The Eagles have been here before. That meant that backup quarterback, and former NY Jets starting quarterback, Mark Sanchez took over for the Birds. Be that as it may, the NY Giants find themselves in first place with six games to go. The Buccaneers running game also picked apart the Eagles defense.
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Any momentum the Eagles gained when they responded with a quick touchdown – Sanchez hitting Sproles with a swing pass that went for 35 yards – they lost when the Bucs went back up by 14 with 1:11 remaining in the second quarter.
The scene unfolded time and again Sunday afternoon, and it left Eagles defensive coordinator Bill Davis ticked off after each instance.
DiMarco came into the game with only one TD in his four-year career – a 1-yard scoring catch against Minnesota last season. Head coach Chip Kelly, who rebuilt last year’s 10-win team, said he didn’t have an explanation for what happened Sunday, but said he’s confident the team can turn this around.
The Bucs improved to 5-5 with the win.
“More importantly, just leading our side of the ball”. Tampa Bay began the third quarter with a 28-14 lead but immediately backed up with a clipping penalty to open that possession. Defensively, the Buccaneers yield 233.2 yards in passing and 101.0 yards in rushing. The Philadelphia defense will need to arrive prepared for Winston to be a major threat on Sunday. It made a rookie quarterback, Jameis Winston, way too comfortable on the road, on his way to five touchdown passes. The defense is led by Brandon Graham, who has 33 tackles with 4.5 sacks. But the in-house consensus was that once the run-defense sputtered, there was trouble. That’s not news to anybody who watched it. We didn’t stop the run and we didn’t stop the pass. There isn’t one guy to point at, or one position or anything. The run game isn’t good. He returned to practice on Thursday and has officially been listed as questionable for this weekend’s matchup.
They scored right away for the second game in a row Sunday, so that problem thankfully has been resolved.
Winston hadn’t thrown more than two TDs in one game before tossing four in the first half to four different receivers against the Eagles.
The unit, despite being beset by injuries, has carried the team at times as the offense remains stuck in neutral. And versus [man-to-man], we have to get that guy blocked. Winston takes plenty of shots deep so cornerbacks Byron Maxwell and Nolan Carroll have to be at their best against Evans. Despite 29 passes for Winston and 27 touches by Martin, neither player turned the ball over, as Tampa Bay controlled the action throughout the afternoon. His 84-yard run was longest in franchise history. It also matched the most given up by the Eagles. Sanchez simply picked up – and is getting picked off – where newcomer Sam Bradford left off as a turnover machine. On the ground, DeMarco Murray rushed for 61 yards in 22 attempts. Additionally, Tampa Bay is coming off a game in which it allowed a mere 42 rushing yards against Dallas.
Philadelphia isn’t an elite team, ranking in the bottom of the league with one of the lowest touchdown receptions.
“First of all, hats off to our offensive line”, Winston said.
This game really comes down to the play of Jameis Winston. Something tells me his wife is going to make him sleep on the sofa tonight. The Buccaneer has 4.5 sacks on the season.
The Eagles have defeated the Buccaneers in three straight regular season meetings, dating back to 2009.
In the last three games, opposing quarterbacks have completed 25 of 36 passes for 332 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions on third down.
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Last week against Miami, the Eagles had a streak of 14 consecutive games with a takeaway snapped.
