It’s clear that the Eagles will have to get pressure on the quarterback to have a chance.
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Eagles’ Carson Wentz jogs during the team warm up before the Philadelphia Eagles play a preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Philadelphia, PA on August 11, 2016.
He commanded the huddle, moved the ball, completed passes, rushed for positive yards, and showcased some of the reasons why the Eagles traded up six spots in the draft to select him No. 2 overall.
Eagles: “It still felt like a football game, playing ball”.
Philadelphia Eagles offensive guard Brandon Brooks, who signed a five-year deal with the team this offseason, left Thursday’s preseason opener with a right biceps injury and will not return. He played more like a third-string quarterback than the guy who right now is the first man up if Sam Bradford gets hurt.
“We want Wentz! We want Wentz!”
Wentz calmly ran the offense and even sampled the zone-read during a fourth-quarter scamper that saw him flip over a defender just short of the sticks. Head coach Doug Pederson looks to put his stamp on the Eagles franchise.
His final numbers – 12-of-24 passing for 89 yards – were far from fantasy gold, but forget the statistics. Daniel threw for 15 yards and lost 19 on sacks.
Wentz showed exactly why the Eagles believe he’s the long-term solution under center. But there was more good than bad in his debut, and his ability to sense pressure and throw on the run were the most promising parts of his performance. He scrambled around the right end for 9 yards later in the quarter, showing mobility rare for a 6-foot-5, 237-pound quarterback. He also threw to no one from his end zone while pressured, but the officials ruled a receiver was nearby, avoiding a safety. Smith also broke up a pass that led to another interception. That was enough to generate seven points, but not enough to form any meaningful evaluation.
After the Buccaneers fumbled the opening kickoff to give Philadelphia the short field, Bradford played only three snaps.
The starting defense played longer than the offense, a curious development considering it has outplayed the offense this summer. Chase Daniel scooted 3 yards for the second score after Jameis Winston had the ball stripped. That led to the Eagles’ first touchdown 55 seconds into the game. On Tampa Bay’s second offensive series, Philadelphia star lineman Fletcher Cox stripped the ball from Winston on the first play, then fell on it at the Bucs 9. But considering Daniel is the quarterback blocking Wentz from wearing a uniform during the regular season, it was not an encouraging first impression. Two of them were run plays.
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Wentz quickly showed why that future is filled with promise as he often scrambled away from pressure and managed to complete passes.
