Doug Pederson, Jim Schwartz trending down; Josh Adams only bright spot in Eagles’ loss to Saints

The Eagles lost, 48-7, to the Saints on Sunday.

The defending Super Bowl champs fell to 4-6. Here's who's trending up, and who's trending down.

DOWN — The Eagles suffered their worst loss of the Pederson era. It's remarkable to think they won the Super Bowl only nine months ago. The Eagles coach has done a rotten job. He should have gambled early on fourth down. His call on third and 3 — a deep drop-back? — was dreadful. The Eagles haven't looked this bad since the Thanksgiving loss to the Lions when Jeffrey Lurie all but decided to fire Chip Kelly.

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DOWN — At one point, the Eagles' three cornerbacks in their nickel package were Chandon Sullivan and the apostrophe brothers, Cre'Von LeBlanc and De'Vante Bausby. If those names don't ring a bell it's because none were on the roster two games ago. But Schwartz can't cry about personnel. The Saints offense is great, but the Eagles offered little resistance.

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DOWN — Typically, singling out the offensive and defensive play callers for a blowout loss would suffice. But this was a special kind of turkey the Eagles delivered. When you line up offside on a kickoff — when there are no longer running starts — you know you're a poorly coached squad.

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DOWN — Injuries haven't been the predominant reason why the Eagles' season has gone in the toilet. But they haven't helped. Some of the injuries have been the cost of doing business. When there are so many, and a significant number of them of the soft-tissue kind, however, the medical staff needs to be put under the microscope.

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DOWN — The Eagles quarterback's performance was mostly inconsequential. Wentz could have played his best game and it wouldn't have mattered. But the avid hunter's first-quarter interception — his third straight–– was a wounded-duck toss.

>> READ MORE: With Wentz struggling, offense goes from underachieving to inept

DOWN — The Eagles linebacker hasn't necessarily been bad this season. It's more like he's been nonexistent. What happened to the Bradham who created havoc? His defense on an early Saints third-down conversion — when he dropped too deep beyond the sticks — was deplorable.

DOWN — This game was Jones' chance to show what he could do at outside cornerback. He didn't show much. Jones missed an early tackle on a long Alvin Kamara run and was victimized several times by Drew Brees through the air. And then Jones was sidelined with yet another hamstring injury.

DOWN — It's no wonder the Eagles could sign him in August. The personnel department failed to find a suitable third safety in the offseason, so it brought back the 34-year-old Graham for one more go-round. It was one too many rounds.

UP — In some circles, it was a minor surprise that Adams didn't initially make the Eagles' 53-man roster. His return to the team was fortunate, and it took Pederson too many games to utilize the rookie, but he could have a bright future.

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DOWN — The criticism isn't directed at Tate as much as it is at Pederson and the Eagles' offensive coaches. The receiver played more than he did last week in his debut, but again he was not much of a factor and the plays drawn up for him lacked spark. Howie Roseman wasted a third-round draft pick.

UP — If you made it this far, you might not want to hear about the Eagles' chances for the postseason. But losing to the Saints won't matter if they can get their act together and beat their remaining divisional opponents. The division-leading Redskins lost Sunday and lost quarterback Alex Smith. The Cowboys are renewed, but they're only a game up.

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