Eagles @ Buccaneers
Final Score: TB 33 – PHI 16
Writer: Chris Helle (@ChrisHelleQBL on Twitter)
A banged-up Philadelphia squad traveled down to Florida, and the first half of this game went as you would have expected. The Buccaneers scored on their first two possessions and capitalized with another touchdown following a muffed punt, where the Eagles’ gunner blocked the defender into returner Cooper DeJean. The Eagles’ offense sputtered in the absence of A.J. Brown, Devonta Smith, and Lane Johnson. Baker Mayfield systematically picked apart Philly’s defense utilizing every weapon around him to explode into a 24-0 lead. The Eagles did have a good drive to score a touchdown in the late second quarter and another score to start the second half, set up by an explosive 59-yard run from Saquon Barkley. Baker responded quickly with a 70-yard touchdown drive, but the extra point was blocked and returned for 2 points for the Eagles to keep it a 16-30 game. In the end, Tampa Bay’s defense held strong by pressuring Jalen Hurts into bad throws and six sacks on the day, including a sack-fumble.
One Up
- Sterling Shepard – While almost every receiving weapon on this offense had an efficient day, a special cheers goes to the veteran who was upgraded from the practice squad this week. He was as agile and fast as ever and nearly had a huge touchdown if it hadn’t been for a break up from the safety.
Two Down
- Jalen Hurts – The best quarterbacks elevate the players around them, so this game was a test to see what Hurts could do without his dynamic duo. Instead, Hurts didn’t target any wideout through the first quarter and was simply inaccurate on most of his passes today.
- Jahan Dotson – Despite being listed as the third receiver on the depth chart, Dotson was a nonfactor throughout the game. This was his opportunity to make his presence known and seeded his involvement to Parris Campbell.
Philadelphia Eagles
Quarterback
Jalen Hurts: 18/30, 185 Yards, 1 TD | 8 Attempts, 20 Yards, 1 TD, 1 fumble
This was a really ugly game from Hurts, no doubt about it. He didn’t target any of the wide receivers through the first quarter, maybe showing some lack of trust. Almost every throw past the sticks was inaccurate as the ball sailed high and out of bounds. His pocket presence was also poor, taking 6 sacks despite being a fairly mobile QB. He continues to show that he struggles in the face of pressure in both extending the play and getting the ball to his targets. A “brotherly shove” rushing touchdown may have salvaged his fantasy production, but he will need his support system to get healthy for him to return to playing at a high level.
Running Back
Saquon Barkley: 10 Attempts, 84 Yards | 4 Targets, 2 Receptions, 32 Yards
The literal heat of the day limited Saquon’s (and really everyone’s) snap share. Philly’s rushing game looked a bit less efficient missing some key pieces up front, but all this man needs is a small window to put a hurting on the defense. He broke off a 59-yard rush to start the second half to set up the Eagle’s second touchdown of the day and continues to be elusive as he breaks tackles after getting catches out of the backfield. He was set up to have a heavily involved game from a volume perspective, but the weather was an unexpected wrinkle.
Kenneth Gainwell: 2 Attempts, 9 Yards | 1 Target, 0 Receptions
Saquon is the clear lead runner in this backfield, though Gainwell gets his opportunities when Saquon needs some rest. That happened a lot this game, yet Gainwell still doesn’t seem to get much usage with his snaps on the field.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
A.J. Brown: DNP
Devonta Smith: DNP
Dallas Goedert: 8 Targets, 7 Receptions, 62 Yards
Last week’s breakout signaled that Goedert is Hurts’ favorite target outside of A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith. Goedert’s reliability was further enforced today, with his only incompletion coming on a bad throw. I would still expect Goedert to be involved when the star wideouts return given how in sync these two have been the past few weeks.
Parris Campbell: 4 Targets, 4 Receptions, 17 Yards, 1 TD
Three of Campbell’s routes were short hitches and slants, with the last one coming on a broken play as he found space in the endzone and caught his first touchdown of the year. Four targets aren’t a lot, but Campbell was Hurts’ first read on each of those three short passes.
