The Eagles' Good, Bad & Ugly
PHILADELPHIA, PA (CBS) — There was a lot to like, not much to dislike and there wasn't much to be overly concerned about the Eagles in chewing up the visiting Baltimore Ravens, 40-17, at Lincoln Financial Field Saturday night.
The Good
Everyone wanted to see Sam Bradford and they did. They watched him complete 3 of 5 passes for 35 yards in directing the Eagles to a 12-play, 84-yard touchdown drive on the opening series of the game. What's more is they saw Bradford absorb a cheap shot at the knees by Ravens' outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, who was called for a roughing the passer penalty and Bradford got up unscathed.
"I didn't see the hit," Chip Kelly said. "He took a couple of hits and he was no worse for the wear. The plan was to get him between 10 and 15 snaps, and we had 14 called plays for him. You never know, you can three-and-out, three-and-out, and three-and-out. I thought he looked good for the first time out there. He was happy just get back on the field and play football again."
In his first action of the season, DeMarco Murray looked very good, too. He had 5 carries for 17 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown.
Rookie Nelson Agholor was targeted five times and caught four passes for 49 yards, averaging 12.3 yards a catch.
Safety Walter Thurman picked off a pass on Baltimore's first possession—but the play wouldn't have been possible if not for Nolan Carroll deflecting the pass intended for Kamar Aiken in the end zone.
Cornerback Byron Maxwell intercepted Joe Flacco on Baltimore's second possession.
The Eagles' left side, guard Allen Barbre and tackle Jason Peters, played a big role in the Eagles' first two TDs. Ryan Mathews zipped through the Baltimore front almost untouched, and Murray's 2-yard TD run.
Second-year tailback Kenjon Barner had two touchdowns in the first half last week against Indianapolis, and scored again in the first half against the Ravens on a 68-yard punt return. He scored on a 92-yard punt return against the Colts.
"He's made a huge case for himself, you go back-to-back weeks returning touchdowns, I know him and have known him for a long time," Kelly said. "He put himself in a good position."
The Bad
A holding call on right tackle Lane Johnson on the Eagles' first series, pushing them back to the 13.
The Ugly
Guard Julian Vandervelde was called for a 10-yard hold, which took away a TD pass from Mark Sanchez to Jordan Matthews. The Eagles had to settle for a 21-yard Cody Parkey field goal because of the penalty.