RB, WR, TE Review: No Big Plays For McCoy

Here is a review of how the Eagles’ running backs, wide receivers and tight ends performed in Sunday’s game against the Falcons.

LeSean McCoy – The numbers are not pretty: 16 carries for 45 yards. In the last three games, McCoy has rushed 46 times for 120 yards (2.6 YPC). He actually had some good moments in this one. McCoy broke a tackle and picked up 7 in the second. He had a couple nice 10-yard runs in the fourth. And McCoy scored twice – once on a 2-yard run where he left Asante Samuel in the dust and another on a 7-yard reception. The problem? Five of McCoy’s 16 carries, or about 31 percent, were stopped for either no gain or negative yardage. That’s the direct result of a makeshift offensive line and McCoy trying to make something out of nothing. McCoy’s longest run of the game was 10 yards. And on the season, the big plays in the running game have taken a huge hit. McCoy is averaging one run of 20+ yards every 31.8 carries. Last year, it was one every 19.5. And looking ahead, I don’t see a real solution. McCoy will have some good weeks, but there are sure to be more struggles. As a blocker, it’s tough to say whether he should have picked up Thomas DeCoud on the safety blitz that resulted in a sack in the first. McCoy had a good blitz pickup on Vick’s 2-yard completion to Brent Celek. And he delivered a good lead block on Michael Vick’s 4-yard run on 3rd-and-3 in the second. He had three catches for 22 yards, including an 11-yard pickup on a screen.

Bryce Brown – He played eight snaps and had one carry – a nice 5-yard pickup in the red zone, although Brown fumbled (and recovered).

Stanley Havili – He played 14 snaps and did not get a touch (one target). Havili split out wide vs. Samuel in the second, and it looked like he got open, but Vick took off and ran for a first down. He missed his block on a McCoy run that picked up just 1 yard in the second. Not sure how Havili and Celek ended up trying to block Kroy Biermann on a four-man rush that forced Vick to run in the fourth.

DeSean Jackson – Five catches for 59 yards on seven targets. Jackson made a nice move to pick up 3 on a 3rd-and-2 completion in the second. He took a WR screen 12 yards in the second and had a 12-yard grab in the third. Jackson’s best play came when he turned a 6-yard grab into a 32-yard gain, leaving Samuel in the dust in the third. The Eagles got nothing going downfield in the passing game. I’m anxious to see with the All-22 whether they had opportunities that were missed.

Jeremy Maclin – Not a strong game for Maclin. He was targeted 11 times and had just six catches for 33 yards. Maclin also dropped a couple balls. He took a WR screen 12 yards in the second and caught a 10-yard pass in the red zone in the fourth, but other than that, Maclin was quiet.

Jason Avant – Four catches for 45 yards on seven targets. Avant had an 8-yard grab over the middle in the first. He did a nice job as a blocker throughout. Avant helped on the 12-yard screen to Maclin in the second. He did a good job on McCoy’s 7-yard run in the second. And Avant had effective blocks on both of McCoy’s touchdowns.

Riley Cooper – He played 18 snaps, was targeted once and didn’t have a catch. Cooper was the fourth wide receiver and filled in for Jackson when he left the game briefly because of an injury.

Brent Celek – Early on this season, it looked like Celek would be a nice option in the passing game. But he’s averaging just 24.7 yards per game in the last three. In this one, Celek had three catches for 32 yards on five targets. He wasn’t used much as a blocker either. Celek stayed in to block on just five of 38 passing plays, according to Pro Football Focus. He had a drop on the first possession, making four in the past two weeks. As a blocker, Celek did a good job of sealing the edge for Brown’s 5-yard run in the second. He delivered a good block on the WR screen to Jackson in the second. But he missed his block on the WR screen to Jackson that was stopped for no gain.

Clay Harbor – It seems pretty clear at this point that Marty Mornhinweg and Andy Reid don’t think Harbor can give much to this offense. He played just nine snaps and did not have a ball thrown his way. Harbor did a good job blocking on the WR screen to Jackson that picked up 12 in the second.

Follow Sheil Kapadia on Twitter and e-mail him at skapadia@phillymag.com.