BATTLE WON, WAR LOST?
Eagles beat fellow NFC contenders in L.A., but Wentz’s season could be over with torn ACL
The good news for the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday got clobbered by the bad.
Second-year quarterback Carson Wentz — who’d been having a spectacular, league-MVP-calibre season — suffered a left knee injury in the Eagles’ thrilling 43-35 win at the Los Angeles Rams, which clinched the NFC East title and first playoff berth in four years for Philly.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Sunday evening that the Eagles “are concerned” Wentz tore the ACL.
Late in the third quarter, after he had already thrown three touchdown passes, Wentz got clobbered while scoring on a
run that a holding penalty nullified. He limped back to the huddle, finished the drive off with his fourth TD pass of the game — and NFL-leading 33rd of the season — but never returned.
Wentz’s backup, veteran Nick Foles, ably finished the game, helping to rally Philly from a 35-31 fourth-quarter deficit.
“I’ll find out more tomorrow. I just don’t know anything yet until we evaluate him fully tomorrow ... Until I know more tomorrow, it’s hard to say,” Eagles head coach
Doug Pederson said of the nature of Wentz’s injury. Of the Schefter’s report? “It’s just a report,” Pederson said.
If Wentz indeed tore the ACL, his season is done and — going by the usual ACL rehab timeline — he’d need a fabulous recovery to be full-go at training camp next summer.
Reporters saw Wentz — wearing an NFC East Champions hat — carted to the team bus from the visitor’s locker room at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum after Sunday’s game, then hobbling onto the bus. He and Jared Goff, the Rams QB who similarly is having an outstanding second season, put on the show everyone had hoped.
In less than three full quarters of play, Wentz completed 23-of-41 for 291 yards, and even though he threw one interception his passer rating was elite-level at 100.8.
Goff was less prolific but even more efficient, completing 16-of-19 for 199 yards and two scores. He was not intercepted. But he converted only two third downs.
“That Philadelphia team is really good,” Goff said. “I felt good the whole game. I thought we did a pretty good job, scheming and gameplanning. We moved the ball around a little bit. We’d like to have made a few more plays there at the end to win it.”
CHIEFS, CHARGERS WIN
Kansas City and the Los Angeles Chargers cruised toward their showdown next Saturday evening that will determine the AFC West leader heading into the final two games of the season. Both clubs are 7-6.
The Chiefs wiped out the yet-again uninspired Oakland Raiders, jumping out to a 26-0 lead before withstanding a couple of garbage-time scores to win at home, 26-15.
K.C. showed again that everything click with their offence — and, truth be told, only can click this season — when rookie running back Kareem Hunt has a big day. He rushed for 116 yards and a touchdown, enabling the playaction facet of the Chiefs’ passing attack. Alex Smith completed 20-of-34 for 268 yards, his second most prolific outing since mid October.
“Our offensive line stepped up and did a heck of a job today,” Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said.
The Chargers blew away the visiting Washington Redskins 30-13 for their seventh victory in their past nine games, after opening 0-4.
Philip Rivers continued his elite-level play lately, passing for 319 yards and two scores. He passed Warren Moon to now rank ninth in NFL history with 49,444 yards.
COWBOYS TOP ELI, GIANTS
It didn’t matter that Eli Manning re-entered the starting lineup for the New York Giants, under freshly installed interim head coach Steve Spagnuolo. It was the same old Giants this season, incapable of scoring more than a handful of points before their defence wilted late, in a 30-10 home-field loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
“I appreciate all the support these fans have given me for 14 years, and these last weeks especially,” said Manning, who threw for 228 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. “I appreciate them coming out today and cheering me on, and cheering on the Giants.”
Dallas improved to 7-6 and kept its slim NFC wildcard playoff hopes alive. New York dropped to 2-11.
EXTRA POINTS
New York Jets QB Josh
McCown broke his left hand early in a 23-0 loss at Denver. Tests on Monday will determine whether the 38-year-old can play again this season ... Rookie Chicago QB Mitchell Trubisky sparkled, as the Bears crushed a Cincinnati Bengals team ravaged by injuries, 33-7. The No. 2 overall draft pick completed 25-of-32 of his passes for 271 yards, one TD and zero picks, for a 112.4 passer rating — albeit against basically the Bengals’ backup secondary.