I think I can safely say that approximately 0% of people in the world expected Nick Foles to throw for 7 TD passes yesterday. As much of a Foles fan that I am, I still didn’t think he would dominate to that extent. 7 TDs, 0 INTs, and a perfect 158.3 passer rating are basically the greatest stats you could ask for from a QB. He literally did nothing wrong. He had more TDs than incompletions and threw for over 400 yards, leading the Eagles to their fourth win of the season. All I can say is: wow. But does this automatically earn him the starting job? Hmm…
Despite this outstanding performance from Foles, I’d say the most surprising performance was that of Riley Cooper. This is a guy who had one game all season where he even showed up, and then he comes into this game and compiles 139 yards and 3 TDs. Where the heck did that come from? In most games, Cooper is lucky if he gets 3 catches, and now he’s scoring 3 TDs. While this showcase is still likely a once in a season type game, it’s still awesome to see him perform this well considering he is one of the starting receivers. DeSean Jackson stepped up again too, getting 150 yards and a TD on 5 receptions.
And finally, after a whole season of wondering where the TEs were, both Brent Celek and Zach Ertz had touchdowns in yesterday’s game. Both of them actually looked good, and it provided another aspect of their offense that seems to have woken up again. In just 57 plays the Eagles totaled 542 yards. They were also 4/4 in the red zone, a stat that is seemingly unheard of in Philadelphia considering how bad their red zone offense has been the past few years. Even Bryce Brown looked good, getting 7 carries for 54 yards and actually out-rushing LeSean McCoy. And the defense only gave up 20 points. That’s great, right? Right? Well…
Yeah, it’s great that they only gave up 20 points (7 of them in garbage time), but they also gave up 560 yards. That is just completely unacceptable to give up against a team like the Raiders. Considering that they’re playing the Packers next week, I would sure hope that they don’t give up that many yards or they’ll end up giving up 200 points. The Raiders aren’t good enough of a team to convert of their yardage and score a ton of points, but if the Eagles D plays like that against a team that can, then things will get scary…
While the Eagles were once again destroyed in time of possession, this was a case of it being a good thing. Since the Eagles in general were just an all-around better team, they were able to score extremely quickly and just let the offense rest of the sidelines for a while. If this game were more low scoring or closer, then I’d continue to be worried about the large gap in TOP. Another step in the right direction was yet another game without a turnover for the offense. That is one category that I’m extremely proud of considering their turnover margin was pathetic last year. If their defense can’t get it done, the Eagles need to rely on an offense that will.
So, going back to the question in the beginning of this post, does this game make Foles the guaranteed starter? Unfortunately, not exactly. First, everyone who watched this game needs to realize is that the Eagles were playing the Raiders, a terrible team despite somehow getting 3 wins so far this season. Blowing out the Raiders is not exactly the most impressive accomplishment the Eagles could have, but it’s still something. It’s not that I’m putting down the Eagles’ performance, I’m just making sure everyone takes this win with a grain of salt. Second, the Eagles have a very hard time naming a permanent starter because of how quickly it keeps changing this year. Chip Kelly already said that he would evaluate the QB situation on a week-to-week basis, and I believe that he will continue to do that. I think that Foles will get the starting job next week regardless of Vick’s health, but one bad game from Foles could easily derail his chances to remain the starter.
But this is what I don’t understand: how can people still not trust Foles if he’s only had one bad game? In the four games in which he played the majority, he has only played poorly in one of them and gave the Eagles a 3-1 record. He also has 0 interceptions on the season. In the four games in which Michael Vick played the majority, he played poorly in two of them and posted a 1-3 record. And in the two games that Matt Barkley played a significant amount, he played poorly in both of them. Doesn’t that suggest that Foles is the most consistent? Anyone saying he’s inconsistent needs to look at the other guys they have on the roster and realize that Foles is the best option at this point for multiple reasons. Vick will not play for the Eagles next year, and Foles has a great shot at becoming the team’s full-time starter. So why not just start Foles? It’s only logical.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Vick is still not healthy by next Sunday, but I still see Foles being named the starter. There’s just no way they put Vick back in after such an outstanding performance no matter who they played. While it will certainly be difficult to beat the Packers, the Eagles are away, meaning they might actually have a shot considering all of their wins have been on the road. Realistically, next week will be another loss, but if Foles plays like he did yesterday, anything can happen…
