Another winless opponent, not just another New York patsy
Another week, another winless challenge for the Eagles.
This week the opponent is the 0-3 Los Angeles Chargers, formerly of San Diego but for three years just regular old tenants playing out of the Stub Hub Center in Carson, Calif. It’s the soccer home of the L.A. Galaxy, which had that other superstar named Beckham (4:05 p.m., Channel 29, WIP 94.1-FM).
“This isn’t your average 0-3 team,” safety Malcolm Jenkins said of the Chargers. “This is a team that missed field goals or they could be in exactly the same spot we are. It’s going to take everything we’ve got to go in there and get a ‘W’. So we’re not taking them lightly.”
On the patriotic front, the Eagles decided they won’t interlock arms during the national anthem this week. Whatever protests there are will be individual. Of course, an incendiary tweet here or there could change that.
The Eagles are coming off an emotional week topped by rookie Jake Elliott’s walk-off 61-yard field goal that beat the Giants at Lincoln Financial Field. Players carried the kicker off the field.
Eagles head coach Doug Pederson fears a letdown this week judging by the remarks urging his players not to read their press clippings.
“Press clippings?” offensive tackle Lane Johnson said. “After that game, we really didn’t need to read anything. We know we ran the ball effectively. I was expecting it to go to overtime, to be honest. When that kick went in it was just icing on the cake.”
Outcome
Drained from their walk-off win last week, the Eagles have to find a way to win 2,700 miles and two time zones from home against a team they know little about. Not without Fletcher Cox and Darren Sproles. Give the Chargers (0-3) their first win and 35-year-old Philip Rivers his third triumph in three starts versus Philly. Make it Chargers 24, Eagles 23.
The Eagles figure to have a difficult time having their cake and eating it this week. They’ll come to the party with two fewer candles as All-Pro defensive tackle Fletcher Cox (calf) will skip this week and running back-kick returner Darren Sproles (ACL) is done for the year.
The Eagles likely will start Tim Jernigan and Beau Allen at tackle, with rookie Elijah Qualls rotating in. Ends Vinny Curry and Chris Long rotated in at tackle last week. The Chargers’ offensive line is light years better than the Giants’. With Cox on the sideline, it was hardly a coincidence the Eagles failed to sack Eli Manning.
The Eagles have running back depth, just not the explosiveness Sproles gave them in the run and pass game. Look for Stefen Wisniewski, who excelled last week, to start at left guard.
Running the ball on the Chargers is easier said than done. Though they rank next to last in run defense, the numbers are skewed by late plays, including Kareem Hunt’s 69-yard run last week capping the Chiefs 24-10 win over the Chargers.
AFC defensive player of the month Melvin Ingram has 5½ sacks, second in the league. The other end, Joey Bosa, has two sacks.
“Bosa is relentless, he has a good motor and he’s really good with his hands,” Johnson said. “Ingram is very twitchy, has a good spin move and plays really hard like Bosa. Ingram plays to the open side, Bosa to the tight end side. They’ll switch sides sometimes.”
The Eagles’ secondary likely will welcome back safety Rodney McLeod, sidelined last week with a strained hamstring. But defensive backs Corey Graham and Jaylen Watkins
won’t make the trip due to hamstring issues. That leaves veteran special teams standout Chris Maragos at safety for the second straight game, and rookie Rasul Douglas starting at cornerback against a pretty good fleet of receivers including Keenan Allen.
And, of course, there’s quarterback Philip Rivers, who hasn’t lost a step at age 35.
“He’s a competitor,” Jenkins said. “There’s not many quarterbacks out there that compete quite like he does. He’ll talk trash, he’ll get riled up and he can make all the throws. His throwing motion is a little unorthodox but he makes it work. He’s very accurate. He has control over the offense, and they’re very balanced.
They’ll run the ball and set up play action and vertical shots down the field.”
The Chargers look for ways to lose, somewhat like the Giants. The Chargers have lost 10 of their last 19 games by seven points or less. This season they’ve dropped two games by three or fewer points.
“It’s going to be a hard-fought game,” Eagles leading pass rusher Brandon Graham said. “They have a good team. They feel like they’re not that far off. They’re 0-3 but that doesn’t matter because every game they’ve played they were in. We’ve got to continue to find a way to win.”
Stop me if you’ve read this but the Chargers aren’t your average 0-andwhatever team.