Last year, the offensive line for the Philadelphia Eagles were a model of consistency and an obvious strength of the team. Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson emerged as real talents late in that season and the left side of the Eagles O-line played at a Pro Bowl level. The offensive line led the way for LeSean McCoy and Nick Foles to break records coupled with Chip Kelly’s fast paced offense. The same looked to be the case for this season as the Eagles headed into training camp one year stronger and wiser in Chip Kelly’s scheme.
Since then, the ship sprouted a significant leak.
Lane Johnson would be suspended for PED use and during the first three games of the season, Jason Kelce (sports hernia), All-Pro left guard Evan Mathis (MCL), and replacement right tackle Allen Barbre (ankle) would suffer devastating injuries. This would leave the offensive line in disarray with new faces now being forced to ban together in a make-shift patchwork job. Jason Peters and Todd Herremans were the only starters left on the field going into their week 4 match-up against the 49ers.
This was the moment that we realized exactly what it means to have talent across all five positions of the offensive line as the Eagles struggled to run the ball for the second time this season and pass the ball for the first time this season. The 49ers defense also had its fair share of injuries to its greatest talented players, but you certainly couldn’t tell the difference throughout the course of the game.
The Eagles started Jason Peters
at left tackle, Matt Tobin at left guard, David Molk at center, Kelly at right guard and Herremans at right tackle. Both Tobin and Molk made their first NFL starts against the 49ers and it was clear from the beginning that the offensive line would struggle.
Led by the ageless Justin Smith, the 49ers defensive line created havoc on the line of scrimmage every snap, preventing the Eagles offensive line from creating any running lanes and limiting Nick Foles time in the pocket significantly. The Eagles weren’t even able to run a play on the 49ers side of the field until the second half of the game. Outside of a 90-yard drive in the 4th quarter of the game, the Eagles accomplished virtually nothing. All the Eagles touchdowns came as a result of special teams and a defensive score.
However, the Eagles remain optimistic that next week’s game against the St. Louis Rams can be better as right tackle Lane Johnson returns from suspension and is eligible to practice this week. This would allow Todd Herremans to return to his natural position at right guard. Its not a huge change, but it is certainly a start.
“I just told those guys in the locker room very simply, I said, ‘I love your effort, I love how hard you played,’ Kelly said in response to a question about what he told his struggling offensive line after the game. “There’s going to be times where the ball doesn’t bounce your way, but as long as you stick together as a group and continue to play this hard, you’re going to end up on the right side of things.”
The Eagles are still 3-1 on the season and lead the NFC East with a quarter of the season in the books. Injuries aren’t new to the game of football and neither is struggling to score points from time to time. Still, it takes a special team and mindset to survive the storm of the NFL season and end up on top. It is time to find out whether or not the Eagles have that “special” quality going into week 5 against yet another strong defensive line in St. Louis.
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