I know how easy it is to blame the coaches too, but what on earth is Avonte Maddox doing here? I don’t know why the Eagles’ defense struggles so badly with motion but Andy Reid knew about it and destroyed the Eagles’ man coverage on the goal line. I talk a lot about how well coaches this Eagles secondary is but they are not well-coached at all to deal with motion. It’s really odd and it cost them.
#11 I'm not even posting the 1st one because this one is more egregious to me. How you don't adjust after giving up a TD to the same motion the drive before is beyond me. It's obviously very easy (and right) to blame Gannon but what on earth is Maddox doing here? pic.twitter.com/1MaIUKNXkf
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
The defense made a lot of mistakes down the stretch. They just looked ill-prepared for this matchup. The Eagles’ defense will always be +1 in zone coverage, especially when rushing 4, so I have no idea why they ended up 3over3 here, especially when Travis Kelce is one of 3. This is so easy for the Chiefs.
#12 The defense collapsed down the stretch. Not sure how they end up 3over3 here in zone (Gannon always wants to be +1, especially when rushing 4) but they end up leaving a wide open Juju for an easy 1st down. Normally a safety comes across to help against Trips but not here... pic.twitter.com/S14ewNbg18
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
If you skip through to the end of this article to play #13, you will see the biggest hit of the game by CGJ. You would think that after that hit, the defense may be hyped up. Ready to make a stop. Well, you would be wrong. After the biggest hit of the game, on 2nd and 8, the Eagles’ defense decides to give up an easy 7-yard throw by playing the same old passive style that we all hate. I cannot tell you how much this play annoys me. The Eagles didn’t give up any real explosive pass plays in this game, so congrats Jonathan Gannon! But it didn’t matter because they gave up these small chunks to make easy 3rd downs time after time. Most of you know that I have defended Jonathan Gannon this year and I do think he has had a very good year, but on the biggest stage, he lost his nerve.
#14 Play after the CJG hit. Defense should be fired up. 2nd & 8. Then you allow this for 7 yards. It's SO easy. Get up and press! Disrupt the timing! Just do something! I'm not even sure who exactly has him in man but you have two defenders in the proximity and they do nothing. pic.twitter.com/ATm2whrl5C
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
Another weird part of the Eagles’ game plan was how little they cared about Mahomes scrambling all game. He had some huge runs in big moments and this was a big reason they lost the game. Jordan Davis gets absolutely no push at all which allows Mahomes to escape. Kyzir White is supposed to be covering the running back so when he helps in pass protection, White should be watching Mahomes or rushing the passer. Instead, he just hovers to the side of the field and does nothing.
#15 Eagles seemed to care little about Mahomes scrambling and it hurt them. Davis cannot get any push at all which leaves a huge gap, despite all the other rushers collapsing the pocket. White's covering the RB and when he pass protects he decides to just hover to the side?! Ahh pic.twitter.com/4Ud37lB4fg
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
This was the only snap Reed Blankenship played all game because it was one of the few times the Eagles could get the Chiefs into obvious passing situations. They have the right call here and decide to double Travis Kelce and the pass rush wins. Sadly, James Bradberry is called for holding which is the worst thing he possibly could have done here. He would have been better off letting the receiver score. I think it’s a 50/50 call but it’s not the reason the Eagles lost. The Eagles lost because they were terrible on defense all game long.
#16 The Eagles pass rush did win when they got the Chiefs into 3rd & long. This was one of the only dime snaps they could play & they doubled Kelce which I loved. Bradberry just gets beat and does hold a little. I can't moan about the call. You just needed him to win on this rep pic.twitter.com/ITmdt8yyID
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
Run Defense
The Eagles’ run defense was a huge problem in this game. I think it’s the biggest reason they lost this game. They could not stop the run and I can’t believe how bad some individual performances were. It looked bad immediately from the start of the game. I have complimented him weekly, but this was TJ Edwards’ worst game of the season by a significant distance. He was so slow to come downfield and I have no idea what he was watching on some of these plays. There is no reason for him to get distracted by the motion here and he needs to get downhill quickly to make a play on the running back.
