Carson Wentz got a big contract from the Eagles this offseason. It’s time for him to earn his money against the Patriots on Sunday.
The Eagles didn’t sign Carson Went to a four-year, $128 million contract to pilot them to a .500 record in the regular season.
If Philadelphia fails to win at home against the Patriots on Sunday afternoon, 5-5 is just where Wentz and his teammates will reside.
To put it mildly, the Week 11 matchup has serious playoff implications for Doug Pederson’s team. Many people expected the NFC East to produce multiple postseason teams when the season began, but now it’s overwhelmingly likely that only the division winner will get a chance to make a magical run to the Super Bowl.
The Eagles come into their matchup against New England with a mediocre record of 5-4. A win against the defending Super Bowl champions could be just what Philadelphia needs to get their season back on track.
Wentz hasn’t had the season the Eagles were expecting from their franchise quarterback, but there’s still time left for him to turn things around. It’s also true that he’s played better football as the season’s progressed. He arguably put in his best performance of the year two weeks again in Philadelphia’s surprising win at Buffalo.
Wentz followed that up by a steady performance against the Bears last week. He’ll need to be closer to spectacular if he wants to knock off Bill Belichick and the Patriots this weekend.
New England, of course, comes into this game smarting from a road loss at Baltimore that ended the team’s dreams of a perfect season. Belichick and his coaching staff didn’t show much against the Ravens last week, but they will be anxious to get back to their winning ways against Philadelphia. That likely means the defense will employ a more complex game plan against Wentz compared to what Lamar Jackson faced last week.
The biggest key for Wentz will be to keep his offense on schedule with accurate passing. He’s only managed to complete 62.7% of his throws on 303 attempts this season. It’s fair to point out that the strong-armed quarterback likes to push the ball down the field, but he can’t afford to put his offense in obvious passing downs against New England’s talented secondary. That’s a recipe for disaster for the Eagles.
Instead, he needs to make sure he stays patient and takes what the Patriots are willing to give him on early downs. If he does that, he’ll earn some chances to make big plays down the field organically as the game goes along. It’s imperative that he cash those opportunities in for touchdowns, but he’s going to be in big trouble if he hunts too hard for those big plays early in the game.
This could also be a game where the Eagles allow Wentz to operate more in the run game. The franchise has worked very hard to limit the hits he’s taken this season, but the team’s margin for error if they want to win the division is alarmingly small. Keeping Wentz healthy for a playoff run is only a useful strategy if the team can make the playoffs. Don’t be surprised if Pederson works a few designed runs for Wentz into the game plan on Sunday.
There are plenty of Eagles who need to have great games to knock off the Patriots this weekend, but no one will be under more scrutiny than Wentz. He needs to operate the offense with surgeon like precision if he wants to outwit Belichick and company. This game could define Wentz’s entire 2019 campaign.