The Philadelphia Eagles defense came to play on Monday night against the Seattle Seahawks, keeping Week 12’s NFC showdown in reach for much of the evening. D.K. Metcalf still had an illustrious performance working against Darius Slay, however, and more importantly, Doug Pederson, Carson Wentz and the Eagles’ own offense sputtered once again. Russell Wilson, on the other hand, did enough to capitalize on Philly’s putrid showing with the ball in its hands, helping lead Seattle to a 23-17 victory.
Monday’s result marks seven straight victories for the Seahawks against the Eagles, who have yet to beat Seattle since Pete Carroll took over as head coach. It keeps the ‘Hawks atop the NFC West at 8-3 and drops Philly all the way to 3-7-1 in the NFC East.
Here are some immediate takeaways from Monday night’s Seahawks victory:
Why the Seahawks won
On a night where their offense was actually held in check for most of the matchup, D.K. Metcalf still found a way to dominate, getting the best of Darius Slay on nearly every big-play opportunity and helping set up each of Seattle’s scoring drives. The big-bodied wideout finished with 10 catches for 177 yards, but he could’ve easily gone for more. Russell Wilson, meanwhile, did just enough managing the game from the pocket, picking his spots efficiently. Perhaps the even bigger reason Seattle won, though? That defense, which came in ranked among the worst in the NFL, capitalized on the Eagles’ ineptitude and specifically feasted up front, getting after Carson Wentz with regularity to keep Philly off balance for most of the night.
Why the Eagles lost
Doug Pederson’s “offense,” with Carson Wentz as its centerpiece, barely got off the ground. Philly’s “D” played so inspired for so much of Monday night’s clash that, frankly, it deserved a lot more from the other side of the ball. Wentz was off-target as usual, failing to connect on open downfield looks and mis-communicating on a red-zone pick. He also got little help from the O-line, receiving corps and coaching staff, which is par for the course in 2020. All around, just an utter train-wreck, save for a few no-huddle spurts, on the offense, where Travis Fulgham was once again inexplicably absent and Miles Sanders somehow received just eight touches. The Eagles didn’t just lose a game on Monday because of their offense; they intensified talks of future widespread change atop the organization.
Turning point
Fourth-and-2 for the Eagles at their own 38. Thirteen minutes left in the fourth quarter. Philly trailed by just eight points at the time, and Doug Pederson kept the offense on the field to go for it, only to watch as Carson Wentz’s short pass to Richard Rodgers got batted down immediately by K.J. Wright. The turnover on downs didn’t just erase the Eagles’ opportunity to potentially tie the game, but it enabled Seattle to burn two more precious minutes off the clock on an ensuing scoring series of its own.
Play of the game
Metcalf is a consistent physical freak on the football field, and Monday night was no exception. No play was more impressive than his sideline grab over Slay in the fourth quarter, when he just straight-up out-leapt perfect coverage for a huge first down:
What’s next
The Seahawks (8-3) will return home in Week 13, when they host the New York Giants (4-7), who may or may not have QB Daniel Jones back from injury. The Eagles (3-7-1), meanwhile, will face arguably an even taller task when they visit the Green Bay Packers (8-3), who are fresh off a rout of the Bears.
