Nine Players Who Helped the Philadelphia Eagles Lose to the Buffalo Bills in Week 5
The Philadelphia Eagles lost their unprecedented fourth consecutive game yesterday afternoon, falling to the Buffalo Bills by a 31-24 score.
The game was a typical Eagles game this season: turnovers, missed tackles, poor coaching, an inability to stop the run, turnovers, poor pass coverage, turnovers, poor coaching, and missed tackles.
The biggest goats of the game, however, were the following players (and a coach), in no particular order. (It would be easy to list every member of the team, by the way, but I’m limiting it to the absolute worst.)
- Michael Vick: Four interceptions. FOUR interceptions. That’s insane. I understand that two were tipped, but the pass that Nick Barnett returned for a touchdown was one of the worst throws I’ve ever seen. It reminded me of a pass McNabb threw against the Patriots in 2003, which linebacker Tedy Bruschi returned for a touchdown. He also held onto the ball way, way too long at the end of the first half, before forcing a throw into the end zone that was incomplete. Vick had a nice day rushing and his fantasy numbers were good but he failed to lead the Eagles to a victory, which is ultimately his responsibility.
- Jason Avant: It seems like every time an Eagles wide receiver has a great week, he does something really stupid at the end to ruin it. For example, Jeremy Maclin caught 13 passes for 171 yards and two touchdowns in a week two game against the Atlanta Falcons but his dropped pass in the final two minutes cost his team a victory. Maclin also ruined a seven catch, 74-yard performance by losing a fumble in the final two minutes to lose the San Francisco game. And yesterday, Avant had a brilliant game, catching nine passes for 139 yards. But he lost a fumble on a 35-yard catch and run in the third quarter, and he failed to hold onto a pass from Vick in the final two minutes (the pass was intercepted).
- Danny Watkins: Watkins played well in his first NFL start. According to Pro Football Focus, he registered a 2.1 rating yesterday. But he committed a costly facemask penalty that negated a Vick touchdown run in the fourth quarter. The Eagles ended up kicking a field goal, pulling within seven points instead of three.
- Jason Kelce: Kelce has played poorly this season, especially judging by his numbers at Pro Football Focus. He was easily the worst offensive player yesterday, recording a -4.4 rating (-3.3 on pass blocking and -1.8 on run blocking).
- Juqua Parker: Parker’s offside penalty cost the Eagles a chance at a victory yesterday. Plain and simple. It was unacceptable, inexcusable, and flat out pathetic. Parker is an 11-year NFL veteran, the oldest player on the Eagles, and he should have known that the Bills were not actually going to run a play on fourth down yesterday. That was a disgraceful play.
- Asante Samuel: The best cornerback on the Eagles (at least, he has been this season), Samuel allowed completions on three of five passes for 32 yards and a touchdown. He also missed two tackles. Pathetic.
- Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie: DRC (yeah, I know he doesn’t like the name–I don’t care) should have returned an interception for a touchdown in the first quarter. Instead he dropped the ball. That can’t happen. The game would have been completely different if the Eagles scored there. Oh, and he also allowed five completions on six pass attempts. Pathetic. Oh, and he also missed two of his five tackle attempts. Terrible.
- Jarrad Page: He probably lost his starting job yesterday. You can take that one to the bank. He had 11 tackles, which looks pretty good. But he missed FOUR tackles. And on the 49-yard screen pass to Fred Jackson, he got completely turned around and spent a good portion of time chasing Fred Jackson. C’mon man. You’re a safety. You have to be able to make tackles. Good thing Kurt Coleman will undoubtedly be starting next week.
- Andy Reid: Everything is Reid’s fault. It’s his fault that Juan Castillo has no clue what to do at defensive coordinator. He’s the one who had the bright idea of making his offensive line coach the defensive coordinator. Reid is the one who called 11 running plays to one of the best running backs in the NFL (oh, and he collected 80 yards on those carries). Reid is the one who elected to take one last shot in the end zone before the end of the first half instead of taking three points. Reid is the one who didn’t bother acquiring linebackers or safeties during the offseason. And he’s clearly lost control of his team. How can NFL players like Jeremy Maclin and Jason Avant all of a sudden not know how to hold onto the football? Juqua Parker jumping offside to end the game? That’s all coaching. It’s all on Andy Reid.
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