Jahan Dotson: 4 Targets, 2 Receptions, 11 Yards
Dotson was targeted only once in the first half, and his first reception was with 6 minutes left in the game. He was a complete nonfactor when the team needed some help.
Grant Calcaterra: 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 26 Yards
Calcaterra is the second TE behind Geodert, with his only reception coming on a 26-yard strike up the seams. This is another player who could have benefitted from some increased snap share, but it was a bad day for the Eagles’ passing game.
John Ross: 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 6 Yards
Jack Stoll: 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 4 Yards
Johnny Wilson: 2 Targets, 0 Receptions
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Quarterback
Baker Mayfield: 30/47 347 Yards, 2 TDs | 4 Attempts, 10 Yards, 1 TD
The heat had no impact on Baker out of the gates as he led the team to all three touchdowns in the first 16 minutes of the game. Offensive Coordinator Liam Coen made the Eagles’ defense look inept. He started the game with short passes to force the Eagles to tackle in open space, which was clearly not their strong suit. This opened up deeper passes later in the game, but a comfortable lead resulted in the game script leaning toward running the ball. Like Hurts, Baker threw some inaccurate passes amidst pressure, with most of his incompletions coming in the second half when the game was in hand. This could have been a bigger game from Baker had the game been more competitive.
Running Back
Rachaad White: 10 Attempts, 49 Yards | 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 35 Yards
Another game from White that leaves fantasy managers hoping for a bit more. He was fairly efficient on the ground with his longest run going for 17 yards, and also had a 22-yard reception out of the backfield. The past few games have seen him lose some snaps to Bucky Irving, but this game is hard to judge the split given the weather forcing every player to sub-out after a few plays.
Bucky Irving: 10 Attempts, 49 Yards, 1 TD | 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 6 Yards
Irving found the endzone today despite potentially missing the game due to some mid-week injury concerns. You wouldn’t have known he had anything wrong with him though, as his strength and speed were still on display. His touchdown came from three consecutive handoffs inside the 10-yard line; however, White was in on the drive previous to setting up that opportunity. I wouldn’t say he’s definitely the favorite to get the goal line work, but the volume share and score today are promising.
Sean Tucker: 1 Attempt, 3 Yards | 1 Target, 1 Reception, 14 Yards
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Mike Evans: 14 Targets, 8 Receptions, 94 Yards, 1 TD
This has been a somewhat slow start to the season for Evans with a lot of the passing game going to Godwin during the first three games. The 1,000-yard machine had himself a solid day though to keep the streak potentially alive. He nearly had a second touchdown, but was broken up by a good play from the defender. He also had two uncharacteristic drops, one of which would have been a big 20+ yard gain.
Chris Godwin: 9 Targets, 6 Receptions, 69 Yards
Godwin continued his impressive season with another productive day, with most yards coming after the catch. He was used in a lot of pre-snap motion and caught all but one pass within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage. A few incompletions on deeper routes were attributed to poor throws from Baker under pressure.
Cade Otton: 9 Targets, 6 Receptions, 52 Yards
The big man owns the middle of the field and short spot routes. Two of the incompletions were drops due to contact, but this TE benefits from the WRs that stretch the defense thin.
Sterling Shepard: 5 Targets, 3 Receptions, 51 Yards
The vet was upgraded from the practice squad for this game and showed why. His longest catch of the day was a 30-yard strike coming off a double move. He also nearly had a huge touchdown on a deep fade but the ball was tipped right in front of his hands. This man still has it, creating separation on out-breaking routes and beating corners over the top.
Trey Palmer: 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 26 Yards, 1 TD
Shepard may have outpaced Palmer in targets, but Palmer had a 15-yard post for a touchdown. His two other receptions were both on short swing routes, which may not bode well for him being a consistently used target on this offense.
Kameron Johnson: 1 Target, 0 Receptions