We can all agree that Carson Wentz ended his 2019 season on a roll, carrying the team to the playoffs when their season looked lost. His strong ending to 2019 is reason to be optimistic about 2020.
If you use Wentz as the bar for how a strong ending to a season should cause optimism for the following year, however, then there might be reason for Eagles fans to be concerned about Washington quarterback Dwayne Haskins this Sunday.
After a rough start to the season, Haskins had a very good final month under center for Washington. Haskins showed considerable signs of improvement, cutting down on his turnovers dramatically and nearly throwing his team to a win over Wentz and the Eagles.
In fact, Haskins might have had his best game of the 2019 season against the Eagles in their Week 15 matchup, throwing for 261 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions while leading the offense to 27 points. He finished with a passer rating of 121.3. It was the team's first look at the problems Haskins can cause when he is on his game.
"He's got some really good arm talent. Made some throws in that game. He fit some really tight windows," Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said Tuesday. "I think the first completion in that game he threaded the needle on a completion against zone that really showed, number one his accuracy, number two his arm strength."
The performance by Haskins was just one in a string of strong ones to end the season after a rough first five games:
Haskins:
First 5 Games: 59/108, 654 yards, 2 TDs, 5 INTs (3 starts)
Last 4 Games: 60/95, 711 yards, 5 TD, 1 INT (4 starts)
Here is a closer look at Haskins' final four starts. For perspective of just how good he was, here are his numbers compared to Wentz's outstanding final four games:
Pro Football Focus (Last 4 Weeks)
Haskins: 78.7 passer grade, 77.4 overall grade
Wentz: 66.1 passer grade, 62.5 overall grade
Passer Rating (Last 4 Weeks)
Haskins: 99.06 (2 games over 100)
Wentz: 100.81 (2 games over 100)
While numbers don't always tell the entire story, it is clear Schwartz feels the tape matches the impressive numbers Haskins put up to end the season.
"I think as we saw last year, he was improving as he was getting more experience. Some of the mistakes he made in the games before he played us, he came and corrected some of those mistakes," Schwartz said. "We gave him similar looks and he knew where to go with the ball. You expect that from young players, to improve. And a lot of times, particularly at the quarterback position, you'll see players make a big jump from year one to year two."
Add in the fact that Haskins, according to Schwartz, was much more mobile than the Eagles expected and it is clear the defense believes they have their hands full with the Washington quarterback on Sunday.
So can the Eagles once again walk away from a matchup against Haskins with a win? Their bility to contain Haskins will come down to two players — Fletcher Cox and Darius Slay.
Washington enters Week 1 with a new-look offensive line, having changed up the entire left side of their line. Out is Ereck Flowers, and in is Geron Christian at left tackle, with taking over at Wes Martin at left guard as well. Even with the changes, however, the line does not project to be a good one.
It will be up to Fletcher Cox, who has had an outstanding training camp, to dominate and collapse Haskins' pocket up the middle. Cox has traditionally played well against Washington, totaling 12.5 sacks in his career in 16 games. Washington is the only team Cox has double-digit sacks in his career against.
Washington really only has one receiver the Eagles need to worry about — Terry McLaurin. It will be up to Darius Slay to stop him. If Slay can keep McLaurin in check, it hard to imagine Haskins having a big day — especially if Cox is collapsing the pocket as well. Slay struggled against McLaurin last season, but brought in to be the team's No. 1, shutdown cornerback, it will be up to him to make sure there isn't a repeat of last season.
The good news is the Eagles should feel confident about both Cox and Slay heading into Sunday. Cox had an outstanding training camp. Slay was acquired for games just like Sunday.
The bad news is, if the Eagles don't bring their best game on defense, Haskins definitely looks like a quarterback capable of making them pay.
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
