Eagles-Vikings social media roundup: Big-guy touchdown, Jalen Mills hate and that Wendell Smallwood catch

For the second week in a row, it was a disappointing Sunday for Eagles fans.

After dropping a heartbreaker in overtime in Nashville, the Birds came back to the friendly confines of Lincoln Financial Field. But things didn't go so well.

The Eagles lost back-to-back games for the first time since December 2016. It's the first home loss for the Eagles since December 31, 2017, when most of the starters sat in the regular-season finale vs. the Cowboys.

What were people talking about during the game? Get caught up with all the video, reaction and jokes from the internet.

On the same day that Eric Reid took a knee during the national anthem in his Panthers' debut …

Michael Bennett appeared on the field for the anthem for the first time this season. Previously, he had been in the locker room.

Bennett joined the Eagles in the offseason after spending last season with the Seahawks.

Bennett would have a huge role in a momentum-changing play later in the game, when he was called on a dubious roughing-the-passer penalty.

>> FROM SEPTEMBER: NFL's new roughing-the-passer conundrum hasn't hurt the Eagles … yet

>> READ MORE: Roughing-the-passer madness for Clay Matthews

There was another Eagle who had a big day, but this was for a good reason.

Shelton Gibson had two catches for 11 yards all of last season.

He more than quadrupled that yardage total on one play in the second quarter when he caught a pass from Carson Wentz for 48 yards.

Gibson's catch helped set up a 30-yard Jake Elliott field goal to tie the game at 3-3.

Later in the second quarter, we saw an incredible feat of athleticism from a very large man.

At 6-4 and 329 pounds, Linval Joseph normally doesn't find himself hustling up the field and into the endzone. But when the Vikings' Stephen Weatherly forced Wentz to fumble, Joseph found himself in the right place at the right time.

Watch for yourself:

That run might not compare to how cool he looked on the sideline getting oxygen (hey, 65 yards is a long way for a big guy to run that fast!).

>> QUICK TAKES: Five thoughts on Carson Wentz and others guilty in loss

Dan Bailey — you might remember him from his seven seasons kicking for the Dallas Cowboys — did not have a great day.

Bailey was released by the Cowboys before the season despite being one of the most accurate kickers in NFL history. He joined the Vikings after Minnesota cut rookie Daniel Carlson after he missed three field goals in a Sept. 18 tie with the Packers.

Accuracy was not Bailey's strong suit on Sunday: he went 3 for 5 (although he made a crucial field goal in the fourth quarter to put the Vikings up 23-14).

Speaking of the Packers, another veteran kicker had a rough day.

The Packers veteran kicker Mason Crosby missed not one, not two, not three, not four, but five kicks!

Ouch.

Speaking of bad days, here's your usual Jalen Mills hater roundup:

Mills did get beat again this week.

>> READ MORE: Why the Eagles remain loyal to embattled Jalen Mills

The cornerback had a few words with Fletcher Cox, and Fox cameras caught a heated exchange between the two.

>> FROM LAST WEEK: Issues in the Eagles' secondary go beyond Jalen Mills

Most Eagles fans on social media were not surprised to see Mills struggled.

This one's from last week, but it still fits.

One offensive player who did impress was Wendell Smallwood.

Smallwood had 27 yards rushing on three attempts and notched 44 receiving yards, 12 of them coming on a clutch fourth-quarter touchdown pass from Wentz.

It wouldn't be a Sunday in the NFL without a debate over if it was or wasn't a catch.

Smallwood's TD catch set up a bold two-point conversion attempt. Tons of fans on Twitter thought Doug Pederson's decision was crazy. Let my colleague Zach Berman explain why it's smart.

It's all in the probabilities.

If you, like myself, are a Zach Ertz fantasy owner, you had to love this late fourth-quarter touchdown grab from the tight end.

The score and point after set the Eagles up for an onside kick, but the Birds were unable to recover it.

One fan has a theory that might make you feel a little less sad about the loss:

And if that doesn't work, just watch what happened in the final seconds of the Giants game.

See, now don't you feel better?

>> VIKINGS 23, EAGLES 21: Penalties, turnovers plague Birds in rare home loss

>> AS IT HAPPENED: Vikings 23, Eagles 21

>> PHOTOS: Scenes from the sidelines at Eagles-Vikings

>> GRADE THE EAGLES: Offense is merely average in loss | Paul Domowitch

>> HIGHS AND LOWS: Doug Pederson, Lane Johnson trending down, Wendell Smallwood trending up after loss

>> READ MORE: The Eagles aren't doing things good teams do | Mike Sielski

>> ANALYSIS: Doug Pederson accepts and deserves blame for Eagles loss | Bob Brookover

>> READ MORE: The Eagles' fastest fix? That's easy: Carson Wentz has to be himself again | Mike Sielski

>> MARCUS HAYES: The Eagles' Super Bowl hangover just got even worse

>> ANALYSIS: Eagles frustrated by Michael Bennett roughing-the-passer penalty in loss to Vikings | Jeff McLane

>> WHAT THEY SAID: Eagles can't blame anyone but themselves following loss to Vikings: 'We're in a mess'

>> READ MORE: Carson Wentz passes well, but Eagles' line play is offensive

>> THIS AND THAT: Despite subbing Maddox for Graham and Seumalo for Wisniewski, Eagles get same result

>> READ MORE: Jay Ajayi thinks the Eagles need to run the ball more

The Eagles have a short week as they prepare to head up the Jersey Turnpike to MetLife Stadium for their first NFC East game of the season on Thursday vs. none other than the 1-4 Giants. Keep up with everything Eagles: philly.com/birds