Secondary Struggles, Tank Bigsby Among 10 Thoughts From Eagles Loss

PHILADELPHIA – Here are 10 thoughts from the backup Eagles’ 24-17 loss to the lowly Washington Commanders on Sunday:

Help. That’s what the secondary needs. If this game proved anything, it was that the Eagles’ depth at cornerback is sorely lacking. It’s as if Kelee Ringo, Jakorian Bennett, and Mac McWilliams simply panicked when the ball was in the air. There were three end zone pass interferences – two by Bennett and one by Mac McWilliams - that set up two Washington touchdowns. Ringo turned his back on quarterback Josh Johnson, who walked in from 13 yards for the go-ahead touchdown, and Ringo was called for holding. Bennett had a holding against him, too. Something must be done this offseason to address the obvious shortcomings.

Kevin Patullo. The Eagles' offensive coordinator had Tanner McKee attempt 14 straight passes in the fourth quarter, including three straight that led to a three-and-out after the Commanders tied it at 17. Washington went down and scored again to take the lead. After that, the Eagles had to throw, but the point is that no matter who is playing quarterback, the OC seems too quick to abandon the run. The result was 14 points surrendered in the fourth quarter.

About the run. Tank Bigsby appeared to be on his way to his first 100-yard rushing game since Oct. 20, 2024, with the Jaguars. He popped off a 13-yard run, his 16th carry of the game, that gave him 75 yards with 2:07 to play in the third quarter. He never got the ball again and ended with 75 yards and a 4.7 yards-per-carry average. Bigsby also turned a short throw into a 31-yard gain midway through the third quarter after ducking a tackle and racing down the sideline. The Eagles needed more Tank on Sunday.

NFC Least. The loss gave the Eagles a 3-3 record inside the division, which might be a notch above the NFC South, where no team finished above .500. The East didn’t have a team finish above .500 except Philly. That’s not exactly encouraging heading into the playoffs, where the Eagles will open against the 49ers from one of the league’s best divisions, the NFC West, which sent three teams into the postseason.

Jalyx Hunt Records A First

Hunt-er. Outside linebacker Jalyx Hunt was superb again. In 52 percent of the snaps, he accounted for two turnovers to help the Eagles win the turnover battle, two to one, and became the first player in franchise history to lead the team in interceptions (three) and sacks (6.5).

Linebacker play. Jihaad Campbell was one of the few starters to play and he responded with 10 tackles on 90 percent of the snaps. Fellow linebacker Jeremaih Trotter, Jr., played 100 percent of the snaps and recorded a game-high 12 with a tackle for loss and two QB hurries. The Eagles are in good hands at this position going forward.

Cool it on McKee. The backup quarterback who some thought should be starting during Jalen Hurts’ mini-slump during a three-game losing streak in late November, early December, played most of the way looking like a backup, granted he was playing with the reserves.

Still, you can’t throw a red-zone interception, especially when it appeared to have Kylen Granson breaking free in the end zone but chose to try to get the ball to Jahan Dotson.

Then there was another gaffe that needs to be pointed out. McKee had plenty of green grass in front of him on a second-and-one scramble on the Eagles’ first possession of the third quarter. Instead of running for an easy first down, he threw a pass that was broken up. On third-and-1, Tank Bigsby was stuffed for no gain and Philly had to punt with the sound of the fans’ boos ringing in their ears.

He finished with a passer rating of just 68.9 and completing 52 percent of his throws for 241 yards.

Taunting? Rookie undrafted free agent Darius Cooper did just that on a 17-yard catch to the 5-yard line. Just no need from anybody, let alone from a player still trying to prove himself in the league, to do that. Instead of first-and-goal at the 5, the Eagles were pushed back to the 20, from where McKee threw the costly pick on third down.

Red-zone woes. The best redzone offense in the league converted only one touchdown on three trips inside the Commanders’ 20 in the first half, and that was a 15-0 touchdown toss to Grant Calcaterra. The other two times ended without any points after the Eagles failed to convert on fourth-and-1 and on the McKee interception.

Warts. Penalties, nine of them for a ridiculous 123 yards, is one wart. The other is the time of possession. It’s been an all-too-familiar theme that the Eagles struggle to win that battle because the offense has struggled to run the ball. Against the Commanders, they had the ball for just 25 minutes, 51 seconds to Washington’s 34:09.

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