Eagles @ Packers
Carson Wentz and the Eagles got off to a good start, making several deep drives into Packers territory while keeping Aaron Rodgers and Co. off the field for as long as possible. Unfortunately for the Eagles, Rodgers and Davante Adams could not be kept at bay forever and Carson Wentz — much like the rest of the season — was unable to get the job done offensively, mustering just a few points. Ultimately, Coach Doug Pederson decided to make a switch under center, putting Jalen Hurts in on the Eagles’ second offensive drive of the second half. It was too little, too late, as the Packers scored on nearly every other offensive possession of the half and ran away with this one, winning 30-16.
Philadelphia Eagles
Quarterback:
Carson Wentz: 6/15, 79 yards, 4 sacks | 3 carries, 18 yards
Jalen Hurts: 5/12, 109 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT | 5 carries, 29 yards
The Eagles began the game with a run-first gameplan and as such Wentz was not asked to do as much with his arm as he would normally have done. He completed just 3 of his first 7 passes, none of which were deeper than 10 yards downfield, with Miles Sanders and Boston Scott carrying the load on their sole scoring drive of the half. After that drive, the entire offense struggled to generate much movement downfield, tacking on just 39 yards on the three following possessions. Nearly all of those yards were picked up on the ground, via jet sweeps, QB runs, and plain old handoffs to Sanders, Scott, and Jordan Howard. It didn’t help that Wentz faced all kinds of pressure from the Packers’ front seven, taking 4 sacks in his 5 possessions under center.
Once Pederson decided he had seen enough of Wentz, he put Jalen Hurts with the Eagles down 20-3. Hurts came in and made a strong first impression, dropping a dime to Jalen Reagor on his first throw of the game (see below). That drive stalled just outside of field goal range, but Hurts came back ready on his second drive, leading the Eagles to their first touchdown of the game with a beautiful throw to Greg Ward on 4th and 18. After that drive, Hurts and the offense struggled in their comeback bid, generating just 24 more yards on their final two possessions, and the Eagles fell short. Pederson has not committed to naming a starter for next week.
Jalen Hurts has replaced Carson Wentz.#FantasyFootball | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/IcNTeknSYS
— QB List (@TheQBlist) December 6, 2020
Running Backs:
Miles Sanders: 10 carries, 31 yards | 1 target
Jordan Howard: 4 carries, 19 yards
Boston Scott: 2 carries, 9 yards | 2 targets
Sanders dominated the early carries, racking up 17 yards with 5 of his carries coming on the opening drive. Despite some success pushing the ball into Packers’ territory, Doug Pederson opted to give the ball over to Howard on the following two drives. As the Eagles fell deeper into the negative game script, the carries dried up completely and any opportunities for additional carries were then swallowed up by Hurts (and a little bit of Wentz). As much promise as Sanders has shown (Announcers Tony Romo and Jim Nantz loved touting his 6+ yards per carry on the season), Doug Pederson seems to believe in the dreaded RBBC, or at least in splitting carries, among his running backs. Sanders’ fantasy production will depend heavily on game script, while the other two running backs are best left on the waiver wire for now.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends:
Dallas Goedert: 7 targets, 5 receptions, 66 yards
Greg Ward: 5 targets, 3 receptions, 57 yards, 1 TD
Jalen Reagor: 1 target, 1 reception, 34 yards | 1 carry, 11 yards | Punt return TD
Zach Ertz: 4 targets, 2 receptions, 31 yards
Pederson sure does love his two-TE sets. Goedert and Ertz saw a larger share of the targets with Hurts under center, as opposed to with Wentz. Given that Ertz is still making his way back into the offense after a long absence, it is still too early to draw conclusions on the role of the TEs within the offense, but Goedert has been seeing an uptick in the amount of targets and in the quality of his targets from both Wentz and in limited time with Hurts. Outside of the TEs, which are a vital part of any Doug Pederson offense, Greg Ward was a popular target for Carson Wentz and hauled in the lone TD pass from Jalen Hurts (below). Hurts showed a propensity for spreading the ball around, targeting Alshon Jeffery, Travis Fulgham, Greg Ward, Ertz, and Goedert on his drives under center. Travis Fulgham is droppable and Greg Ward could be picked up as a sleeper, but the only player really worth starting on this offense is Dallas Goedert.
On 4th & 18, @JalenHurts throws his first career TD pass! #FlyEaglesFly
📺: #PHIvsGB on CBS
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/5w0t6mAzQq pic.twitter.com/i0e1F8MJPx— NFL (@NFL) December 6, 2020
Green Bay Packers
Quarterback:
Aaron Rodgers: 25/34, 295 yards, 3 TD, 2 sacks | 4 carries, -3 yards
Rodgers was able to move the ball at will over the course of the game. In the first half, Rodgers notched a career-high completion percentage on his passes, completing 13 of his 14 first half passes and tacking on a pair of TD tosses. Rodgers could have had an even better day if Marquez Valdes-Scantling hadn’t dropped a wide-open pass at the beginning of the second half. In all, it was yet another brilliant day from the 37-year-old Rodgers, who made the Eagles look silly. Rodgers is a must-start in every matchup going forward, at least until the Packers begin resting for their upcoming playoff run.
Running Backs:
Aaron Jones: 15 carries, 130 yards, 1 TD | 3 targets, 3 receptions, 18 yards
Jamaal Williams: 5 carries, 26 yards | 2 targets, 2 receptions, 10 yards
Jones was strong against a normally-stout Eagles front, picking up chunk yardage on nearly every handoff. He really made fantasy managers happy when he ripped off a 77-yard run for a touchdown (below), twisting and juking his way between Eagles defenders en route to the end zone. Outside of the 77-yard touchdown, Jones picked up 14 carries for 53 yards (3.78 YPC) and was targeted a little in the passing game, rounding out an excellent fantasy performance.
Jamaal Williams was semi-involved in the offense, getting a handful of carries throughout the game and hauling in both of his targets. It was a fairly even split between his first half and second half workload, but there was nothing on the game tape to suggest that Williams was particularly explosive or worthy of a larger role in the offense. Now, if Jones were to go down at any point, Williams would be an RB2 and in the mix for RB1 status.
“Get out of my way”
– Aaron Jones (probably)#FantasyFootball | #GoPackGo pic.twitter.com/m2BhFDKcEW
— QB List (@TheQBlist) December 7, 2020
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends:
Davante Adams: 12 targets, 10 receptions, 121 yards, 2 TDs
Allen Lazard: 4 targets, 3 receptions, 50 yards
Robert Tonyan: 5 targets, 4 receptions, 39 yards
Marcedes Lewis: 1 target, 1 reception, 36 yards
This is the Davante Adams show. He looked right in sync with Rodgers, plucking target after target out of the air and sending Darius Slay into the shadow realm. Adams tacked on yet another game to his TD reception streak, bringing it to 7 straight games. He is the clear top target in this Packers offense and should be started every single week, regardless of matchup. Outside of Adams, Lazard was a favorite of Rodgers’, hauling in a couple of deeper throws. Lazard is going to be touchdown-dependent (as is the rest of the receiving corps) each week, as most of the volume goes to Adams each week. Backup TE Jace Sternberger went to the locker room early in the game and did not return, allowing Tonyan to take over the few targets Sternberger was receiving. Tonyan has been a nice surprise thus far and could be a decent streaming option, although he too is touchdown-dependent. It was encouraging to see Rodgers look his way more than anyone not named Adams in this offense, though, so take that as you will.
– Adam Sloate (@MrAdster99 on Twitter)