Fall or ball: Who balled out for the Philadelphia Eagles?

Who did or didn’t ball out for the Philadelphia Eagles vs. the Colts Saturday night?

Time for another installment of Fall or Ball. There was some good, and some bad when it came to a final “dress rehearsal” for the Eagles as they took on the Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. From watching Sleeves ball out to watching the defensive backs take a bit of a step back, here are some Eagles that took flight, or fell back this week.

Ball

Sam Bradford

I know it’s just the preseason, but can I say Sam Bradford has looked extremely accurate last two games? Sammy Sleeves went 17/20 for 167 yards, 2 touchdowns and one pick (one that wasn’t really on him). That’s good for a QB rating of 114. Sam is in the process of showing the fans and Eagles staff why he should be the starting quarterback with out a doubt. So far, I have to say he’s doing a good job making that statement.

Kenjon Barner and Ryan Mathews

One of the big storylines this offseason has been, “who is going to be the force in the backfield”. I think we have our answer. Barner and Mathews combined for 9 carries for 70 yards. Both have looked impressive at times during the preseason. And with Head Coach Doug Pedersons history with running backs (a very positive one) I am starting to build even more confidence in this back field.

DGB

Dorial Green-Beckham scored his first touchdown as a Eagles! While he didn’t do too much, he gave us one really good look at what he can do for the Birds. That’s being a legitimate red-zone target. You just have to throw up a fade to DGB and it’s almost a guaranteed touchdown. It was a thing of beauty and gives all of us a little more optimism toward the 2016 season.

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First-Team Defense

While they let up some big plays, the first-team defense rendered the Colts first-team offense without a touchdown in the first half. They continue to impress weak after weak after weak. The front seven is stopping the run, pressuring the passer, and finishing plays. Connor Barwin and Bennie Logan registered one sack a piece, while the rest of line did a nice job making Andrew Luck uncomfortable. The defense was being smart. Even though they let up big plays, the defense didn’t lose their concentration. They strapped down, only allowing the Colts to a measly three points in first half. The lone inconsistency of the Eagles defense, the secondary, is something I’m gonna touch up on later on.

Honorable mention: Josh Huff

So why was Josh Huff an honorable mention? For starters, he was a bit of a weapon on offense and actually helped make a spark. Why didn’t he make the cut? For starters, he wasn’t facing any competition. And well, That’s how Huff is. Has a good game, then fizzles out and plays inconsistent.

Fall:

Nelson Agholor

Oh Nelly. Why do you bait us with a play here and there hoping for a promising wide out, then snatch it away. Nelson Agholor actually made things worse when he was in, dropping his lone target, which in turn became a bad Darius Butler pick. Thanks a lot, Agholor for putting a mark on an almost perfect Sleeves game. Hopefully Nelly can get it together soon, before he might turn into a bad 30 for 30 film.

Special Teams

Special Teams is usually fantastic. Rarely ever does David Flipp’s unit make a mistake… Except for tonight when they made a bad one. Colts managed to block an Eagles punt and recover it in the end-zone for a touchdown. I’m used to seeing the Eagles ST unit doing that to other NFL teams, doesn’t feel too good watching it happen to our Birds.

Defensive Backs

Back to what I was talking about earlier. The defensive backfield has been the most inconsistent out of a rather great defense. Started with having a iffy game against the Bucs, to shutting out the Steelers and nabbing 4 picks in the process of doing so, to letting up big plays again. I understand the bend don’t break mentality, but a defense can only take so much before they do break mentally. I saw multiple 20+ yard gains and even 10+ yard gain. Jim Schwartz and Cory Undlin should have answers for the secondary before the season opener against Cleveland. If they don’t, it is going to be a long season.

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