Philadelphia Eagles Week 2 vs. Kansas City Chiefs: Recap and Reactions
18 September 2017 Eagles News
Headed into week 2, the Eagles knew exactly what they were getting into—a team coming off of a huge win against the Patriots with a familiar face as the head coach. The contest was well matched and throughout three straight quarters the Eagles and Chiefs were neck and neck with each other. The Chiefs ended up being the victor 27-20, but there were a lot of positives to take away from this matchup.
Running woes: First and foremost, the Eagles did not establish the run nor keep the offense balanced between running plays and passing plays. Carson Wentz attempted 46 passes where the running game (excluding Wentz’s four scrambles) attempted only 13 total rushes. Blount also did not record a single carry. With the amount of running backs that the Eagles have, one would think the offense would stick with one of them to be their complete back the entire game.
Run the ball (effectively): This topic goes along with the first one, but focuses more on play calling and the offensive line. As mentioned above, the Eagles ran 13 designed plays the entire game. RG Brandon Brooks mentioned that he wished the team would have run the ball more. The difference in game plans for both teams was that Kansas City was committed to running the ball despite its mediocrity most of the game. Reid’s commitment led to the long TD run from Kareem Hunt.
Veterans’ costly mistakes: Two players for this one: Torrey Smith and Corey Graham. Smith was thrown two different balls that were easily catchable but were dropped. One on a long pass and the other a red zone would-be touchdown. Wentz and Smith were unable to connect deep in week 1 and wanted to establish the deep ball connections in week 2. The attempts were poorly executed on Smith’s end this time. For Graham, his presence was definitely felt after he came in for an injured Rodney McLeod. On the long TD run by Hunt, Graham missed a 1-on-1 tackle that 100% would have been made if McLeod was in the game.
Alshon Jeffery got going: Against a better opponent, Jeffery saw tons of success on the field. His stat line (7-92-1) showed his No. 1 receiver potential, and at the end of the day it proved to Eagles fans that the back shoulder throw from Wentz to Jeffery is money in the bag. An improved chemistry between the two will certainly keep fans excited for his potential, especially in big, competitive games like in week 2.
Here are the biggest questions coming out of Sunday’s game: Do the Eagles sit Isaac Seumalo after one bad game? Is Ertz the No. 1 receiving option in Philadelphia? Can the Eagles establish the running game early and stick with it?
Stay tuned for my periscope on Thursday @ 12pmET where I will go further into detail about how the Eagles can fix their running game.
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Brendan Walker Alshon Jeffery, Carson Wentz, Doug Pederson, Isaac Seumalo, Philadelphia Eagles