3 Thoughts on another test of Eagles QB Carson Wentz’s leadership

1. Wentz can’t be the lightning rod for everything.

Wentz wasn’t exactly playing with a stacked deck, and the team he ended the game with wasn’t the same team he took the field with on Sunday night. Tight end Dallas Goedert aggravated his calf during pregame warmups and never saw any game contact. His top two receivers, Alshon Jeffery and Desean Jackson, both exited the game after just six snaps and eleven snaps respectively.

The Eagles were forced to totally revamp their gameplan as they were left with only one tight end in Zach Ertz. That forced them to completely abandon every part of the gameplan that involved two-tight end sets and began shrinking the playbook.

The threat of Jackson’s downfield speed and Jeffery’s playmaking ability was gone. Wentz was left with the aforementioned Ertz, Nelson Agholor, rookie J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, and Mack Hollins as receiving targets, along with his backfield.

Then Corey Clement wrecked his shoulder and fumbled the opening kickoff of the second half.

Despite his shortage of weapons, Wentz endured a tremendous beating of his own. He had to exit the game for a few plays due to the NFL‘s concussion protocol, and despite all of this, he still had the team in position to win at the end of the game. His throw to Hollins while being brought down by Vic Beasley was amazing. With his knee a fraction of a centimeter from the turf, he tossed an accurate pass to Hollins that converted a crucial 3rd and nine,

That one’s worth another look.

Now, that’s the Carson Wentz we all got to know and love.