If NFL games were 30 minutes long, Matt Patricia would be Coach of the Year.
The Eagles held the Seahawks and Giants to three points before halftime and the Cards to six points.
They haven’t allowed a touchdown before halftime in three games since Patricia became play caller and de facto defensive coordinator, and it’s the first time in 15 years they’ve allowed six or fewer points in three straight first halves.
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The last time they allowed fewer 1st-half points in a three-game span was 2013.
Unfortunately for the Eagles, NFL games aren’t 30 minutes long. They’re 60 minutes, and it’s those pesky second 30 minutes that have been a catastrophe of late for the Eagles.
They outscored the Seahawks 10-3 before halftime, then got outscored 17-7 in the second half, losing 20-17.
They outscored the Giants 20-3 before halftime, then got outscored 22-13 in the second half, hanging on to win 33-25.
Philadelphia Eagles
They outscored the Cards 21-6 before halftime, then got outscored 29-10 in the second half, losing 35-31.
So they’ve outscored their opponents 51-12 in the first half the last three weeks, only to be outscored 68-30 in the second half.
And if you think that’s unusual, it is.
The Eagles are only the fifth team in NFL history – and only the second since 1966 - to allow 12 or fewer points in the first half in a three-game span, then allow 68 or more in the second half.
This is only the third time since 1952 the Eagles have allowed 68 points in the second half over three games.
They’re only the second NFL team in the last decade to outscore three straight opponents by seven or more points in a first half, only to be outscored by seven or more points in the second half.
This is historic stuff.
All three games since Patricia replaced Sean Desai have followed the exact same pattern. The Eagles are playing smart, physical football before halftime, then falling apart after halftime.
The Seahawks, Giants and Cards had 13 possessions before halftime without scoring a touchdown.
They had 14 possessions after halftime and scored eight touchdowns.
Why?
“You know what, I think the guys have done a really good job (coming) out and played aggressive in the first half,” Patricia said Tuesday. “I think for me, when those things happen (in the second half), I always kind of just, I've got to put it back on myself to make sure we are getting the right calls in or we are getting the right plays out there for them.
“Sometimes they make adjustments and then we have to make our adjustments, too, in those situations.
“And then situationally, in the second half of the football game, there's so much more that comes in from a situational standpoint, the clock, the time, the down and distance, and those are things I've got to keep just doing a good job of making sure that I stay in front of, to allow the guys to go out there and handle those when they come up. And it comes fast in the second half. I've got to do a better job of that, certainly.”
There’s a school of thought that the Eagles’ defense has just worn down.
That would sure help explain the 2nd-half collapses.
Six Eagles defensive players 30 and over have played at least 300 snaps. No other NFL team this year has had six defensive players in their 30s in their defensive rotation.
Josh Sweat has played 150 more snaps than any other season. Haason Reddick is on pace to play a career high in snaps. Fletcher Cox has played the most snaps of any interior lineman 33 or older in the NFL this year. Jordan Davis’ snaps per game have nearly doubled since his rookie year. Brandon Graham has played the 2nd-most snaps by a defensive end 35 or older this year.
The Eagles had 22 2nd-half sacks in their first 13 games but just two in the last three – none by an edge.
It’s hard not to connect the 2nd-half collapses with the extreme snap counts the guys up front are playing.
“I don't really sense that at all,” Patricia said. “Our guys work very hard. Play very aggressive. They play fast. They work hard during the course of the week to get their bodies right and be ready for game day. I don't ever feel that on the field. I don't ever see that.
“Like all of us, we don't always perform at our best all the time, but that part of the process and what these guys do to prepare and get ready and how they play in the game, I always admire that a lot. I really do.”