It was a rough start for the Philadelphia Eagles against Washington, but once the cobwebs were shaken off, Carson Wentz and co. were impossible to stop.
5 winners and 5 losers in the Eagles’ 34-24 win over Washington
Carson Wentz was the star of the night on Monday.
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
The second-year quarterback diced up Washington on Monday Night Football en route to a 34-24 victory.
Wentz finished the game with 268 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception, but his strong performance was even more impressive considering it was bogged down by an awful start.
He completed just three of his first eight passes for 30 yards, struggling well into the second quarter. The rough beginning of the game included an awful interception on Philadelphia’s opening drive, which featured a first-and-33 situation that he turned into an arm punt.
But when he got going, Washington had no answers and Wentz led two touchdown drives just before halftime and another to open the second half to give Philadelphia a commanding lead.
His big night led the Eagles to a fifth consecutive win and — thanks to a Chiefs loss on Thursday — Philadelphia is the sole owner of the NFL’s best record at 6-1.
Wentz was easily the star of the night, but there were four other winners and five losers:
WINNERS
Carson Wentz
This one was obvious, and I already talked about it above. So here, have a gif:
You can have another:
And how about a tweet too:
The future is extremely bright for the Eagles at quarterback.
The rookie fourth-round pick rode his bike to the stadium for the game, then caught his first career touchdown on a 64-yard bomb from Wentz.
It was the first touchdown of the night for a Philadelphia offense that was struggling to get going prior to that throw. Hollins capped the touchdown with a really solid celebration too.
It was a night to remember for the rookie.
It’s not all L’s for Washington. The resurgence of the career of the 33-year-old tight end has been a boost for the team since 2016 and it continued Monday with four receptions for 67 yards.
It seems like Davis manages to escape and run wild for a long play at least once a game for Washington, and he did it again against Philadelphia with a 31-yard pass play.
He averages nearly 20 yards per reception — a crazy number for a tight end — and has been a reliable target for Cousins at least a few times per game.
The Eagles have a reliable tight end too, and Wentz loves to find him in the red zone. Ertz caught his fifth touchdown pass of the season Monday, already a career high for the fifth-year player in just seven games.
He also racked up 89 receiving yards, the most of any player on the night for either team, and has a real chance at putting together a 1,000-yard season for the Eagles.
The only tight end to ever cross that mark in Philadelphia was Pete Retzlaff in 1965.
How about one more tight end?
The Pro Bowl tight end entered the night with zero touchdowns, but hauled in a couple from Cousins against the Eagles.
Reed has dealt with some injuries so far in 2017, and admitted he wasn’t 100 percent when he returned in Week 6. But he’s looking more like himself after catching two touchdowns Monday and that’s great news for Washington.
LOSERS
No, the Washington quarterback didn’t play poorly, but man he just can’t get a win on a Monday. He’s now 0-6 as a starter on Monday Night Football after losing to the Eagles.
No active quarterback has a longer losing streak on that day of the week.
But really, it’s hard to pin blame on Cousins when he completed 30 of 40 passes for 303 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. That’s often enough to win, but wasn’t quite as strong as the night Wentz put together, and so again he comes up short.
Plus, it’s really not just him. The franchise is now 5-20 on Mondays since 2000.
Terrelle Pryor
The quarterback-turned-receiver has been gradually phased out of the Washington offense after signing a one-year, $6 million in the offseason. He didn’t even see the field until the third offensive series of the game for Washington. He hauled in just two catches for 14 yards.
It’s becoming safe to assume that he isn’t going to live up to the contract he received in the offseason and it appears likely that he won’t be with the team in 2018.
Offensive line health
The biggest negative of the game for Philadelphia is easily the loss of Jason Peters, a nine-time Pro Bowl left tackle who suffered a knee injury in the third quarter. An air cast was immediately applied and he was taken off the field on a cart.
Washington’s offensive line couldn’t get through the night injury-free either with right guard Brandon Scherff suffering an injury that looked similar to the one that finished Peters for the game.
Both he and right tackle Morgan Moses battled through pain for much of the game, and the right side of Washington’s offensive line could take a hit if either are forced to miss time.
Discipline
The story of the first 20 minutes or so of game clock was penalties. Four consecutive flags were thrown on the Eagles’ first offensive possession and neither team could really get much of a rhythm early.
About an hour after kickoff, things like “flag,” “referee” and “hochuli” were trending topics on Twitter in Philadelphia.
Things finally got going in the second half and the officials weren’t as much of a factor. For that, we’re thankful.
The NFC East playoff race
Good luck with the Wild Card race, Washington and Dallas, because that looks like it’s a wrap.
The Eagles are 6-1, have the longest winning streak in the NFL, and there isn’t even another winning record in the division now that Washington is 3-3. That’s also the second win over Washington, so the tiebreaker is gone too.
Philadelphia is probably the safest bet as a lock for the playoffs after seven weeks.
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