Eagles defense all22 vs. Chiefs. I'm sorry in advance. #1 Eagles run defense was really bad. It cost them. The Chiefs OL worked them all game. No idea why TJ Edwards is distracted by the motion here when they already have the motion/Mahomes covered. He needs to get downhill fast. pic.twitter.com/KlPl3ONy9v
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
This play was interesting to me because it was the only time I saw the Eagles line up with Cox at nose tackle and Brandon Graham next to him. I would love to know why the Eagles didn’t try this again after it worked! As you will see later on, the Eagles' nose tackles were awful in this game so I wonder why they didn’t try this same use of personnel more. This was one of the only times I saw TJ Edwards make a positive play against the run and one of the only run blitzes I saw all game. It just felt like the Eagles’ defense was terrified of Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ passing game so they were slow to get downhill all game. Not here though!
#4 This is interesting. Chiefs 3 & out came after a -2 yard 1st down run with Eagles playing Cox at NT & Graham next to him. Weirdly the only time I saw this and it worked! TJ Edwards and Hargrave make the tackle but Maddox run blitz is key. They had to win on 1st down more often pic.twitter.com/5Di51Kn5fn
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
Some of these plays were so frustrating to watch. This is easily one of the most annoying. The number of times I saw 2 Eagles’ defenders take the same gap in run defense was absurd. Both TJ Edwards and Kyzir White are left unblocked and they still can’t get near the running back. Hargrave has had a fantastic season but he was poor in the run game this week too. I hate to pick on him but Jordan Davis was flat-out terrible in this game too. We will see a lot more of him later, despite the fact he only played 10 snaps! I think James Bradberry will be incredibly disappointed with his performance against the run too. He was fine in coverage but he seemed completely disinterested in helping out in the run game. Compare how to plays here to the Chiefs’ secondary and the difference is huge.
#6 It's a very bad sign when your 2 LBs are unblocked and can't get near the ball. Either Hargrave takes the wrong gap or TJ Edwards does (I'd assume TJ) but someone screws up. Gonna be honest, the difference between the Chiefs CBs and Bradberry in this game was massive too. pic.twitter.com/via5QH1m73
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
I am not going to go in on Jordan Davis because he clearly has not been the same player since he was hurt. But he was really bad in this game. I didn’t think Linval Joseph looked good at the start of this game either, but I do not know why the Eagles gave Jordan Davis the same amount of snaps as Joseph. He didn’t anchor well at all and didn’t even command double teams. The Eagles’ defense needs their nose tackle to command double teams and he just didn’t do it. The center is double-teaming him here with the guard but he quickly releases to the 2nd level and gets to TJ Edwards because Davis gets moved easily. The past few weeks the Eagles’ defense has been so committed to stopping the run and been far more aggressive coming downhill, especially against the 49ers, and this week they just went to the bad Eagles’ defense we have seen in the past. I don’t get it.
#10 I don't know why Davis was taking these snaps over Joseph. He can't win here and the C is able to get to TJ quickly. He must anchor better. Hargrave is blown up. Bradberry makes a token effort. Cox wins but the gap is there already. The defense was so passive downhill. Ugh. pic.twitter.com/b1CYxOb3ou
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
If I was frustrated watching this game, it must have been incredibly frustrating playing in this game too. It was about time someone made a play against the run. This is a huge hit by CGJ and on another day he could have caused a massive fumble here. Watch how high Jordan Davis is on this play too. He is so upright which makes it so easy to block him one-on-one. The Chiefs’ interior offensive line is really good and they dominated the Eagles' defensive line in this matchup. I’m not thinking too much about the offseason yet but I want to see CGJ back with the Eagles next season.
#13 CGJ should be a priority to bring back. It was about time someone showed up against the run and hit somebody. I was angry watching the film. Everyone was so passive. Davis gets stonewalled again & doesn't command a double team. TJ gets done by a TE. Ugh. I want CGJ back. pic.twitter.com/TLx2uSStK9
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 14, 2023
I am glad that is over. What a terrible performance from a really talented defense.
Thank you for checking out these pieces each week and if you have any ideas for any off-season pieces you want to read, just let me know in the comments or on Twitter (@JonnyPage9). I really appreciate all the comments and views which allow me to do this weekly! Thank you!
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