Last Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles suffered their first loss of the season, falling to the Detroit Lions, 24-23. The Eagles had to fight their way back from an early 14-0 deficit in the first half and played better football in the second half.
However, it wasn’t enough as rookie quarterback Carson Wentz threw his first interception of the season, late in the fourth quarter as he was trying to find wide receiver Nelson Agholor for a big play.
Nevertheless, the Eagles (3-1) have to dust themselves off and get ready for this Sunday’s matchup against their NFC East division rival, Washington Professional Football Team. Last season, Washington swept the Eagles, en route to a division crown.
With revenge on their mind, here are three keys to victory for the Eagles to defeat Washington in their first NFC East battle of 2016:
1. The Eagles’ defense has to play disciplined football
The Philadelphia Eagles’ defense did not particularly look good against the Detroit Lions last week. Matter of fact, the Lions’ offense punched the Eagles’ defense in the mouth and kept them off balanced.
Linebacker Mychal Kendricks struggled in coverage trying to defend versatile running back Theo Riddick, while cornerback Ron Brooks was getting beat up in the slot by wide receiver Anquan Boldin. However, those weren’t the only issues in last Sunday’s game as the Eagles were called for 14 penalties.
Out of those 14 penalties, unnecessary roughness was called three times, which kept multiple drives alive for the Lions and led to 17 points.
The Eagles defense’ cannot duplicate this same type of performance on Sunday, against a Washington offense that is averaging 23.0 points per game.
With that being said, expect Jim Schwartz to have his defense playing more focused, getting pressure on quarterback Kirk Cousins, and actually having linebacker Nigel Bradham starting, and not coming off the bench.
2. The running game needs to be a focal point on offense
Last week against the Lions’ defense, the Eagles’ running game was non-existent. The Eagles’ offense had 116 rushing yards, but Darren Sproles and Ryan Mathews only contributed 87 yards on 16 carries. While that equals to 5.4 yards per carry, which is good. The Eagles did not use the same running back by committee, which worked against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3.
Against the Steelers, the Eagles’ offense amassed 125 rushing yards thanks to rookie Wendell Smallwood and Kenjon Barner. While those two running backs were having productive games, Sproles made an impact in the receiving game, and Mathews was hampered with an ankle injury.
Nevertheless, looking forward to this weekend’s game against Washington, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson should make it an emphasis to run the ball. Through five games this season, Washington’s defense is giving up 130.0 rushing yards per game, which is good for 30th in the NFL.
This is the perfect game for the Eagles’ running backs to finally have that breakout game. It could be the difference between a win and a loss.
3. Carson Wentz needs to continue to play smart football
Despite, throwing an interception on the Eagles’ final offensive drive of the game, rookie quarterback Carson Wentz had a good game against Detroit. Wentz completed 75.7 percent of his passes for 238 yards, to go along with two touchdowns and the aforementioned interception.
That is still a pretty good stat line and there are things from the Lions’ game that makes you believe that Wentz will not let one interception bog him down.
However, the Lions’ defense is not Washington’s defense as they have more playmakers and a guy in the secondary named Josh Norman. This season, Washington’s defense is giving up 262.0 passing yards per game but has nine takeaways.
In Sunday’s game, Wentz cannot be afraid to throw to Norman’s side, but at the same time protect the ball. He has to remember to not take unnecessary hits and if the play clock is nearing :00 seconds just take the timeout. His wide receivers also have to help him out by catching the football and getting open.
If the Eagles win in all three phases of the game on Sunday, they will be looking at a 4-1 overall and 1-0 record in the NFC East.
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