Despite Win, Sirianni Questioned by Fans
On 2nd and 4 on Washington’s 28-yard line with just under 2 minutes remaining in a tie game, Jalen Hurts connected with A.J. Brown for a go-ahead touchdown. The complaint from fans? The Eagles left too much time on the clock for the Commanders to score.
Conventional thinking in the NFL has become holding the ball as long as possible in a situation like the one the Birds faced to give the opposing team no chance to score on their subsequent possession. Fans are arguing that the Eagles should have tried to get the first down, run the clock almost all the way down, and kick a game winning field goal.
It’s difficult to argue with the fans here – especially given that Washington did exactly what they feared. Assisted by a taunting call on Brown, the Commanders sent the game to overtime with a TD of their own with no time left on the clock. The Birds eventually won in overtime after their defense stopped Washington and they kicked a field goal.
Washington only had one timeout left when the Eagles scored on the 2nd-and-4, and Philadelphia was well within kicker Jake Elliot’s range. Elliot had already drilled three field goals, including a 47-yarder, in the game.
Overall, I think Sirianni is too cocky and makes some bad decisions in these situations. But I can’t rip him here. The Eagles weren’t ahead, it was tied. In that circumstance, I don’t love leaving it up to a kicker. From the 28-yard line, the field goal would have been from about 43 yards out – not a total gimme. Even if the Eagles grind it out and get the first down, which I assume they would have, it’s still not a guaranteed make at around 38-39 yards. And if anything goes seriously wrong, the defense wasn’t exactly having a stellar day against Washington quarterback Sam Howell. After doing very little last week versus Buffalo in a blowout loss, Howell threw for 290 yards and a TD.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
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