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CHICAGO -- It took the Eagles 21 seconds Monday night to turn a three-point lead into a 15-point advantage, and it might have only taken two weeks for the Eagles to turn Philadelphia fans into believers about a team that entered the 2016 season with few expectations but is now 2-0 with two convincing victories.
The Eagles sent the Soldier Field crowd home early with a 29-14 win over the Chicago Bears, and have outscored opponents by 58-24 to start the season. Doug Pederson became the first Eagles coach to win his first two games since Nick Skorich, and quarterback Carson Wentz became the fifth rookie passer to win the first two games of the season since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970.
For Wentz, it was another performance that made him look more like someone who's played eight seasons than eight quarters. He finished 21 of 34 for 190 yards and one touchdown, and he went another week without a turnover. He was helped by Pederson's play-calling and a defense that has only allowed only two touchdowns in two weeks and has forced four turnovers. The leading receiver was Jordan Matthews, who had six catches for 71 yards. Tight end Trey Burton replaced the injured Zach Ertz and caught five passes for 49 yards and a score. Ryan Mathews also reached the end zone twice on 12 carries and totaled 32 rushing yards.
The Eagles turned a 9-7 halftime lead into a rout during the second half with a defense that devastated Chicago's offense -- and eventually sent Bears quarterback Jay Cutler to the locker room -- and an offense that stopped settling for field goals and started finding the end zone.
It started with an eight-play, 68-yard drive late in the third quarter during which Wentz completed all three pass attempts and Mathews stayed on his feet to stumble into the end zone for a 3-yard score.
The Bears had possession for only one play. Cutler threw a short pass that Eagles linebacker Nigel Bradham intercepted at the Bears 30-yard line and returned 28 yards to the 2-yard line. That was Cutler's last play; he left with a hand injury suffered earlier in the quarter, when Eagles rookie defensive tackle Destiny Vaeao sacked Cutler and forced a fumble. Cutler tried to continue playing, but he was eventually relieved by Brian Hoyer.
Wentz made sure the Eagles had a bigger lead by the time Hoyer entered the game. He hit Trey Burton on a 2-yard touchdown pass on the first play after the turnover. Although Caleb Strugis missed the extra point, the 21-second sequence changed the game. The score went from 9-7 to 22-7, and the Eagles showed no mercy.
The Eagles forced their third turnover of the game when Bennie Logan stripped running back Jeremy Langford and Ron Brooks recovered on the third play of the fourth quarter. The Eagles drove all the way to the 2-yard line, and Pederson kept his offense on the field on a fourth down. A Bears offsides gave them a second chance when they missed the first attempt, but Mathews took the do-over and punched the ball in from one yard away for a 29-7 lead.
The 26 unanswered points were halted when the Bears returned a punt for a score late in the fourth quarter, but Chicago could do little to threaten the Eagles at that point. The Eagles had already taken too big of a lead -- and they would have accumulated a bigger first-half lead if they were as successful in the red zone in the first half as they were in the second.
In the first half, the Eagles needed to settle for field goals instead of touchdowns. After forcing the Bears into a three-and-out, they went on a 13-play drive that stalled in the red zone. A second-quarter drive could not advance past the 10-yard line, leaving the Eagles again with three points instead of seven. And then at the end of the half, Matthews dropped a deep pass that could have resulted in a touchdown. Sturgis hit a 53-yard field goal to give the Eagles a 9-7 halftime lead.
Chicago's seven points came in the second quarter after rookie cornerback Jalen Mills bit on a stop-and-go pattern by Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffery, who brought the 49-yard pass to the Eagles' 5-yard line. Three plays later, Bears Langford rushed for a 1-yard score and the Eagles' only deficit of the season.
The Eagles soon took the lead, and they never looked back in the second half. The competition only gets more difficult when the Pittsburgh Steelers visit Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday, but Philadelphia can revel in a 2-0 team all week and celebrate a rookie coach and quarterback who continue to raise expectations.
