Time for Eagles to get Carson Wentz help, let him throw downfield more
The Philadelphia Eagles have handled Carson Wentz well midway through his rookie season, and he has rewarded him with a very good rookie season to this point.
Now the coaches must allow him to do more. And give him more to work with.
Sunday night’s performance in the Eagles’ loss to the Dallas Cowboys was a perfect demonstration of the Eagles’ limitations as an offense right now. Wentz completed 32 of 42 passes for an impressive 74-percent conversion rate. The problem is that those throws added up to a stunningly low yardage total: a measly 202 passing yards.
That’s the first time in NFL history, per Pro Football Reference, that a quarterback has attempted 40 or more passes, hit on 70 percent or higher and averaged fewer than 5 yards per attempt. (h/t @cianaf)
One problem is the receiving talent. His wideouts dropped a combined five passes on Sunday, including a key one in the red zone by Nelson Agholor (who says he’s tired of hearing about said drops). There have been rumors floating around for the past week that the Eagles might try to deal for a wide receiver such as Torrey Smith or Alshon Jeffery, but there’s no guarantee that either will happen or that they could step right in and contribute immediately even if a deal did occur.
Another problem is coaching. Wentz is being asked to throw short — and often behind the line of scrimmage — way too often. Part of it is the talent the Eagles have on hand, and they’re one of the worst teams at gaining yards after the catch. But throwing short so much certainly has an effect on that number, too.
One maddening series summed up the coaching errors in the loss to the Cowboys, which put the Eagles two games back. The Eagles were up seven points and comfortably in field-goal range midway through the fourth quarter when head coach Doug Peterson made a curious call: a trick-play pass from Josh Huff to Jordan Matthews.
Instead of Wentz throwing the ball, it was a little-used wide receiver who played QB In high school. Bad call there. Matthews was covered, and the pass was incomplete. Oh, and it was the longest pass attempt of the game.
After a 2-yard run, Peterson made another shaky call: a swing pass behind the line to Darren Sproles, who was dropped for a 6-yard loss. That’s just way too cautious, and it knocked them out of field-goal range. Later, at the 2:00 warning, one maybe the biggest play of the game, Trey Burton was the key target. That, too, failed.
The Eagles need to give Wentz more to work with, but they also need to let him make plays on his own too. That involves stretching the field a half-dozen more times per game. The rookie has shown poise, even with a late-game pick against the Detroit Lions, and proven to be reliable. Why not let him win games for them?
The Eagles’ schedule is daunting, but one look across the field Sunday at how the Cowboys handled Dak Prescott should have been the evidence the Eagles needed that that are coddling their rookie too much. Prescott was far less accurate (19 of 39 passing) but with a far greater yards per attempt (7.4). The Eagles’ longest completion was 14 yards; the Cowboys completed six passes longer than that in the game.
This isn’t about winning Rookie of the Year or comparing Wentz and Prescott, though. It’s about letting Wentz do more to help the Eagles win. He’s the rare rookie capable of doing that, even if his pass catchers have let him down.
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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at edholm@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!
