Why can't the Eagles score in the second half?

 

 

 

Reuben Frank

EAGLES INSIDER

In the big picture, it’s not a huge deal. The Eagles are 3-0, they’ve done enough to win each game, the last couple haven't been close, and in the NFL nothing else matters except winning.

Still … 14 second-half points in three games isn’t ideal.

Cause for alarm? Nah. Cause for concern? Sure.

The Eagles have outscored the Lions, Vikings and Commanders 79-28 in the first half, and that plus-51 first-half scoring margin is the largest in the NFL by far.  

That plus-51 figure is 9^th-highest by any NFL team through three games since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 and highest by any NFC team since the 1999 Rams – the Greatest Show on Turf – were plus-60.

The Eagles are the first team in NFL history to score 24 points before halftime in each of their first three games. 

The second half has been a different story. The Eagles have been outscored 29-14 after halftime, and that minus-15 scoring margin is eighth-worst in the NFL.

The Eagles are the first team in NFL history to score at least 24 first-half points in consecutive games and then get shut out in the second half.

And the third team in NFL history to outscore its first three opponents by 50 or more points in the first half, only to be outscored by at least 15 points in the second half. The 1989 Broncos and 2011 Texans are the others.

After the Eagles finished off Washington 24-8 Sunday, Jalen Hurts’ message to his teammates was that playing 30 minutes just isn’t good enough.

"I feel like everybody has the right type of focus going into the second half, we just have to execute,” he said. "I think there are a handful of plays in the second half where they can go the whole entire other way if we just hit it. If we connect on the (deep) throw to A.J. (Brown), a whole different feeling in the second half. If we get Dallas (Goedert) involved, if we handle a certain pressure a certain way. 

"Those are all things that we can control, and that was my message to the team. We go out there, and you look yourself in the mirror as a man and say, ‘Am I controlling the things that I can control?’ If you can do that, that’s how you can get better. That’s how you take steps because that’s a piece of accountability but it’s also the first step in the right direction to growth.”

In the opener, it was the defense that fell apart in the second half, allowing 21 points to the Lions. The defense has been terrific in both halves the last two weeks, allowing seven and eight points, but the offense has sputtered.

Overall, the Eagles have outgained their opponents by an astonishing average of 321-104 before halftime, only to get outgained 199-125 in the second half.

Now, it would be impossible for the Eagles to maintain their insane first-half offensive pace over a full game. There’s something to be said for building a big lead, then reducing your risk and getting the clock down to 0:00 as safely and quickly as possible.

But you also can’t just stop playing or good teams are going to come back on you. The Lions almost did.

Nick Sirianni said after the Vikings game the Eagles weren’t aggressive enough in the second half, and he seemed to think the opposite was true Sunday in Washington.

"I think it was the exact opposite this week, we were pretty aggressive this week,” he said. "You guys saw how we played that second half, we were pretty aggressive. There’s probably somewhere in the middle there, with the aggressiveness and taking the foot off the gas. We (need to be) somewhere in the middle.”

Through three games, the Eagles have scored 72 points in the first half, not only most in the NFL this year before halftime but the most in franchise history through three games. 

But only five teams have scored fewer points in the second half – the 49ers, Seahawks, Packers, Titans and Cowboys going into their Monday night game. 

Defensively, the Eagles are No. 6 in the NFL in the first half, No. 19 in the second half.

They’ve gotten away with it so far. But it’s a dangerous way to go about your business.

"And I’m always going to take responsibility for that and we have to put away a game like that,” Sirianni said. "It’s 24-0, we have to be able to put a game away.”

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/why-cant-eagles-score-second-half

It is at the point of becoming a little bit of an issue. In closer games these things are going to matter so they need to sort it. But they have been so in control I think that's had a major impact. 

While they try to figure it out, I'd like to add that it's not about being more aggressive or more conservative. It's about playing smart football. If the opponent is trying to neutralize the run game,  go to an efficient passing game. We don't have to go for the death blow in one play. Sustained, time-consuming drives that end in a TD are more demoralizing than a 2-play 70 yard TD series that takes 32 seconds off the clock.