What can you really say about the Eagles at this point? Everybody knew their weaknesses heading into this season, and all of their flaws showed in Monday's 27-13 loss to the Packers. The larger problem however is one of their greatest strengths came up small as well, as has been prone to happen in their defeats. It just goes to show that without a virtually perfect team efforts or amazing performances, wins are very hard to come by for this squad.
Quarterback
Carson Wentz is doing everything he possibly can. He completed two-thirds of his passes, extended plays with his legs, even ran for 33 yards and a touchdown. The simple fact of the matter is the rookie signal caller isn't getting any help. Yes, he badly overthrew his intended target for an unforced interception. Otherwise, Wentz put this game on his shoulders, because what other choice did he have? That's a lot to ask of a 23-year-old out of North Dakota State.
Grade: B-
Running backs
The good news is Wendell Smallwood looks like he has the potential to be a lead back in the NFL. The bad news is he only got nine carries on Monday night, and his 37 yards on the ground weren't nearly enough. Elsewhere, Darren Sproles and Kenjon Barner combined for a 2.0 average on limited work and added six catches for 58 yards. It wasn't nearly enough, although the extent to which that's the fault of the running backs is debatable.
Grade: B-
Wide receivers
For the second week in a row, a penalty against a wide receiver erased a big gain on a screen play. This time it was an offensive pass interference call against Dorial Green-Beckham, who otherwise had his best game of the season with six catches for 82 yards. That led all Eagles receivers, who were shorthanded after Jordan Matthews left the game because of an ankle injury. At that point, it was almost as if the offense had no presence on the outside, because, well, for all intents and purposes they didn't.
Grade: D
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Tight ends
Zach Ertz had three catches for 36 yards. Trey Burton added three grabs for 10. The duo was targeted 10 times total. In summary, no measurable impact to speak of here.
Grade: C-
Offensive line
This was the definition of a patchwork unit, and it looked the part for much of the night, particularly in pass protection. Then again, the Packers' defense recognized the Eagles were without three starters and were sending the house, and still only managed to get to Wentz for two sacks and six hits (prior to garbage time). Still, the fact that the quarterback was forced to move off of spot so frequently make it difficult to throw the ball down the field. Under the circumstances, this wasn't a terrible job, but it wasn't pretty either.
Grade: C+
Defensive line
To be fair, Aaron Rodgers spent much of his evening completing short passes designed to get the ball out of his hands quickly, often giving the front four no chance at generating a rush. Then again, there were plenty of times when the Packers signal caller was forced to hold on to the ball, and the Eagles still couldn't get there. Credit Rodgers for being elusive, but at some point those handsomely paid linemen have to make a play. Instead, they recorded one quarterback hit the entire game. ONE. No excuses, they need to be better.
Grade: F
Linebackers
Jordan Hicks led the way with seven tackles and was one of only two people to make a legal hit on Rodgers all night. Nigel Bradham was active as well with six tackles. There weren't many impactful plays to speak of however, which considering how much the Packers worked the short and intermediate routes in the passing attack, maybe there should have been.
Grade: B-
Defensive backs
For whatever reason, Leodis McKelvin was deemed good enough to play in this secondary, but Eric Rowe was not. It was a head-scratcher at the time. Now that it's Week 12 and McKelvin has spent the past few months getting burned on the reg, it's just baffling. Nolan Carroll wasn't much better. As a whole, the Eagles allowed Rodgers to throw for 313 yards and two touchdowns. It's tough when there's absolutely no pressure on the quarterback, but the Packers receivers had the defensive backs running in circles.
Grade: D
Special teams
As usual, special teams were solid. Caleb Sturgis made field goals of 48 and 50 yards, which helped keep this a game for awhile. Donnie Jones pinned both of his punts inside the 20. Without the benefit of any big returns or blocks in this phase though, the Eagles never have a chance.
Grade: B
Coaching
It appeared Jim Schwartz was a little slow to adjust to the Packers' short passing attack, although when you can't trust your cornerbacks to press, it's difficult to be aggressive. In a game like this, it's probably safe to say we saw the limitations of the Eagles' roster, not so much poor game-planning or decision making by Schwartz or Doug Pederson. The coaching staff isn't overcoming either, which has to be noted, but let's be honest, there are probably more weaknesses that can be overcome from the sideline.
Grade: C-
