The vibes in the City of Brotherly Love are at a new low after the Philadelphia Eagles collapsed against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. After taking a 21-point lead with over 11 minutes to go in the second quarter, the Eagles failed to find the scoreboard again for the rest of the day, sending head coach Nick Sirianni's team into Week 13 with more questions than answers in certain areas.
Philadelphia's secondary is under fire after surrendering 354 passing yards and two touchdowns to Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. It was a disappointing effort from the Eagles' defensive backs, especially Adoree' Jackson, who had erased some early ill will with some decent performances as of late.
Now, it looks like the Eagles are back to square one with the oft-frustrating cornerback.
Adoree Jackson's Decline Puts Eagles in Dangerous Spot
It's hard to find any positives in Jackson's latest performance. The ex-USC Trojan was targeted six times by Prescott, allowing four catches (66.7%) for 54 yards, a touchdown, and a 134.7 passer rating, resulting in a season-worst 28.8 coverage grade on Pro Football Focus. It's now the second straight game where he's allowed a passer rating north of 130.0.
If it were just one bad game, Eagles fans would be more willing to give Jackson future second chances. But that's not the case. November is almost over, and there isn't exactly a ton of time to hope for a turnaround to happen. The NFL playoffs are almost here, and the last thing that Philadelphia needs is for Jackson's poor coverage to cost them a chance to repeat as Super Bowl Champions.
It doesn't help that the Eagles don't have any easy matchups for Jackson to bounce back in until they face the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 15. They have the Chicago Bears coming to town on Friday after scoring 31 points in Sunday's win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, followed by a Week 14 road date against the Los Angeles Chargers, who are averaging 28.7 points in their last three outings at SoFi Stadium.
Will Adoree' Jackson's Resurfaced Struggles Start a New CB2 Competition?
The trade deadline is long gone, and free agency is barren, meaning the pickings are slim if the Eagles want to replace Jackson as the CB2 opposite Quinyon Mitchell while Cooper DeJean mans the slot. In other words, Philadelphia might have to hold some competition in practice to see if it has any better options waiting in the wings.
The Eagles acquired Michael Carter II from the New York Jets before the deadline, and he's been solid so far, but he thrives in the slot. There's always Kelee Ringo, who's also had his fair share of struggles in coverage this season, as well as the recovering Jakorian Bennett, who was activated off injured reserve on Nov. 12 after suffering a pectoral injury back in Week 3.
Clearly, the Eagles don't have a clear-cut solution for their re-emerging Jackson-related woes. While one of Ringo or Bennett could step up down the stretch, history has proven — whether through recent results or medical concerns — that it will be far from guaranteed.
Let's just hope that Jackson can figure out a way to prove he can be a positive contributor before he (and the Eagles) run out of time.