Philadelphia Eagles

The Philadelphia Eagles suffer a disappointing loss in Detroit

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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The Eagles lost their first game of the season.

This was a miserable game to watch. The Philadelphia Eagles were almost horrific on Sunday against the Detroit Lions. Doug Pederson‘s team was under-prepared, undisciplined and outmatched for the majority of the game. The Eagles’ defense gave up three touchdowns on the Lions’ first three possessions. On offense, the Eagles could only muster 23 points despite having multiple opportunities to score touchdowns. The special teams unit had several mishaps, particularly on punts.

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This was simply an inexcusable performance. The team was fresh off its’ bye week, and they looked totally lost. The worst part is, despite poor play against an inconsistent football team, the Eagles were still in position to win. Pederson decided to get cute on third down late in the game, and it ultimately did the team in. Running back Ryan Mathews took a toss to the short side of the field, fumbled the ball, and that gave the game away. The veteran running back made the mistake of carrying the football in the wrong hand. It would cost his team dearly.

Linebacker Nigel Bradham wasn’t figured into the defensive rotation until the second half. That proved to be a mistake. The Eagles also tried to use linebacker Mychal Kendricks to cover Lions running back Theo Riddick. That, too, was a costly decision. The Eagles would finish with an asinine 14 penalties that totalled 111 yards. The overall team performance was maddening.

Next week, Philadelphia meets the Washington Redskins in an important divisional game. Fans of this team hope they can turn things around in a hurry. It’s hard to play worse than they did on Sunday. The truth is this team didn’t deserve to win against Detroit. They beat themselves in so many ways that it’s hard to believe that they were even in position to win at the end.

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The team’s position is still favorable, but it’s difficult not to think about 2012. The next two weeks could result in losses which would bring their record to 3-3. That makes the loss in Detroit look even more crucial. They had a lot to prove, but now there are more questions than answers. Was this just a bad game? Is this team really that undisciplined? They finished with seven penalties for 77 yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers in week three. That’s 21 penalties for 188 yards in the last two games they’ve played in. If Philadelphia is going to continue to win games going forward, those numbers are going to have to improve.

There’s no need to panic, but there may be reason to still be skeptical. There’s plenty of room to grow, but there will continue to be growing pains. The next test will be how this team bounces back after a bad loss. That question will be answered next Sunday when they take the field in Washington.