Earlier this year, we mentioned how not scoring early in games has been a definitive killer to the 2018 Eagles, and how Carson Wentz needs to step up his game in the first quarter.
In 11 games this season, the Eagles offense has scored a pitiful 211st-Quarter points. Over the last three games against the Saints, Cowboys and Giants, they’ve been out-gained 431 yards to just 85 in the 1st-Quarter. The worst part is that the key players on offense have largely been fairly healthy.
It’s taking Wentz and the rest of the offense too long to catch up to the speed of the game, and some dumb penalties have killed drives in the first fifteen minutes.
Versus the Giants, a holding call on Jason Kelce erased what would’ve been a 52-yard touchdown run by undrafted rookie Josh Adams, and on the very next drive, Alshon Jeffery was flagged for pass interference after converting on 3rd and 5 past midfield. The latter was pretty unfortunate as it didn’t seem like Jeffery pushed off enough to gain the separation he had gotten from a great route.
Regardless, these penalties can’t happen if you expect to score early to get a jump on your opponents. If they continue to take more than 15 minutes of game time to settle in, then the 2018 Eagles will start their vacation after Week 17.
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