Philadelphia Eagles A Favorite As Rookie Coach Takes His Lumps
By Kevin McGuire
After dropping two straight games in division play, the Philadelphia Eagles return home to Lincoln Financial Field in the hopes of getting back in the win column. Doing so will not be easy with the Atlanta Falcons coming north in hopes of creating even more of a buffer in the NFC South Division race. Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, this will be a significant test for the Eagles as they continue to grow and learn from their mistakes. At least, that is the hope of Eagles fans this week after a pair of frustrating division losses on the road.
Las Vegas likes the Eagles vs. the Falcons, barely
Despite having lost four of the last five games, the Philadelphia Eagles are still somehow being considered a slight favorite at home this weekend against the NFC South-leading Atlanta Falcons. A team with a dynamic offense starring Matt Ryan and Julio Jones is 5-0 on the road against the spread this season, but the Eagles are 3-0 at home against the spread. Something has to give, right?
Why would the experts in the desert like the Eagles? It may come back to how well the Eagles have played at home and the lack of a defense Atlanta carries. The game started as a pure toss-up, but the Eagles have become a one-point favorite. This one should be tight.
The Eagles are still learning how to win, and that is OK
We may have been given an early glimmer of false hope as the Eagles jumped out to a 3-0 record, which is pretty much how fans react when things are going better than expected out of the gates of a new season. This is especially true in Philadelphia. Since starting 3-0, highlighted by a blowout win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Eagles have now dropped four of five games, including three gut-wrenching games against NFC East opponents on the road. Putting aside the scheduling quirk that allowed for any team in one division to play three division rivals on the road before getting a chance to host at least one of those games, the Eagles have shown they lack an ability to finish a game in all three division contests. More startling is the inability to get off to a good start, as well. Those two traits together make for a long season if not corrected.
The upside of all this? This is a team that is still learning to win games with a rookie quarterback (Carson Wentz) and players looking to fill into roles within the offense (Ryan Mathews, Nelson Agholor). The process becomes more frustrating when you see your team going through growing pains while a rival like the Dallas Cowboys has become the best team in the NFC, but the Eagles can only worry about the Eagles. There is still plenty of room for improvement, and that will have to come through improved draft strategies, scouting, roster management and coaching.
Expecting more from Doug Pederson is fair
Be willing to give a rookie head coach some leeway for mistakes and errors in judgment, but expect that rookie head coach to admit when he may have led his team in the wrong direction and learn from his mistakes. Eagles fans should be at least a little concerned about Doug Pederson halfway through his first season. Pederson has made some questionable decisions during the last month, and he has failed to own up to the errors in judgment even when it may have crushed his team's chances to win a football game. That is not OK. That is stubbornness. It suggests Pederson will stick to his guns no matter what despite the evidence suggesting his decisions have been fatal on the field.
It is not entirely fair to rip a coach for his decision-making and lack of willingness to admit his errors only because it is also important for a head coach to maintain control of the team and support his players. That is fine to an extent, but Pederson has come off as though he is deflecting the blame to his players, and that can go south in a hurry if he is not careful. This is not to suggest Pederson is already at risk of alienating his locker room, but Malcolm Jenkins has already spoken out in a way that has suggested Pederson needs to do a better job.
Pederson should not be fired halfway through his first season, but it is important for him to admit when he was wrong and address that moving forward. Maybe he will do that behind closed doors and not in front of the media. One can only hope.