NFL Reactor: Seahawks Put Eagles’ Dream Season to Bed

Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images North America

What was just an incredibly disappointing season officially lost what sliver of hope remains,as the Philadlephia Eagles were virtually eliminated from the postseason race with a 31-14 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.  Marshawn Lynch took advantage of the Eagles’ porous run defense, Tarvaris Jackson played very efficiently, and Vince Young threw four interceptions in the loss.

Young’s first interception came on the Eagles’ first play from scrimmage on a scramble drill, when Kam Chancellor intercepted a pass with no Eagles receiver in the immediate vicinity. The Seahawks took advantage of Eagles linebacker Jamar Chaney being out of position for two first downs, then Lynch finished it off with a 15-yard run where he ran out of Chaney’s bearhug.

Marshawn Lynch would then double the lead to 14-0 early in the second quarter, when after a cutback to the right he found nothing but green grass in front of him. The Eagles second level defenders abjectly failed at their jobs, and Lynch raced 40 yards for his second touchdown. The Eagles would cut the deficit in half, to 14-7, after two Vince Young passes to Riley Cooper, including a 47-yard bomb, set up a one-yard touchdown run for LeSean McCoy, who played and played well after being listed as questionable. The Seahawks would extend their lead to 17-7 right before half, on a 49-yard field goal by Stephen Hauschka.

After Vince Young’s second interception of the game on the opening drive of the second half, a third-down pass that went off Riley Cooper’s hands after Clay Harbor dropped a pass on second down, Tarvaris Jackson hit Golden Tate in the back of the end zone, and Tate made a nice toe-tap for an 11-yard score and a 24-7 lead.

The Eagles were still in the game, marching 80 yards in 17 plays and taking over ten minutes off the game clock in the process before LeSean McCoy’s second touchdown of the game, this one on a shovel pass from Vince Young, cut the deficit to 24-14 early in the fourth quarter. The Eagles extended the Seahawks’ ensuing possession with a defensive holding penalty, but eventually forced a punt and got the ball back with eight minutes to play down ten points.

It looked like the Eagles might make things interesting, as Young hit DeSean Jackson, McCoy, and Cooper for key passes, but then he made a crucial mistake. Young looked left, saw McCoy on the swing pass covered by David Hawthorne, then threw the ball anyway. A surprised Hawthorne grabbed the ball and raced 77 yards for the game-clinching touchdown.  Young threw his fourth interception of the game two plays later, and the Seahawks then ran out the clock for the 31-14 win.

Three Stars
1. Marshawn Lynch, RB, Seahawks. Twenty-two carries, 148 yards, two touchdowns rushing. Several times he ran through arms tackles and made Eagles defenders look absolutely silly. Skittles on the sideline for everybody.
2. Tarvaris Jackson, QB, Seahawks. Sacked three times, and he probably could have avoided some of them, but 13 of 16 for 190 yards and a touchdown. Lynch was the keystone of the Seahawks offense tonight, but Jackson made some plays and, just as importantly, avoided the key mistake.
3. LeSean McCoy, RB, Eagles. Seventeen carries for 84 yards and a touchdown, plus four catches for 49 yards and the other touchdown. And this by a player who looked awful gimpy in pregame warmups. In a season of disappointment for the Eagles, he’s the star who’s come through.

Three Duds
1. Vince Young, QB, Eagles. Yes, he’s the backup. Yes, one of the interceptions wasn’t his fault. The other three he does bear a lot of fault for, including particularly the idiotic game-clinching interception. He continues to struggle to throw the ball accurately in short and intermediate areas, and the Seahawks successfully confused him at times with their coverages tonight.
2. Jamar Chaney, LB, Eagles. Chaney struggled greatly earlier in the season after replacing Casey Matthews at middle linebacker, but I thought he’d improved as the year had gone on. Tonight, he looked every bit as bad as he’d been early in the season.
3. DeSean Jackson, WR, Eagles. Young’s best attribute is as a deep passer. Jackson at his best is an exceptional deep threat. Tonight he was a virtual non-factor as a receiver and as a returner, with four catches for 34 yards. With Maclin out, Riley Cooper looks like the Eagles’ top receiver. That should not be the case, but it is.

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