Skip to content
Eagles
Link copied to clipboard

Eagles-Vikings: What did we learn?

The Eagles moved to 4-2 after they stifled the Vikings, 21-10, on Sunday. Here are 10 things that we learned:

1. The Eagles are starting to create an identity. If I was asked at the start of the season how the Eagles could beat a team like the Vikings – or, really, any top team for that matter – I would have said only with superb defense and special teams performances. That was the winning formula on Sunday, but there were legitimate questions about the potency of Jim Schwartz's defense following a couple of down weeks. But last week's disaster in D.C., in particular, appears to have been an anomaly. Dave Fipp's special teams units have been solid throughout. But the gravitational pull of reality has grounded Doug Pederson's offense. The issues on the offensive line have certainly played a role in that unit's ineffectiveness. And Carson Wentz was likely to hit a rookie rough patch at some point. But there just isn't enough skill position talent to aid the young quarterback when things aren't going his way. There isn't a stud that Pederson can go to when the offense needs a jolt. There will be better weeks on that side of the ball. But if the Eagles are to continue riding the wave of knocking off the previously undefeated Vikings they will likely need to do so on the shoulders of their defense and special teams units. And that's OK. You can win that way in the NFL. The Eagles have back-to-back road games against NFC East opponents – at Dallas, at the New York Giants – the next two weeks. A split would suffice. Winning both would validate the 3-0 start. But losing both would drop them to 0-3 in the division and suggest that they're still a ways from contender status. But they righted the ship after a two-game skid and are back riding the current.

2. Doug Pederson pushes the right buttons. I'm not sure why more coaches don't attempt two-point conversions. It's just a two-yard gamble and the payoff could be significant. Yes, the opposite could be said if the attempt fails. But those are the risks and hitting on those odds can galvanize a team. So when a Vikings penalty on a second quarter PAT gave the Eagles the ball on the 1-yard line, I thought it would be a no-brainer for Pederson to try for two. He apparently agreed. Still, some coaches might have still kicked the extra point to take a 7-3 lead. I think Pederson knew that he had to roll the dice a little in a game that was going to be a defensive slugfest. You take the points wherever you can get them. But his gamble was also par for the course. Pederson isn't afraid to take chances. He's spun the wheel on several fourth downs this season. But they haven't been reckless decisions. Each one, taken individually, has made some sort of the sense. And, most important, his faith in his offense has paid off. Wentz kept on the conversion and tallied the two points. Two series later, the Eagles faced a fourth down and two. Pederson called a timeout, mulled over the decision and sent the offense back out. Wentz kept again, although he had no choice after dropping the snap, and rolled around the corner for a 6-yard gain. The Eagles added a field goal and went to the half up, 11-3. I'd imagine the Eagles and Vikings had polar locker room reactions to the first 30 minutes even though each team had three turnovers. The Eagles carried that emotion into the second half, while the Vikings looked shell shocked. Pederson has proven to have a steady hand. He didn't panic last week. He stayed positive after the Redskins loss and his calm approach was likely as effective as his gambles.

3. Jim Schwartz is a genius again. I write that partly in jest because it was sort of ridiculous to label the coordinator a savant after just three games in the first place – not that I did. Schwartz is a very good defensive coach. He's been successful far too long to suggest otherwise. Is he Tom Landry reincarnate? No. His preparation and play calling against the Lions and Redskins proved that point. But let's give him more than a handful of games before we stamp Schwartz with either label. My guess is that over 16 games he'll have more success than failure. He had a great game plan against the Vikings. He attacked their weaknesses – an immobile Sam Bradford and backup tackles – with an assortment of zone blitzes that confounded the quarterback and his offensive line (I wrote more about this topic in my newspaper column). Bradford had little time to throw and he often had trouble finding his "hot" receiver because Schwartz's zones took away his safety valves on the wings. He threw an interception that was forced by a Brandon Graham rush, and he fumbled twice when Connor Barwin and Rodney McLeod were able to turn the corner and swat the ball. Schwartz knew that Bradford doesn't move well in and out of the pocket and he had his defenders encircle the quarterback like hyenas would a carcass. The Vikings were ripe for picking. So it's not like the Eagles shut down Tom Brady and the Patriots offense. But on a day when the offense kept putting the defense in harm's way, Schwartz's unit delivered timed and again.

4. Carson Wentz can't be expected to carry the offense – yet. Wentz was not good on Sunday. Let's get that out of the way first. He was responsible for three turnovers and missed a bunch of open receivers. His first interception occurred when he overshot Brent Celek with the Eagles backed up inside their own 20. His second pick came when he forced a third down throw to Nelson Agholor in triple coverage. And he was culpable for a botched handoff to Darren Sproles. And that was just in the first quarter alone. But Wentz did settle down. There weren't as many "Wow" moments as there were in the first five games, but the Vikings were a tough assignment and the Eagles were still clearly stunted by starting Halapoulivaati Vaitai at right tackle. It's difficult to move the ball through the air when you're mostly calling screens, naked play-action boots and five-yard quickies. It's difficult to throw downfield when Agholor, Dorial Green-Beckham and Josh Huff are your receiving options on the outside. Green-Beckham dropped another pass and Agholor eased up on a deep route in which Wentz overthrew him. I'm not excusing Wentz for his outing. He needs to be more prudent. He needs to be more accurate. But his problems seem to be more systemic than anything else.