CHICAGO -- It took the Eagles 21 seconds Monday night to turn a three-point lead into a 15-point advantage, and it might have only taken two weeks for the Eagles to turn Philadelphia fans into believers about a team that entered the 2016 season with few expectations but is now 2-0 with two convincing victories.
The Eagles sent the Soldier Field crowd home early with a 29-14 win over the Chicago Bears, and have outscored opponents by 58-24 to start the season. Doug Pederson became the first Eagles coach to win his first two games since Nick Skorich, and quarterback Carson Wentz became the fifth rookie passer to win the first two games of the season since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970.
For Wentz, it was another performance that made him look more like someone who's played eight seasons than eight quarters. He finished 21 of 34 for 190 yards and one touchdown, and he went another week without a turnover. He was helped by Pederson's play-calling and a defense that has only allowed only two touchdowns in two weeks and has forced four turnovers. The leading receiver was Jordan Matthews, who had six catches for 71 yards. Tight end Trey Burton replaced the injured Zach Ertz and caught five passes for 49 yards and a score. Ryan Mathews also reached the end zone twice on 12 carries and totaled 32 rushing yards.
The Eagles turned a 9-7 halftime lead into a rout during the second half with a defense that devastated Chicago's offense -- and eventually sent Bears quarterback Jay Cutler to the locker room -- and an offense that stopped settling for field goals and started finding the end zone.
It started with an eight-play, 68-yard drive late in the third quarter during which Wentz completed all three pass attempts and Mathews stayed on his feet to stumble into the end zone for a 3-yard score.
The Bears had possession for only one play. Cutler threw a short pass that Eagles linebacker Nigel Bradham intercepted at the Bears 30-yard line and returned 28 yards to the 2-yard line. That was Cutler's last play; he left with a hand injury suffered earlier in the quarter, when Eagles rookie defensive tackle Destiny Vaeao sacked Cutler and forced a fumble. Cutler tried to continue playing, but he was eventually relieved by Brian Hoyer.
Wentz made sure the Eagles had a bigger lead by the time Hoyer entered the game. He hit Trey Burton on a 2-yard touchdown pass on the first play after the turnover. Although Caleb Strugis missed the extra point, the 21-second sequence changed the game. The score went from 9-7 to 22-7, and the Eagles showed no mercy.
The Eagles forced their third turnover of the game when Bennie Logan stripped running back Jeremy Langford and Ron Brooks recovered on the third play of the fourth quarter. The Eagles drove all the way to the 2-yard line, and Pederson kept his offense on the field on a fourth down. A Bears offsides gave them a second chance when they missed the first attempt, but Mathews took the do-over and punched the ball in from one yard away for a 29-7 lead.
The 26 unanswered points were halted when the Bears returned a punt for a score late in the fourth quarter, but Chicago could do little to threaten the Eagles at that point. The Eagles had already taken too big of a lead -- and they would have accumulated a bigger first-half lead if they were as successful in the red zone in the first half as they were in the second.
In the first half, the Eagles needed to settle for field goals instead of touchdowns. After forcing the Bears into a three-and-out, they went on a 13-play drive that stalled in the red zone. A second-quarter drive could not advance past the 10-yard line, leaving the Eagles again with three points instead of seven. And then at the end of the half, Matthews dropped a deep pass that could have resulted in a touchdown. Sturgis hit a 53-yard field goal to give the Eagles a 9-7 halftime lead.
Chicago's seven points came in the second quarter after rookie cornerback Jalen Mills bit on a stop-and-go pattern by Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffery, who brought the 49-yard pass to the Eagles' 5-yard line. Three plays later, Bears Langford rushed for a 1-yard score and the Eagles' only deficit of the season.
The Eagles soon took the lead, and they never looked back in the second half. The competition only gets more difficult when the Pittsburgh Steelers visit Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday, but Philadelphia can revel in a 2-0 team all week and celebrate a rookie coach and quarterback who continue to raise expectations.
