Eagles - Cowboys Diary
 |
| So Is Winning Your Last Game |
> RB Darren McFadden in for the first run, just to prove that Zeke Elliott is taking the full day off
> S Malcolm Jenkins with the run blitz to set up a long third, which QB Dak Prescott can't convert
> Prescott played two series, got three points, took enough big hits to make Cowboy Fan wince, and made me continue to think he's just a game manager with the easier QB job in the NFL, which is to say I have hope for Silver losing in the playoffs
> The Eagles had a good first drive with lots of throws to TE Zach Ertz and good runs by RB Darren Sproles, which is to say, plays by the only two active Green offensive skill players who belong in the league
> Cursed WR Bust Little Nell Agholor lost a yard on a bubble screen and got hurt, and that was far from his worst game of the year
> Summer WR Fling Paul Turner got an 11 yard catch that showed he's got hands, if nothing else
> QB Tony Romo came in for one series where the Green defense did everything but send him mints and cocoa; two throws at CB Nolan Carroll got them down the field and in, because Carroll hasn't meant a pump fake he hasn't bit on
> Sanchez wih the disaster turnover as LB Jordan Hicks gets the tip and pick; great play by Hicks, all too usual play by the Sanchize
> From the Silver 35, Wentz extends the play, but misses WR Dorial Green-Beckham high; kid has skills but could easily be a turnover machine for some time, honestly
> Sanchez may be hurt, which would take a lot of the entertainment value out of this game
> Bad run, then DG-B doesn't get open or make a play
> Pederson goes for it on 4th and 9 rather than try the long figgie
> From the gun, Wentz misses everything high, and that's just bad; don't even know what the kid was thinking
> Sanchez returns, and Graham stops Morris in the backfield for a loss of 3
> Sanchez runs and slides for a yard, then on 3rd and long, the QB is wiped out by DE Marcus Smith on a sack; Silver committed two other penalties as well, and when the Sanchize is in, the other offensive personnel all go to his level
> P Chris Jones with the 66 yard punt of his life, and that's kind of the season in a nutshell, too
> RB Terrell Watson for 3, then 3 again, and he seems like a better story than player, but to be fair, it's a hell of a story (orphan, learning disabilities, small school, bounced around, etc.)
> 3rd and 5 and keep the ball please is a dump on heavy pressure to Sproles that loses five, and someone might want to let the o-line know that there's no more games after this one, so conserving energy isn't such a great idea
> Whitehead makes 4 guys miss for 5 yards to start Silver in Green territory
> Fox shows everyone on their phones, because this game is that dull
> Hicks picks Sanchez again, and the refs' weirdness with the 2-minute warning became relevant
> Why Sanchez is still in the NFL, I have no idea
> Hicks leads the defense in INTs, because our DBs are that bad
> Wentz to Burton to move the chains, then Sproles gets 2 as Green burns clock
> From the 34, Wentz to Ertz for 4, Green timeout with 1:07 left
> Wentz to Burton, simple and easy, moves the chains again
> From the Silver 19, obvious check down to Sproles doesn't so much, clock burns
> Wentz tries Ertz, DPI not called, 24 seconds left
> 3rd and 10 from the 19, Wentz makes it with his legs and a great Sproles block
> Silver timeout to get Gregory off the field with 14 seconds left, and Green's two timeouts on the board seem silly now
> From the 6, Wentz from the empty set, misses Sproles and probably good that he did
> 10 seconds left, Wentz fires to Ertz, and that was just a case of the defense running into each other, and a perfect safe low throw
> Sturgis curls in the PAT, and it's 10-10
> Squib kick takes 3 seconds off the board, giving Sanchez a chance at three INTs in a half, but Silver takes a knee instead
> Marshall with the wince-inducing somersault return to the Green 23
> Wentz draws offsides, because he does that a lot, then Marshall loses 6 on complete offensive line whiff by G Isaac Seumolo
> Wentz takes a big hit as G Ron Brooks and C Jason Kelce ignore a stunt; T Jason Peters goes off slowly
> 3rd and 16 is a give up down and Green jumps, because why not
> 3rd and 21 is Prelude to Punt, and Marshall gets 12 on effort
> P Donnie Jones gets the bounce, and Silver starts at their 30
> McFadden for 7 on the easy sweep, then a yard up the middle
> 3rd and 2 from the gun for Sanchez is a loft throw in double coverage to WR Cole Beasley; bad idea executed well, and the Eagle DBs blew it
> Carroll with another gift DPI, because he buys every pump fake and then panics
> 7th DPI on Carroll this year
> Whitehead to the Green 5 on poor tackling by S Rodney McLeod
> McFadden gets a yard, then on 3rd and keep it a figgie, it's a Sanchez timeout because he's just that good at clock management
> After timeout, Sanchez runs the clock long, stays upright on Graham's strip sack attempt, then spins outside and misses RB Lance Dunbar at the stripe
> K Dan Bailey angles in the 23 yarder, and Silver leads again, 13-10
> Marshall smoked at the 11, but in his defense, he's not going to stay in the NFL taking knees... or any other way, really
> Rollout and near pick by Wentz on predictable play calling and the Silver secondary not exactly respecting Turner's ability to turn it up and go deep
> Wentz looks off the coverage and connects with DG-B; good hands on the behind throw
> From the Green 26, try DG-B again, and it's a drop rather than a firs down; that's the DG-B story in microcosm
> Wentz to Watson, who slips at the 31 for a 5-yard gain; clearly not touched on replay that Fox doesn't show, but crowd reacts to
> 3rd and keep the ball has the QB throw it away on pressure; after a crazy long segment in the booth, Silver called for the face mask finally, because these refs are that bad
