It’s only preseason, but the defending Super Bowl champions have looked woeful throughout August – a far cry from their dazzling playoff run this past winter.
The offence has struggled mightily to move the ball and produce points, and their abysmal effort in the third preseason game – which is supposed to serve as a dress rehearsal – continued to raise concerns.
It wasn’t just that the Eagles were shut out in a 5-0 loss to the Cleveland Browns, it’s how disappointing the first-team offence looked in the process.
Philadelphia’s six first-half drives finished in a turnover on downs, a safety, a lost fumble, an interception, a lost fumble and another interception.
After completing 13-of-17 passes in the contest, Nick Foles is now 16-of-26 for 171 yards with no touchdowns, two picks and two fumbles over two appearances in the preseason.
Foles hasn’t been nearly as sharp as he was in leading Philadelphia to a Super Bowl win, but the offence’s issues have extended beyond the quarterback, with the offensive line failing to provide much protection and the general execution lacking.
“First of all, I’m disappointed in the offense, not one player,” Eagles head coach Doug Pederson said. “So don’t put this all on Nick. I’m disappointed in the offence. It’s not what you want, obviously, in the third preseason week.
“When you don’t score and you play the way you played on offense, being an offensive guy, I’m not very jovial in [the locker room]. I’m not patting guys on the back.”
Philadelphia can take some solace in the fact that many of their key players have yet to take the field, including Jason Peters, Darren Sproles, Nelson Agholor, Alshon Jeffery and, of course, Carson Wentz.
However, with Wentz’ status for the season opener still up in the air, it’s possible a magic elixir may not be on the way for some time.
The Eagles held on to Foles this offseason instead of trading him to give themselves insurance in the event Wentz misses more time, but it’s not a certainty the back-up quarterback will thrive once again.
