After watching the Atlanta Falcons beat the Philadelphia Eagles 26 to 24 on their Monday Night opener, the echo of divide between Eagles fans has parted, and room for doubt has emerged. Are hopes still alive for a breakout year for the Eagles or have we been enjoying a Colorado pipe dream since training camp?
All night I was awaken by the thud of Eagles fans falling off of the magic carpet. No degree of positive thinking can talk oneself out of the reality that the Eagles may not be the team we had hoped for. At more than one point in the game last night I was evoking the name of Jeremy Maclin, looking for some sense of familiarity or past performance we can count on. As we entered the fourth quarter the Eagles had regrouped, we were threatening and the familiar ground of a second half recovery seemed at hand. With the loss came a sense that this is not the team we’ve come to expect. They have more holes to fill than expected. There are Eagles fans today already looking to 2016.
The Eagles 3 and 1 record in the 2015 pre-season left the city rather optimistic for the teams hopes in the coming season. The system that chip Kelley was installing would begin to form its own identity as most of the old guard is gone and Chip is playing with his own deck. Team owner Jeffery Laurie handed the reigns of the Eagles over to head coach Chip Kelley. Chip has installed his system and does have a master plan. Everything that we are seeing from the team has given both local and national reporters a clear sign that the Philadelphia Eagles will be a serious contender for not only the NFC East but the NFC Title.
Going into the last pre-season game with the Jets I found myself wanting the Eagles to lose. Because the team is so young, I felt a 4 and 0 pre-season start might give the team a false sense of accomplishment whose long-term effect could have a negative impact if December was a challenge. And because this was Dan Quinn’s first game as a head coach in the NFL it may have allowed the Eagles to lower its shields enough to miss something about the Falcons game plan. By their third possession in the first quarter it was becoming clear to everyone that the Birds were not well.
Expectation at kickoff last night were consistent across the board, Eagles fans were feeling good about what was about to happen. Here we are the morning after and we are all trying to figure out what last nights loss means?
The Eagles played one of the sloppiness games in recent memory last night. This season opening loss requires everyone to reevaluate an entire off-season of fan preparation and their expectations. Sam Bradford’s timing just seemed to be off all night. He was throwing to the wrong side of receivers, missing reads and not getting the protection he needed. Everything leading up to the opener indicated that this team would be good and that Chip Kelley had the team ready.
My expectations were as high as anyone else’s last night, and still are. Remember last year’s season opener? The Eagles were losing to Jacksonville 17 to 0 but won the game. Week two was a repeat of week 1. After a dismal first half and being behind most of the game, the Eagles beat the Colts 30 to 27. We were all expecting the same comeback last night, and it did not happen.
But fear not Eagles fans. We will look back on last nights game as the loss that won the season. The hype built up around a young team can be a dangerous thing. The starting quarterback, Sam Bradford shown flashes of brilliance with a third quarter scoring drive, despite the plague of penalties. The Eagles could have been behind by 10 points on only the second possession by the Falcons, but the Eagles defense held the falcons to a mere 3 points.
At the end of the day, the Eagles lost by only 2 points, a single possession and they covered a 3 point spread in a road loss. A small bump in the road now will force the team to find where it went wrong and force a slight course correction whose aspect which will make the difference for December victories. Though it is one for the loss column, the Eagles were not beat.
Chip Kelley has collected a great group of talented players who have a lot to learn. Sometimes the jello takes longer to firm than we’d like, and I think that is the case here. For the same reason won’t lend additional value to the Cowboys win over the Giants, someone had to win. It’s a long season. This loss now may just instigate the push they need to take the checkered flag down the road and win the NFC East. Come December we will look back at the lessons learned from the opening loss to the Falcons and realize that the Eagles were on their own trajectory from Day 1.
Rich Walker