Mark Sanchez looked a little sketchy, Sam Bradford didn't look anything (nor did DeMarco Murray), and Tim Tebow rushed for a touchdown as the Philadelphia Eagles downed the Indianapolis Colts, 36-10, on Sunday afternoon.Exactly how much one can take away from any team's first preseason game is up in the air, if it's anything at all. But still, there were men in uniforms who ran into each other, and after more than seven months, it's better than nothing.
The Good: Firstly, the starting defensive front seven. The Colts tried to establish the rush early, calling the run on five of Andrew Luck's 11 offensive snaps, but the Eagles' front was on the ready and in mid-season form. Nose tackle Bennie Logan finished with three tackles as the Birds held Indy to 2.3 yards rushing per attempt in the first quarter. Even without starting backers Mychal kendricks and Kiko Alonso, one of last season's elite units look to be roughtly where they left off.
Secondly, Nelson Agholor. The rookie pass receiver personally atoned for the sins of Mark Sanchez in the first quarter. Sanchez, the presumed No. 2, goofed on a wide open pass play for Jordan Matthews with paydirt in sight. The next snap didn't look so good, either, but Agholor snagged the high pass in his hands and split a slew of Colts on a 34 yard touchdown dart. Not bad for a guy's first NFL reception. He missed two passes later on, including an easy ball near the sideline, but what he showed on his scoring catch far outweighed it. The hands play, the run after the catch, the outright speed. Against the first-teamers, too.
Those two scores from rusher Kenjon Barner were impressive, as well. Barner took a pitch from Sanchez in the first quarter to the end zone from 9 yards and returned a punt 92 yards all the way with seconds ticking on the first half. Barner was a speedster for Kelly at Oregon and is in every way the ideal wild card player the Eagles would like to have some role for.
The Bad: Those paltry 38 yards the Colts gained on 17 rushes in the first half set Indy up for a few 3rd-and-long situations. Just the right time for the Eagles' new-fangled secondary to show their stuff, right? Wrong. Andrew Luck went 5-for-6 on 43 yards on a drive-and-a-half. Luck's quick release outpaced the Eagles' front pressure and the defensive backs to set themselves downfield. Again, it's the middle of August, and Baltimore is coming to town for a pair of joint practices ahead of their Saturday night contest. That's another elite passer in Joe Flacco to test their mettle against.
The Ugly: Cody Parkey, who only booted a single field goal on the day. A second flew wide right and an extra point was no good. Chip Kelly said he wasn't going to overreact to his performance. A rookie last season, Parkey kicked his way onto the Pro Bowl roster, and the new PAT distance will likely take some time to get accustomed to for everyone.
And, increasingly, the lack of Sam Bradford. His absence seems to indicate that the Eagles aren't completely ready to wheel out who they think is their starting quarterback. Everyone concerned has reiterated that injury played no part in his not being out there, but one has to wonder why the Eagles wouldn't trot him out there for eight or ten plays? Let him in there to hand off for Ryan Mathews, make some short throws from the shotgun, a few three step drops. Just to get his feet wet. Maybe Kelly is merely being careful. And while prudence may be a virtue, too much of it can be a sin. Of course, if he did go out there and get a his knee carved up on a tackle, the football press would be lighting the pyre for Chip Kelly for being so stupid and inconsiderate.
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