NFL
Eagles’ Carson Wentz Will Start Sunday
Wentz Will Return to the Field This Sunday for the 1-1 Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles announced earlier today that Carson Wentz has been medically cleared to play and will start on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts. The Eagles have been without their QB1 since week 14 of last season. Wentz left that game after a collision with two Rams’ defensive backs while diving into the end zone.
Nick Foles, for the second time in his career, took over the starting job in Philadelphia in lieu of an injury. The absence of Wentz was immediately felt in the following games. The offense lacked efficiency as Foles looked awkward in the pocket. The backup QB seemed to have two things in his arsenal: roll to the right and pump fake. The Eagles did, however, go onto win the Super Bowl that year. Foles himself being named MVP.
Rocky Start for the Birds
The Eagles had a poor preseason showing this year, still without their franchise QB. After barely escaping the Atlanta Falcons in week one, the Eagles fell to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in week two. The high tempo and effective passing game we saw from Foles the previous postseason was nowhere to be found. Only three players tallied more than one reception from Foles in week one. Eagles’ first overall pick in the 2018 draft, Dallas Goedert, has struggled to get any looks from Foles at all.
The Eagles’ passing game has not received much help on the ground either. Eagles’ running back Jay Ajayi has quietly been suffering from a lower-body injury. This has lead head coach Doug Pederson to delegate carries more liberally. RB’s Corey Clement and Darren Sproles have struggled to find success after the snap leaving Wendall Smallwood to even garner a few touches. Without LeGarrette Blount to pound away at the defensive line like last season, the Eagles’ run game has been silent. This has left an already struggling Foles to come under more pressure in the pocket. The sum of these parts: an offensive who can’t seem to move the chains.
Injury Row
Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery continues to recover from surgery on his rotator cuff. Jeffery has yet to see even a practice field with the team this season. In addition, newly acquired WR Mike Wallace may be out for the rest of the season due to a fibula fracture joining WR Mack Hollins. Injuries have left the Eagles’ WR core desperately narrow. TE Zach Ertz has become Philadelphia’s top receiver, which is not necessarily out of place for their offense. The available targets currently are Nelson Agholor, DeAndre Carter, Kamar Aiken, and Shelton Gibson (not including the tight ends). The low potential production from this group may leave Eagles’ GM Howie Roseman to sign one of the available WR’s in the league such as Dez Bryant or now Josh Gordon.
Time of the Return
From the date of the injury, December 10th, to just yesterday, estimates of Wentz’ return have only been speculation. It was not until six weeks after the hit that the general public understood Wentz’ injury in its entirety: a torn ACL and LCL along with a displaced tendon. Carson underwent surgery for his injury just days after the week 14 game.
The nature of his injury and surgery does not leave Wentz more likely to reinjure his knee after his rehabilitation is complete, nor should it anatomically affect his abilities on the field. Wentz is expected to be a little awkward dropping back in the pocket and scrambling as he will subconsciously be worried about protecting his previously injured knee.
Immediately estimates of his return varied from the beginning of preseason to week 5 of the regular season. While some would have liked to see Carson take one more week off to avoid the risk of re-injury or a premature reintroduction to the physical game, Foles’ shaking performance has pushed the Eagles’ coaching staff to hand the ball back to Wentz.
What Changes with Carson
The return of Carson Wentz will likely mean a few things for the Eagles’ offense almost immediately: dispersion of targets, a higher average of yards per reception, an opening up of the run game, longer drives leading to more scoring production. Wentz is incredibly comfortable in the pocket and scrambling out of it to make a play. This patience in the backfield allows him to find the right receiver for a large chunk of yards. Players like Goedert will begin to see more targets and whoever takes over the deep routes for Wallace; this, in turn, will cause the defense to spread thin leaving more holes in the middle to throw to.
This spreading thin of the defense will lead to linebackers dropping back. The threat of the short and long pass from Wentz will open up some holes for Ajayi or Clement to take advantage of. With the combination of the two, the Eagles’ will hopefully be able to develop a momentum on offense. By gaining a momentum and moving the chains, the Eagles’ will leave themselves with more chances to score, something that they have not done this season without Wentz.
Photo credit to Curt Johnson via Flickr
