Not every Eagles loss is a cause for concern

Don’t get too riled up about Sunday’s loss to the Commanders.

In the grand scheme of things, everything is fine.

Sunday’s 36-33 loss to the Commanders in the nation’s capitol was annoying and frustrating. After building up a 14-0 and 21-7 first quarter lead, it’s hard to believe the NFL’s No. 1 defense allowed 22 fourth-quarter points and become the first team since 2010 to score 30+ and create 5+ turnovers and still lose, but lose they did.

Just like against the Falcons on Monday Night Football in Week 2, they couldn’t secure a gimme catch to salt the game away and couldn’t stop an opponent from driving the length of the field to score a go-ahead touchdown with seconds remaining.

It was an exceedingly frustrating afternoon, but not one that should be a major cause for concern.

Yes, the Eagles likely have played their way out of the NFC’s one first-round bye with their loss to the Commanders. That’s a big deal, although it was not a sure thing to begin with. Given the way they lost, Sunday’s afternoon at Fed Ex Field was more of a fluke and a blip than anything to be truly worried about. Here are five reasons why.

They Didn’t Have Jalen Hurts

Fox announced Greg Olsen may have been confused as to how Washington was able to get back in Sunday’s game after trailing by two touchdowns, but anyone who watched the Eagles’ offense after Hurts went out with a concussion wasn’t. The Commanders clearly changed tactics, switching from a man-to-man defense to a zone look that allowed them to key in on Saquon Barkley in the backfield and force Kenny Pickett to beat them through the air.

Pickett was fine, but he clearly is not the playmaker Hurts is, especially with his legs. Washington defenders had no problem keying in on Barkley on the RPOs, as there was little reason to fear Pickett pulling it back and running with it. The Eagles had to settle for field goals inside the red zone and went 3-for-16 on third downs, stalling a number of promising drives.

Any concern about the Eagles lies strictly in the condition of Hurts and his timeline to come back from his concussion. The Eagles need to win one of their two remaining games or have Washington lose one of their final two for the Eagles to clinch the NFC East and the No. 2 seed. They’re still in really good shape.

An Unusually Sloppy Defense

The Eagles gift-wrapped the Commanders’ first go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter due to mass confusion that resulted in Darius Slay running off the field in an attempt to avoid a 12-men-on the field penalty (one that was called anyway). It’s hard to get more wide open than this.

Maybe the Commanders score there anyway, but it likely takes longer and would have potentially left them with less time at the end of the game. CJ Gardner-Johnson was ejected from the game for talking smack to the opposing team, the first time I’ve ever heard of a player getting punched in the head and then being told that he was being ejected because he said mean words. CJGJ’s absence helped result in the game-winning touchdown with six seconds left.

For one of the few times this year, Quinyon Mitchell was beaten for a long touchdown by Terry McLaurin, and there were multiple personal foul calls that went against the Eagles, too, All told, the team was penalized 10 times for 91 yards, most of them due to sloppiness and a lack of self control. The defense appeared to be manic on Sunday, atypically so. I don’t expect the same kind of performance from them should these teams meet in three weeks at the Linc.

Star Players’ Gaffes

In Week 2, Saquon Barkley dropped an easy pass that would have sealed an Eagles victory against the Falcons. While I disagreed with the decision to pass in that spot, had Barkley hauled it in, they would have won.

On Sunday, drops by two of their premier players resulted in a distinct feeling of deja vu. Barkley, once again, failed to secure a pass late in the fourth quarter that would have extended a drive.

The Eagles ended up kicking a field goal to go up 30-28. Then, when it seemed as if they had iced the game away after intercepting Jayden Daniels for the second time on the day, Devonta Smith dropped a gimme that would have sealed the victory.

Let me state for the record: DeVonta Smith will not drop another pass like that again this year. It was a fluky drop. Simple as that. He catches it, they win.

Weird Kickoff Day

All year long the Eagles have been kicking the ball into the end zone for touchbacks. On Sunday, punter Branden Mann routinely came up short of the goal line, allowing the Commanders returners to give them tremendous field position. After taking a 33-28 lead, Mann and the special teams handed Washington tremendous field position for their final drive with 1:58 remaining.

The final drive started on the 43 thanks to another gaffe by an Eagles player, in this case Sydney Brown, who started moving before the kick was caught by the Washington returner.

It’s not like the game was being played in the Frozen Tundra. This was Washington, DC in mid-December. The temperature was in the upper 30s and there was a slight wind. This wasn’t a blizzard.

That said, this performance was an aberration and likely won’t be repeated.

Playoff Positioning Solid

If the Eagles win one of their final two games, home contests against the Cooper Rush-led Cowboys and the utterly awful New York Giants, they win the NFC East and earn no worse than the No. 2 seed in the conference. They remain in a very strong position to host at least one playoff game, and maybe two. They are 12-3, a ridiculously good record, and will likely finish the season 14-3.

All of us, at the beginning of the season, would have taken that. The Commanders are a good team with an up-and-coming star quarterback. Divisional games on the road are almost always tough.

The loss didn’t hurt them all that much except for the race to capture the No. 1 seed. Now that that’s out of the picture, the team can focus on making sure the starters are getting action but also a little rest as they attempt to win one of their final two games. There will be no temptation to push things too far in order to try and land the bye. Week 18 could very well be their bye if they take care of business this Sunday afternoon against Dallas.

We’re all crossing our fingers about Hurts’ status which, as of Monday night, was still up in the air. They should still be able to beat Dallas and New York with Kenny Pickett or even Tanner McKee.

Sometimes, the football gods simply say, “You’re not winning this one.” Unlike Madden, you can’t hit the reset button when that game happens. The Eagles will bounce back.

So don’t stress about this loss. Stress about Hurts’ concussion, but not at what happened on Sunday.