Section 215
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Five Big-Picture Takeaways from Eagles Week 7 Loss to Panthers

By Somers Price

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5.) The Eagles Have A Prime Opportunity After the Bye to Figure Out Where the 2015 Season is Headed 

Oct 25, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Philadelphia Eagles tight end Brent Celek (87) reacts in the second quarter at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

By this point of an NFL season, those destined for the postseason and beyond often have a firm identity developed. Whenever there is an Eagles game and the broadcasters start to talk about what a ‘Chip Kelly’ team looks like, I scratch my head and wonder exactly what that is. Whenever it looks as if the Eagles want to commit to the run game, they run pass plays for an entire quarter. There were rushing yards to be had against Carolina. The Eagles seemed committed to exploiting that fact until the 4th quarter, where that page of the playbook was apparently ripped out for the remainder of the game.

A team cannot simply huddle around the locker room and declare what type of team they want to be for a season. It takes a special kind of commitment to have a group buy in to whatever the company line is going to be. That means the quarterback insisting upon developing a relationship beyond what is expected between he and his receivers. It means a coaching staff having a serious conversation about how they want the reps divided up in the run game and committing to it. Pass catchers finding a new way to shake off the drops that have plagued the 2015 season is as much a mental exercise as it is physical.

As of the close of Week 7, I would argue that the identity of a Chip Kelly team is like that of an electrical circuit with a flicker in the connection. For most of the season, they have looked like a group that knows its potential but is unable to put the pieces all together. They tantalize us, however, with a several-minute chunk of each game where the circuit is completed and things fire on all cylinders. For the most part, unfortunately, the Eagles cannot operate to the point they want to unless they find a way to reach a happy medium before the two versions.

The Eagles have dealt with a particularly taxing first chunk of the season. Few teams have had the spotlight shine brighter on them than the one fixated on Philadelphia. Players and coaches have had to answer the same questions all season and frustration in having to do so is duly noted. Unfortunately, they will continue if the Eagles come out after the bye and are unable to show they’ve turned a corner. Clinching a playoff spot will be an absolute grind for this team. They can ill-afford any more slip-ups like the one in Carolina. Whether or not this is a group capable of making that type of run should reveal itself shortly after the opening kickoff in Dallas for week 9.

Next: Eagles vs Panthers: Offensive Grades

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