It looked like quarterback Carson Wentz had one of the signature wins of his career — until he didn't.
After keeping them in the game all night on Sunday, the Eagles defense allowed a 54-yard touchdown on fourth down and just over two minutes to play against the Atlanta Falcons, turning what looked like a win into a 24-20 loss.
Wentz almost had what would have likely been a game-winning touchdown with under two minutes to play when he found receiver Nelson Agholor wide-open down the sideline — but Agholor dropped a pass that hit him right in the hands.
Here are some takeaways from the loss:
Carson Wentz: To say Wentz got off to an ugly start to the game would be a understatement.
Wentz's first turnover of the game came in the final minutes of the first quarter when he tried to hit receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside down the right side of the field. Wentz threw the ball up as he was being brought down, essentially just throwing it up for grabs between Arcega-Whiteside and Falcons cornerback Desmond Trufant — and Trufant came down with the ball.
Went'z second interception of the game was an absolutely terrible throw as he put it right into the arms of Trufant once again on a pass intended for tight end Zach Ertz. It is hard to see what Wentz was looking at and why he decided to make the throw.
Wentz, however, started to improve in the second half.
Wentz made a big-time throw on 4th-down from the Falcons' four-yard line, hitting receiver Nelson Agholor in the back of the end zone after avoiding pressure. The touchdown gave the Eagles some life and pulled them to within five points, 17-12.
After a rough day on third down throughout the game, Wentz stepped up and got the Eagles a fresh set of downs in a big spot, finding receiver Nelson Agholor for a first-down on 3rd-and-3 for a 16-yard gain. The completion came with just under nine minutes to play in game. He came up once again on third down later in the drive, avoiding multiple defenders and pressure I the backfield to convert a third-and-nine with a completion to receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside.
Three plays later, Wentz ran the ball up the middle from one-yard out to give the Eagles a 20-18 lead, capping off one of the most impressive drives of his career. Wentz deserves credit for stepping up late in the game, but his poor start played a role in the Eagles' loss.
Nelson Agholor: No other way to put it -- the drop everyone will be talking about this week by Agholor was inexcusable and in many ways cost the Eagles the game. It is a catch any receiver should be expected to make and he is certainly capable of making. It couldn't have come at a worst time. Thankfully for Agholor he made up for it later in the same drive with a crazy catch on 4th-and-14 to extend the game, but the drop was still huge.
Jim Schwartz: Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz is not know for his blitz packages, but he brought the heat on Sunday night, dialing up big blitz after big blitz to keep the Eagles in the game and the Falcons offense in check. It didn't burn them until the end unfortunately, at the worst possible time, the Schwartz called a blitz on 4th-and-3 that resulted in a 54-yard touchdown by the Falcons.
Injuries: The story of this game was the multiple injuries the Eagles suffered on the offensive side of the ball. First, tight end Dallas Goedert suffered a calf injury during warmups with sidelined him for the entire game, a major blow to the offense before the ball was even kicked off. Then they lost both of their starting receivers, DeSean Jackson (groin) and Alshon Jeffery (calf), before the start of the second quarter. Finally, right before halftime, receiver Nelson Agholor went down at the end of an incompletion in the end zone and had to be evaluated for a head injury — but he returned at the start of the third quarter.
The injuries continued in the second half when defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan left with a foot injury and running back Corey Clement suffered a shoulder injury.
Oh, and their franchise quarterback briefly left the game as well with an injury that caused him to go to the medical tent.
Ronald Darby: Either cornerback Ronald Darby is still hurt or he isn't very good. The Eagles need to hope it is first one. Darby was atrocious on Sunday night, as the Falcons came into the game with a clear plan to target him and it worked to perfection. Darby was nearly burned twice for touchdowns in the first half, only to have the ball ovethrown by quarterback Matt Ryan. Ryan finally connected, however, when he hit receiver Calvin Ridley for a 34-yard touchdown with just under five minutes to play in the second quarter. The Falcons targeted Darby once again in the second half when receiver Julio Jones out jumped him from four-yards out for a touchdown that gave the Falcons a 17-6 lead.
Darby made up for his early struggles, however, when he pulled in an interception with just under eight minutes to play in the third quarter, coming down with a pass Matt Ryan badly underthrew because of pressure in his face from a blitz.
Corey Clement: The Eagles got a little bit of momentum at the end of the first half when they managed to get a field goal to cut the Falcons lead to 10-6. The second half could not have gotten off to a worse start, however, when running back Corey Clement fumbled the kickoff to give the Falcons the ball in Eagles territory. Three plays later the Falcons scored a touchdown to increase their lead to 17-6.
Brandon Graham: Huge play on first drive of the game, getting into the backfield and destroying a Falcons running play that resulted in a loss of six yards. The stop put the Falcons into 2nd-and-16, killing what was looking like a good drive. The Falcons did end the drive with a field goal to take a 3-0 lead.
You can follow Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
