Philadelphia, which has not lost a turnover in its two victories, actually got three second half takeaways but failed to capitalize on one of them. Rookie quarterback Carson Wentz stands tall in the pocket until the last possible moment and finds his man for a first down. Then another quick 9-yard pass to Green-Beckham.
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It was far from the most exciting game of Week 2, but the Philadelphia Eagles went on the road and took care of business on Monday Night Football against the Chicago Bears.
Will the Eagles wind up regretting the Sam Bradford trade?
Wentz absorbed a number of shots – some of them unnecessary – and found most of the ground gained to be hard-earned, at least until the Bears succumbed to the Eagles’ momentum down the stretch. According to Wiederer, the 33-year-old quarterback also said he hurt his thumb early in the game, but he was able to keep playing until he aggravated it on a strip-sack. This kid may be a rookie, but he seems to have the nerves of a 10-year veteran.
“It was a great learning experience for him and I expect him to come out (Monday) and play great”. “They were throws that were out of his hand fast”.
“It gave me confidence early on and it transferred over throughout the game”.
Late in the third quarter, Cutler jogged to the locker room with medical personnel, who were checking out his right hand, according to David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune.
After two first-quarter drives in which they piled up over 100 yards of offense and a touchdown, the Bears couldn’t muster anything else. In all Wentz was 21-for-34 for 190 yards and a TD. He was helped by Pederson’s play-calling and a defense that has only allowed only two touchdowns in two weeks and has forced four turnovers.
“Was it flawless? It was by no means ideal”. He’s commanding the huddle and the dialogue on the sideline with the players and coaches. “It was a cool stage, everything was sweet”. It was Cutler’s second turnover of the third quarter.
The Eagles ended up with a first down at the Bears’ 9 but had to settle for a 25-yard field goal by Caleb Sturgis because Wentz took a sack on third down rather than force a pass into the end zone.
It should have been more.
Amidst questions of his ability to stay healthy, the fact remains that Cutler has played in fewer than 15 games only twice in his career while being the team’s starting quarterback. But Matthews couldn’t hang on to it.
“Then the back end is doing a really nice job in coverage”. They have some talent on both sides of the ball, but it is not coming together well right now.
His 86.6 passer rating wasn’t quite as impressive as the 101.0 against the Browns.
Bryce Callahan’s diving deflection of a Wentz pass in the end zone saved the Bears from a first-possession touchdown. He returned it to the 2-yard line and the Eagles scored on the next play.
But that means little.
Wentz became the first rookie quarterback in National Football League history to begin a season 2-0 without a turnover.
“I couldn’t get as much on it as I wanted”, he said about the interception.
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“It was definitely the game changer for us”, Bradham said. “I play with a lot of confidence”. Not two games in, though it might quiet his critics if he starred against the Eagles.
