Ten Takeaways From Philadelphia Eagles’ Blowout Loss To The Packers

The Philadelphia Eagles disappointed to say the least against the Green Bay Packers. With playoff implications on the line, the Eagles came out flat and certainly did not have their best game. This wasn’t just a loss, this was a blowout and convincing loss. There are plenty of things that we can take away from this game, and believe it or not, not all of them are bad. Here are my 10 main takeaways from the loss against the Packers.

1. For one second and one second only, we just need to sit back and admire the greatness of what is Aaron Rodgers, when that guy is on, he is the best quarterback in the league and he proved that Sunday against the Eagles. Rodgers hasn’t thrown an interception at home since 2012. The Packers quarterback made the Eagles secondary look bad, but it’s also not the first time he’s made a secondary look like they didnt belong.

2. Which brings me to my second thought. The Philadelphia Eagles are really a cornerback away from being a very good football team. They are a good team as it is, but if they can get a cornerback who can hold their own, this team can take the next step. Bradley Fletcher and Cary Williams are good number two, number three guys at best, but absolutely do not belong on the field at the same time. We have known for a while that these two have been a weakness and if anything, the Packers confirmed it.

3. I don’t know what it was, but the Philadelphia Eagles simply did not look ready to play. For the time being Im going to blame the green pants as the last two times the Eagles have worn them they allowed 50 or more points. Chip Kelly is the Mike D’Antoni of the NFL as he has a great fast paced offense, but does not play defense. He is the only Eagles coach to allow 50 or more points twice. Previous to Kelly’s arrival in Philadelphia, the Eagles hadn’t allowed 50 points since 1971.

4. Going back to the defensive side of the ball, the Packers were 8-14 on third down which included a 3rd and 18 in the first quarter. The defense simply could not do the basics which included tackling. One play that stands out is Eddie Lacy scoring a touchdown late in the game in which he should have been tackled about four different times. It was ridiculous and I think I speak for all Eagles fans when I say this, I hope we never see another performance like Sunday.

5. Not that it mattered in a 53-20 loss, but this season is one in which I don’t think I have ever been more disappointed in the NFL and its officiating. The NFL preaches player safety and injuries to the head, but yet they fail to back that up week in and week out, or do so on a selective basis. Mark Sanchez clearly took two hits to the head in the first quarter and then a clear late hit that may have also been helmet-to-helmet late in the second quarter. Three no calls. Although they had no true effect on the game, had the game been more competitive, those three calls may be ones that we are seriously talking about.

More from Eagles News

• Eagles captains earn high praise on roster blending veteran leadership, youth
• How former Eagles star Cre’Von LeBlanc helped Renegades upstage Cowboys
• Eagles 2023 schedule: Every WR duo Darius Slay, James Bradberry will battle
• Imagining better names for Jason Kelce’s Good Guy Award
• Bold predictions for the Philadelphia Eagles offense in 2023

6. As disappointed as we are in the Eagle defense, we should be even more disappointed in the Eagles offense. The red zone struggles continued scoring only once inside the 20, and against a pretty average defense in Green Bay, they struggled to move the ball much of the day. With offense being a specialty of Kelly, this is one aspect of the game that should not struggle.

7. The offense struggles however, all start with the quarterback and Mark Sanchez did not play his best game. He missed some throws and looked like the Mark Sanchez that many Eagles fans may have expected from the beginning. However, as easy as it is to blame “Sanchize”, I find it amazing that although the offensive line is as healthy as its been all season, it seemed to struggle worse than it has all season. Sanchez was sacked three times and was under duress for most of the game, one pressure lead to an interception thrown off of his back foot. The Packers’ defense seemed to have the Eagles number all afternoon, but the offensive line needs to do a better job moving forward and playing together more will hopefully help them improve.

8. Moving on to the play-makers of the offense and particularly running back LeSean McCoy. It’s hard to say McCoy has regressed as he is 6th in the NFL in rushing yards which isn’t too bad, but he also only has two touchdowns. Fans can say what they want and how they miss DeSean Jackson, but if it’s one player the Eagles have missed this season, it’s Shady. He averaged 3.8 yards per carry against the Packers and once again failed to hit 100 yards despite getting 23 carries. McCoy needed to have a big game if the Eagles were to beat the Packers, and that simply was not the case even though he was given plenty of opportunities. If the Eagles want to get into the playoffs and win these difficult games down the stretch, Chip is going to have to find a way to get McCoy going, because as of right now it is the team’s biggest mystery and one that desperately needs to get solved.

9. Enough of the negatives and on to one of the very few positives that there could possibly be in a 53-20 loss, and that is the play of rookie wide receiver Jordan Matthews. The rookie wide receiver out of Vanderbilt had another huge game with five catches that went for 107-yards. Matthews has shown a lot of potential, especially over the past two weeks and has shown he is as good as any of the other rookie wide receivers.  Matthews now has 44 catches for 558 yards and six touchdowns this season. This is going to be a fun player to watch in years to come.

10. Lastly, as mentioned in my column that I wrote on Friday, the Green Bay Packers are a very good team, and even better at home. Although losing 53-20 is disappointing, it’s not the end of the world, the Eagles are still a very good football team and Super Bowl contenders. It’s easy to overreact after a loss like this, but the fact of the matter is, things just didn’t go the Eagles’ way on Sunday. As head coach Chip Kelly said, ” We’ve got to stick together. Win or lose, rain or shine, We’re a team.”, and that’s exactly how it’s going to be. In the words of Bill Belichick, we’re on to Tennessee.