> Wentz to Ertz on Silver's angry blitz for 6, then takes him again to move the sticks
> From the Silver 39, Wentz to Burton for 9, offense picking up tempo
> Wentz to Marshall to move the sticks; throw came out late but defense is gassed
> Wentz to Burton in crazy tight coverage for 6, and the QB is dialed in right now
> An absolutely gorgeous ball and stretch by Wentz to Ertz for the 20 yard touchdown, and the TE gives the ball to celebrity fan Mike Trout, because why not
> Sturgis connects, and it's Green 17, Silver 14 with 20 minutes left
> Meh bubble screen, meh sweep by Morris, leading to 3rd and 6 bubble to Beasley that works because These DBs Stink
> Morris for 1, then 4 on the telegraphed screen
> 3rd and 5 and get off the field against a terrible QB is the finally sack by DE Vinny Curry
> Partial credit to DT Fletcher Cox, who shifted to end and moved the QB into the heat
> Sproles collects on a bounce, rather than let Jones get another amaze balls roll
> Celek collects on a bounce to get 9 yards on a play that was uncalled DPI; good awareness by the veteran TE, but Wentz is daring the pressure too much
> Audible to a run by Marshall for the first, and the defense is still making run plays mostly pointless; 15 minutes left in the 56th straight season without a championship
> From the Green 34, Wentz gets it to Ertz on heavy pressure; screen works to move the chains
> From the Green 47, Wentz underthrows DG-B deep; WR had a step, but the QB was hit when he threw; first incomplete in last 10 throws
> Marshall gets 14 on a sweep, then has his leg yanked by Gregory at the close for what should be a gift 15; instead, it's holding on QB2 Chase Daniel, because these refs really do suck (it was DG-B, who doesn't seem to understand the rules about holding)
> On 2nd and 8, screen to Ertz, who moves the sticks with special violence, and the TE is at his best when games don't matter
> From the Silver 34, Wentz tries WR Bryce Treggs deep, and a better WR collects a pretty ball, but the Eagles don't have better WRs
> Wentz to Ertz for the 11th time today, but it only gets 3
> 3rd and 7 in deep figgie range is Wentz to Ertz, DPI not called, but the throw was outside anyway
> Sturgis from 49 yards away misses, and that's not a small thing; off by about 5 feet
> From the Silver 39, Morris loses a bunch, and he's been a lot worse than McFadden today; Graham with the heat on T Doug Free, who is the weak link in the Silver OL
> Sanchez to TE Gavin Escobar for 7, and on 3rd and 7 and keep the lead, it's a dump to Dunbar, who can't make two men miss for five extra yards
> Jones to Sproles at the Green sideline on the 10, and the Silver P has had a day
> With 10 minutes left, Wentz to Ertz to move the sticks; offense trying to close this out, but the TE runs off afterwards
> From the Green 25, Wentz holds it too long and takes a sack by Gregory, who got cut by Peters, but simply got up and made the play
> 2nd and 18, Wentz to Ertz for the 13th time, gets 8
> 3rd and keep it somehow is Wentz to Turner, who does good work to get 19
> Clock burning nicely, Wentz misses Treggs on a behind throw; so much for clock
> From the Green 44, offsides on Silver helps, then a toss to Watson, who moves the sticks on good blocking; his best run of the day
> From the Silver 43, Marshall for 2ish, then gets 8 and another first down on a good cut; very good drive by the offense brewing
> Marshall again for 3 more, then moves the sticks again on good patience and cutting; kid is fired up
> Watson loses as the drive moves into Minute 7; Silver might just be looking to get out of here, honestly
> Watson for some battering fun for six, then on third and 5, it's Wentz off the hands of Marshall, would have been a walk-in touchdown, but the QB puts too much on it; kill shot missed
> Sturgis on from 33 and connects, Green up 7 with 2:18 to go, just need to stop the Sanchize one more time to avoid a double-digit loss season
> Whitehead to the 21, then Sanchez barely avoiding a Graham sack; the DE keeps beating Free
> Sanchez misses his WR badly, and taps his chest in a well-practiced "My Bad" motion
> 3rd and 10 and maybe force the give up punt is a porny orgy of a sack, as Sanchez avoids it for a while, but finally takes the monster loss at the 2 minute warning
> This feels like a good place to remind the reader that Chip Kelly brought Sanchez to town, and the Chipster looks to be one and done in San Francisco after a 2-win season, so, um, yeah, that was a great hire
> From the Silver 2 on 4th and 29, Dallas punts, and it's blocked by ST Stephen Meanes; Green will start at the Silver 7
> Say this for the squad; they finished the year with effort
> With 99 seconds left, Pederson wants more points, and gives it to Watson for 3 churning yards
> Silver timeout for some reason, then Watson to the 2 up the gut; final Dallas timeout
> Watson again, gets in this time, and it's a feel-good moment for the kids
> Sturgis connects, and the final should be 27-13, assuming no Sanchize Magic
> Watson thanks the line and RB coach Duce Staley, then Sturgis hits the short kick to Whitehead, stopped at his own 25
> Dunbar for 6, then 4 on a dump off as a dribble hops right back into his hands
> Dunbar for 10 is deciding some terrible fantasy league somewhere, then Sanchez avoids pressure and richochets a dump off the RB's pads
> The final play of the year is a dumb little run and fall down, and that's it
> Dallas doesn't win it's 14th of the year, the Eagles win their last two games of the year and go the pretty much predicted 7-9, no one got seriously hurt, and just like last year, we're buying into the Zach Ertz Breakout
> If this isn't the last game Sanchez plays in the NFL, I think we can assume he's got amazing photographs and/or unseemly talents that aren't connected to football
No comments:
Post a Comment