Eagles Report Card: Eagles-Redskins

By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 

At the end of the regular season, the teams that are usually left standing remain because of success within their division. So far, things have gone well for the Eagles within the NFC East.

The Eagles are now 3-0 against the division and 6-1 on the season, alone at the top in the NFL, after a 34-24 win over the Washington Redskins on Monday night.

Here are this week's grades.

Pass Offense – A-

Let's get the bad out of the way early. The Eagles opened the game, as an offensive unit, with one of the worst drives you will ever see. They just kept going backwards before Carson Wentz heaved one up for an easy interception.

It wasn't a very good first half for Wentz for the first 20 minutes or so. As the second quarter started to pass by, Wentz and the Eagles offense had 35 total yards.

That changed quickly with one play. Wentz stepped up with great protection and lobbed a deep ball to Mack Hollins that was caught for a 64-yard touchdown to tie the game at 10.

Related: Constructive on Carson: Wentz makes himself MVP favorite in win over Redskins

Wentz also led a great late second-quarter drive to get the Eagles into the lead at the break. This was masterfully orchestrated. From their own 20, Wentz led the Eagles on an 80-yard drive in six plays and 1:30. This included two key passes to Zach Ertz, one for a 46-yard catch and run and another for a four-yard touchdown.

But in the second half, Wentz defined himself as one of the NFL's top quarterbacks, even in Year 2. Wentz has had one standout play in each of the last few games. In this one, it was a 3rd and goal play where Wentz looked dead to rights as the pocket collapsed, but somehow escaped, floated a pass to the endzone that was perfectly placed for Corey Clement.

Wentz also masterfully worked another scoring drive, capped with another touchdown for Nelson Agholor.

The final numbers showed another showcase game from Wentz. 17-of-25 for 268 yards, four touchdowns and one interception.

Run Offense – B-

Collectively, the Eagles running game was not as good as in weeks past. Washington came prepared to keep the Eagles running game in check, and they did for the most part.

Aside from a late 21-yard run, LeGarrette Blount was held to just eight yards on 13 carries. Wendell Smallwood had 25 yards on eight carries. Clement and Kenjon Barner combined for 10 yards on three carries. In all, the Eagles got 64 rushing yards on 25 carries from their four running backs. That's certainly keeping that group in check.

The difference was Carson Wentz, who had 63 rushing yards on eight carries.

Here's the thing with Wentz. He timed his runs well throughout the game. In recent weeks, it's been a jaw-dropping pass play that has defined the game and Wentz's growth. Wentz also had a standout running play.

I still have no idea how Wentz stayed on his feet, but with several players essentially on top of him, Wentz somehow popped out of the pile and took off for a 21-yard gain and a first down. Simply amazing.

Pass Defense – B

The Eagles were certainly exposed in the secondary a bit more than we've seen in the past couple of games. Kirk Cousins picked up good yardage early and then late. We'll discount a lot of the late-game yardage since the Eagles already had a 34-17 lead as the fourth quarter ticked away.

But for the early part of the game, the Eagles were having a lot of trouble with Jamison Crowder and struggled against tight ends Jordan Reed and Vernon Davis.

They managed to lock it down as the game went on, but there were times when it was leaky and easy for Cousins to drive up the field. When the Eagles locked it down, it usually meant there was pressure in the face of Cousins. Cousins was sacked four times and hit as he threw on his lone interception of the game.

Run Defense – A-

The Redskins got off a couple good runs in the game, but the averages remained on the low end.

Washington attempted 18 carries in the game, 15 from running backs. They finished the game with 75 yards, an average of 4.2 per carry.

Considering the Eagles were without Mychal Kendricks from the start and lost Jordan Hicks two plays into the game, this was a very good effort by the Eagles run defense.

Special Teams – B+

Until his final attempt from 45 yards, Jake Elliott was perfect again with kicks from 50, 45 and 42 yards. The miss late in the fourth quarter snapped a streak of 12 straight field goals.

Donnie Jones was busy early, but the kick coverage was good and the Eagles kept the Redskins starting point in good position for them for most of the game.

Overall – A

6-1. How does that sound?

As good as the Eagles record looks, this was a tough game that the Eagles had to survive in a lot of ways. Injuries to Jason Peters and Jordan Hicks are big ones and given the potential severity of each is something to watch going forward no question. And those losses put the offensive line and defense on alert for the entire game.

But this was Carson Wentz's stage. The guy who the Eagles had to trade a king's ransom to get showed why sometimes, betting the farm on a potential franchise-altering move can be worth it. He's an MVP candidate now, no question.

As a team though, this is another impressive win. For the last two weeks, there was nowhere to hide. At 4-1 entering the short week and Thursday Night Football against Carolina, the Eagles were in the spotlight. And when they won that game, every game after was going to be magnified. This was once again a game on a big stage with all eyes watching.

What you are watching is a quarterback that is blossoming into even more of a star than he was before. This is what football with a franchise quarterback is like. It's been a while for Eagles fans, but Wentz is worth it.

As much as a 6-1 record falls on an MVP-caliber quarterback and a solid core on both lines, a lot of the Eagles success needs to be credited to Doug Pederson.

It's no secret that there was a lot of doubt surrounding Pederson's hiring and the Eagles didn't have the greatest start under Pederson. But he's worked to grow as a coach. The Eagles have a studious quarterback that working to grow at his position as well. And simply put, the Eagles gave the pair some added tools that can make a difference.

What a ride this team is on right now. At 6-1, it's going to be a ride to the finish. As with last week's win over the Panthers, just smile and enjoy. It sure looks like the Eagles are.

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