The numbers – well, lack thereof – are eye-popping.
In the last two games, Eagles receiver Dorial Green-Beckham has played a total of 93 snaps without hauling in a catch. He was at least targeted five times against the Giants. In the Atlanta game on Sunday, not one pass went his way.
Does he feel like he’s playing as well as he should be right now?
“Yeah, I’m doing everything that I should be doing,” Green-Beckham said to CSNPhilly.com on Wednesday. “Coaches see that; we all see that. I just need more opportunities and more passes thrown my way in each game. I feel like there shouldn’t be a game where I have no passes, no targets.
“That should be a game where … I’m a big receiver. I should have catches and stuff like that. I’m not saying that just because I’m frustrated. I’m just saying in reality, you would know, like, ‘Why doesn’t he have any catches?’ That’s just something that we have to continue to do at practice. We just have to continue to work and stay on the same page as the quarterback.”
Green-Beckham said the reason he didn’t have any catches (or targets) on Sunday was not because he wasn’t doing his job, but because quarterback Carson Wentz wasn’t looking his way. And he said Wentz agreed.
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This week, as the team reconvened at the NovaCare Complex, the offense reviewed the tape against Atlanta and, according to Green-Beckham, “everybody agreed that the ball should have been here for easy completions.”
“The last two games, no catches,” he said. “But on film, we see where the ball should have went.”
What exactly did the tape show?
“That maybe the ball should have [gone] to me,” he said.
Green-Beckham said he and Wentz agree that some balls should have gone to the 6-5, 237-pound receiver during Sunday’s 24-15 win over the Falcons. Green-Beckham stressed the importance of staying on the same page as Wentz and said it’s something they’ll need to fix.
“We all understand that,” Green-Beckham said. “It’s not like I’m one of those guys that’s like, ‘Throw the damn ball to me!’ I’m going to be patient. If you see it, then I see it and we both see it and we’re on the same page. As long as you see it. It would be different if only I see it and he didn’t see it.”
The 23-year-old is frustrated, but not angry. More than anything he said he’s just trying to be patient.
When asked if he’s ever had a stretch like this in his young career, Green-Beckham said last year in Tennessee. But while he had five games without a catch as a rookie, this is the first time in his career he’s had two in back-to-back weeks.
At times this season, Green-Beckham has shown flashes of why he was such a high pick not that long ago. But he has just 18 catches for 194 yards through nine games.
The Eagles acquired the talented Green-Beckham during training camp for reserve offensive tackle Dennis Kelly, in a move that sure looked like a fleecing at the time. After all, Green-Beckham was a second-round pick just a year ago and has a rare combination of size and speed. But, as de facto general manager Howie Roseman warned at the time, there was a reason DGB was available.
After trading for Green-Beckham before the season, the Eagles brought him along slowly. He gradually played more and more as his role in the offense increased. Since he arrived late, it also means he hasn’t had as much time with Wentz as some others.
As of now, though, there are no more restrictions on DGB in terms of the playbook. But head coach Doug Pederson has previously expressed his desire to have the young, talented receiver for an entire offseason.
That, obviously, won’t happen for a while. For now, the Eagles are left with a receiver who hasn’t had a catch in two weeks.
“It’s definitely frustrating,” Green-Beckham said. “You just gotta know: out on the field, I’m not a guy who’s going to be frustrated and on the sideline like, ‘Hey, throw the ball! Go through your reads!’ I’m not one of those type of guys. I’m patient. I’m just going to pull [Wentz] to the side and say, ‘Look, we see this, everybody is taking off, I’m coming under you.’ Little stuff like that.
“I’m not a guy who’s going to get on his head because I understand he’s a young quarterback. And I’ve been with a young quarterback last year with Marcus (Mariota). I understand the thought process. And there might be some brain farts every now and then. But you know, that’s something we can get past.”