5. Jordan Hicks can be a game changer. We saw this ability last season, albeit for only six games before Hicks suffered a season-ending biceps tear. And the middle linebacker had a solid start to this season. But there were few instances of the 2015 Hicks through the first five games. But I felt like that had more to do with scheme than with any Hicks liability. Schwartz opened up his defense with an assortment of blitzes on Sunday and that seemed to free Hicks. He was all over the field. He led the Eagles with 11 tackles, three behind the line and he also had a sack. I think Hicks' best moment may have come when he pressured Bradford outside the pocket and was able to bat his pass to ground. Schwartz would often rather rely on his four-man rush than send extra rushers. But there's something to be said for taking advantage of the athleticism of your blitzers. The same could be said of Mychal Kendricks, who deserved an assist on the McLeod sack-forced fumble.

6. Brandon Graham and Connor Barwin rose to Schwartz's challenge. The Vikings were down to their backup tackles – a rotating trio that included T.J. Clemmings, Jake Long and Jeremiah Sirles – and Schwartz made sure to remind his defensive tackles of this fact last week. The Eagles defensive line was embarrassed in Washington. They recorded zero sacks, hit quarterback Kirk Cousins only twice and were thoroughly owned by the Redskins o-line. If they had any pride, they were not going to let that happen against a Vikings line than was depleted. Graham continued his season-long assault on quarterbacks. He notched his fourth sack on the season and hit Bradford five times. Barwin, who was starting to hear whispers about his struggles, recorded a sack and forced a fumble. Defensive tackles Fletcher Cox and Beau Allen, who was filling in for the injured Bennie Logan, wrecked the middle on a number of occasions. Vinny Curry got a higher percentage of snaps than he has all season (54 pct.), but the defensive end was conspicuously absent from the stat sheet. Schwartz aided his front four with the blitz. And the d-line will have a more difficult assignment against the Cowboys on Sunday. But the Eagles' rush rebounded on Sunday.

7. Ryan Mathews isn't trustworthy late in games. The Eagles running back had his second fumble in the final five minutes this season. Mathews' turnover wasn't as costly as it was in Detroit, but it's a telltale sign that he gets jittery down the stretch. What should Pederson do now? Some say he should just cut Mathews. I don't agree. It's not as if the Eagles have Jim Brown waiting in the wings. Mathews ran for a tough 56 yards on 14 carries on Sunday. He's the Eagles' most physical runner. He serves a purpose. I'd like to see more of rookie Wendell Smallwood, and I believe we will over the course of the season, but there must be a valid reason why Pederson hasn't shoveled more onto his plate. If Mathews stays, Pederson needs to go to him early against the Cowboys to show that he still has his trust. But as far as burning the clock in late-game situations, I'm not sure if the veteran can be relied on. He has two strikes. A third could be enough to move on.

8. The offensive line problems haven't gone away. The Eagles held the Vikings to zero sacks. They entered the game with a league-leading 19 quarterback takedowns. I don't care if the Eagles' game plan made it virtually impossible for Minnesota to get near Wentz. Holding them sack-less was notable. But Pederson can't be expected to limit the game plan every week. Vaitai was better than he was last week. He took an early false start, and had a few other miscues, but the Eagles schemed many of their pass plays to protect the rookie. And that put additional stress on the rest of the unit and it showed. Allen Barbre had a holding penalty. Jason Kelce had another false start. Brandon Brooks left briefly with an ankle injury. Jason Peters didn't finish the game because of a biceps injury. He said he was OK and would have stayed in had the game been close, but the health of the 34-year-old left tackle bears monitoring. The line is a little banged up. Three of the five – Kelce is dealing with plantar fasciitis and was limping some on Sunday – aren't 100 percent. And Barbre, all of sudden, is struggling.

9. Josh Huff deserves my apology. I wrote in this space last week that I thought Smallwood should replace Huff on kick returns. He responded with a 98-yard kick return for a touchdown against the Vikings. I'm fairly certain the result would have been the same had Smallwood taken the return. The blocking was impeccable and the only man Huff had to beat was kicker Blair Walsh. But he hit the hole and he basically ran through Blair rather than slow with a juke attempt. Huff also led the Eagles with four catches for 39 yards. The Eagles did a much better job of getting him the ball in space and he was able to picked up yards after the catch. That is Huff's skill set. He's fast and he isn't afraid of contact. Does he always run the right way? No. Can he be trusted as a downfield receiver? Obviously not. He hardly ever runs routes longer than 10 yards anymore. But until the Eagles upgrade at receiver he'll have a spot on this roster.

10. And some leftovers … The disappearance of Zach Ertz continues. The Eagles tight end had only three targets and one catch for 14 yards. … The same could be said of Jordan Matthews, who had only three catches for ten yards. Matthews had 23 targets in the first two games. He's had only 18 over the next four. … Matt Tobin replaced Peters and Stefen Wisniewski took Brooks' spot for five plays. … Cornerback Ron Brooks suffered a quad tear. He's to have a MRI today. The Eagles are expected to bring Aaron Grymes back if Brooks has to go to season-ending Injured Reserve. … Jalen Mills and Leodis McKelvin split time at cornerback.