Instant Observations: Eagles-Lions

DETROIT, MI —  Here’s what we saw during the Eagles’ brutal 45-14 defeat at the hands of the Lions:

*A damning loss that will only accelerate talk about whether Chip Kelly is long for the Eagles. The game plan was suspect and the players looked far from inspired to defend their head coach, who has been under fire in recent weeks — particularly following the 45-17 loss to the Bucs.

That was considered the low point, but it got lower in Detroit.

DEFENSE

*The defense yielded 45 or more points in consecutive games for the first time in Eagles history.

*Calvin Johnson got plenty of one-on-one looks, including against corner Eric Rowe.  The rookie put up a fight on a couple showdowns before being overwhelmed by the standout receiver, who had three touchdowns grabs. Two of his TDs were on Rowe and one on Malcolm Jenkins.

*Matthew Stafford set a career high with five touchdown tosses. This is the second straight week that Billy Davis‘ defense allowed the opposing quarterback to throw five TD passes. Rookie Jameis Winston accomplished the feat the week before.

*Detroit gashed the Eagles for a couple big plays on their second possession. Ameer Abdullah opened the drive with a 23-yard run, and Theo Riddick followed with a 23-yard catch-and run over the middle. Looked like Mychal Kendricks and Kiko Alonso were rushing the passer on the play, leaving a big void. Malcolm Jenkins had a shot at Riddick but couldn’t bring him down.

Riddick made quick work of Kendricks on his eight-yard touchdown reception.

*Nolan Carroll suffered a broken ankle at the end of a Joique Bell run with 11:06 left in the second quarter. He was replaced by Rowe on the outside.

*Bizarre timeout by Kelly on Detroit’s final possession of the first half. Guess he wanted to keep time on the clock for when his offense got back on the field, but it really just ended up helping the Lions, who scored one of their six TDs with 12 seconds left.

*Jenkins was very clear that he wanted to play in the slot in nickel situations against Detroit after Davis went in a different direction against Tampa. But Davis opted once again for E.J. Biggers.

*Brandon Graham, making his return to his hometown, was animated and active early. He fired up the middle and beat guard Laken Tomlinson clean to drop Abdullah for a five-yard loss.

OFFENSE

*Ziggy Ansah set a career high with 3.5 sacks against an offensive line that eventually crumpled in front of Mark Sanchez.

The backup quarterback, filling in for an injured Sam Bradford, was taken down six times and hit nine times. He finished 19-of-27 for 199 yards with two touchdowns (116.1 QB rating).

*Jason Peters suffered an ankle injury on the first series after being rolled up on by Jason Jones and did not play the rest of the game. Lane Johnson flipped to left tackle and Dennis Kelly came in to play right tackle in his absence.

*Johnson was whistled for a facemask to negate a six-yard pick-up and push the Eagles from the Detroit 25 to the 40 on the opening possession. They had to settle for a Caleb Sturgis 50-yard try, which clanked off the right post.

*Johnson gave up a sack to Ansah later in the quarter.

*Jason Kelce, working on a bad knee, did his best to tough it out, but it seemed evident that he was not right.

*Matt Tobin was beat on an Ansah stunt midway through the second, leading to a Sanchez takedown.

*A frustrated Nelson Agholor ripped his helmet off after some pushing with defensive back Crezdon Butler in the fourth quarter and was whistled for unsportsmanlike conduct. That was one of the few signs of life in the game.

 

 

*The Eagles were outgained 430-227, had 14 first downs to the Lions’ 28 and lost time of possession 37:11-22:49.