The Eagles go into halftime with a 10 point lead over the L.A Rams, with the fans turning this game into a home affair for the Eagles. Here are some quick hitters on how the game is going so far.
A little less Blount:
The Eagles love affair with LeGarrette Blount continues for reasons unknown. As we enter the half, here’s how things look.
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The Eagles continue to ride LeGarrette Blount, depriving Ajayi and Clement (who has 4 more yards on 2 less carries than Blount) of action. The rushing attack is beginning to fire up once again, but it’s thanks to the unrelenting running style of Ajayi and Clement, not the minimal success we have seen from Blount.
Wentz makes a statement:
3 first half touchdowns and just 1 interception sounds impressive, but over 220 yards in the first half is even more so. Wentz was back to his gunslinging ways in the first half against the Rams, firing darts to anyone and everyone. EIGHT different receivers caught a pass in the opening two quarters of play and Wentz even threw in some more Houdini magic for good measure.
No Ertz, no problem:
Losing a tight end who has over 600 yards and 7 touchdowns this year is of course. a huge setback, but you would’t know it watching this Eagles offense. The ‘next man up’ mentality rings true today. Trey Burton had himself a pair of touchdowns in the first half, while Brent Celek caught his first score since the Thanksgiving loss to Detroit in 2015. The depth at tight end is remarkable…and even without Ertz, the offense is still clicking.
Tackling is a problem:
The Eagles were punished by Todd Gurley early on, who broke out for a 30 yard run before punching it in for the opening score of the game. Later on, Cooper Kupp evaded four defenders for a 64 yard gain that pushed the Rams deep into Eagles territory. The Birds need to get back to fundamentals on defense and focus on wrapping up ball-carriers instead of hitting hard.
Pressuring Goff is the key:
The Eagles defense has been at its best when throwing the Kitchen Sink at Jared Goff. Blitz, blitz and more blitz, Jim Schwartz has dialed it up plenty of times and while the team only have one sack to their tally, the Eagles have forced Goff out of his comfort zone time and time again, forcing McVay to balance his play-action offense with a risk of some risky passes and blown up plays in the process. If the Eagles are going to win, they’ll need to rely on the pressure up front to get to Goff before he can make some magic of his own.
Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
