Philadelphia Eagles Fall to the Baltimore Ravens

The Philadelphia Eagles traveled to the not so friendly confines to take on the Baltimore Ravens. It wasn’t pretty but the Eagles hung tough in a 27-26 loss.

Carson Wentz began the day with a rocky start for the Philadelphia Eagles as he was picked off by Ravens linebacker Zachary Orr. The Ravens were able to get points off of the turnover to get out to an early seven to nothing lead. This left the Philadelphia Eagles with two choices, lie down and get steamrolled or fight back. Luckily they chose the latter.

The teams traded early field goals but the Eagles were able to come back from an early 10 – 3 deficit. Nigel Bradham continued his impressive season with a strip sack of Joe Flacco. The fumble was recovered by Fletcher Cox and Ryan Matthews was able to punch it in for a touchdown, his eighth of the season (a career high). Due to the swirling winds in Baltimore, Doug Pederson opted to go for two and Ryan Matthews repaid his faith by leaping over the pile giving the Eagles an 11 – 10 lead.

The teams would trade a few more field goals in the half as the Philadelphia Eagles defense bent but it didn’t break. Brandon Graham and Beau Allen stepped up in a big way as the Eagles got more pressure on Joe Flacco than they’ve gotten on most quarterbacks this season. But while they rattled Flacco, the Eagles couldn’t stop him.

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The Ravens were able to close out the half in a big way, with Flacco tossing a 34-yard touchdown pass to Steve Smith to put the Ravens ahead 20 – 14. While the Eagles were hanging tough they would have to continue the game without Kenjon Barner who left the game with a hamstring injury. Barner only had six rushing yards but he also added 25 receiving yards on two catches and provided a nice change of pace for a thin rushing attack.

The second half began as a stalemate between these two teams. Caleb Sturgis would nail a field goal to bring the Eagles within three but the teams traded punches for most of the third quarter. The running backs would continue to wear down the opposing defensive lines as Ryan Matthews and Terrance West were able to lead the charge for two struggling rushing attacks.

The Philadelphia Eagles pass rush returned from their dormant spell lately to keep Flacco off balance. With the strong rushing attack and solid defense, the Eagles were able to hold the ravens scoreless during the third quarter. The issue is that the Ravens defense was also able to shut out the Eagles defense as they looked to tire out their defensive line.

The Ravens would strike first as Kenneth Dixon would gash the Eagles for a 16-yard touchdown to gain a 10 point advantage. The Eagles responded by kicking a field goal to draw within seven. Jim Schwartz’s defense was able to come up with a huge defensive stand to leave the ball in Carson Wentz’s hands for a final two-minute drill with a chance to tie or win the game.

Wentz stood tall and composed in the pocket for the final drive while delivering a deep strike to Zach Ertz. The Ravens defense then proceeded to gift the Eagles a first and goal situation with 17 seconds remaining due to a pass interference call. Wentz then rushed for a touchdown to give the Eagles a chance to win the game on the road in Baltimore.

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This is where things got a little hairy as Doug Pederson decided to go for a two-point conversion to close it out. Wentz’s pass was ultimately batted down securing a win for the Ravens. While the Eagles didn’t walk away with a win, this game should dispel the notion that they’ve quit on the season even if they were officially eliminated from playoff contention.

Ryan Matthews ran hard in one of his best games of the season rushing for 128 yards and a touchdown against the top-ranked rush defense in the NFL. Wentz also showed growth by making good decisions with the ball after a rough start even if statistically this wasn’t one of his better games. At the season rolls on progress is the name of the game for the Philadelphia Eagles and they took a step forward against the ravens today.

Next up for the Eagles will be a home game vs the Giants on Thursday night.