I have read about people complaining about playcalling but to my eyes it looked like a series of bad individual performances was the real issue. While Murray was able to only gain 3.7 ypc that was due to poor blocking particularly from the left side.
The defense still fails to cover routes run into zone coverages particularly underneath and a lack of team speed was on full display.
The OL was at best a mixed bag. Both Leary and Smith were bad and appear hurt. Smith failed to reach blocks, seemed weak at the poa and was pressing to the point it created problems.
Leary was god awful for all of some fans excuse making. He missed several blocks on first half runs fail to block anyone on the second level multiple times. He followed that up by being a sieve for Fletcher Cox in the nickel. He whiffed horribly on simple inside out moves and gave up sacks on consecutive plays in the 3rd when we finally abandoned the run. After that they gave him help but he continued to struggle and failed to block anyone allowing pressure into his A and B gap on stunts and blitzes. When Leary is on he is a mauling force but this game saw him as bad or worse as Chicago or Detroit last year.
Fred was up and down. He lost his feet a couple times trying to reach blocks and led to negative runs and screwed up the snap count leading to a sack but he also was dominant at the poa a few times springing runs in the first half.
Martin was once again dominant at the poa and on the move. I think it makes sense next year flipping guards and having Leary closer to potential help of the strongside. Martin seems better suited to matchup with the league's various 3 techniques on a consistent basis.
Free was consistent in reaching his blocks and executing but as usual he doesn't have great power to tryuly be a difference maker. When he is the worst player on the line it's great. When the left side plays as it did then that is another story.
Romo got freaked out after the left side caved and poor pass protection was once again a serious issue. We can make noise all we want about how Callahan has done wonders for the run game but his pass protection has been spotty all year. Romo was not particularly accurate to begin with but soon he was throwing off balance on his front or back foot and plain running for his life. The interceptions were bad but he was clearly impacted by the pass rush we couldn't block very well.
Murray ran hard but left yards out there trying to make a play. Cannot fault his effort though. While much of the skill position players came in soft and half asleep, he came to play from the opening. Randle and Dunbar looked very good with quickness to the line and determined running.
Dez made plays and kept his cool for what must have surely been a frustrating game for him. He fought for passes and kept trying to make plays when the offense was clearly struggling in the second half. Williams finally decided to play with a bit more urgency at the end but by then it was out of reach. His soft route running has become a problem.
Beasley can get open easily against most coverages in the NFL. He is an asset. The fumble he had saw him moving the ball from the inside to outside arm and the LB made a good play. That being said that is no excuse; if he is going to fumble then he needs cover with both hands and get down. That fumble in the second quarter was a back breaker.
Witten continues to block well at the poa but its hard to evaluate route running with the telecast. Hanna and Escobar got pushed around and didn't hold LB blocks particularly well. Hanna was particularly disappointing
Defense was not good. Selvie is okay but he lacks quickness and was exploited. He is a solid backup but marginal starter. He did make a few plays and pressures but also failed at the poa and was a nonfactor at other times.
Nick Hayden just pisses me off now. He saw one double team and blown off the ball but for the most part he saw single blocking and was dominated. It's entirely too easy to hook and seal him leaving a big fat lane. The Eagles ran at him and Selvie a lot and it worked. Seeing him in on the nickle at this point really really really makes me mad. He makes no plays and gets no push. I fail to see the point of him outside of making line calls and chasing down plays 10 yards downfield.
Crawford was a bright spot and was able to beat Mathis several times. He did a good job penetrating and getting off blocks all game long. Mincey struggled to get away from Peters all game long. He is another who is a marginal starter but superb backup.
Spencer was quick and did a good job chasing down the line and getting off blocks. His pass rush wasn't dominant but it did move Sanchez off his spot and force throws. Problem is that the Hayden single block and double on the 3 tech left a nice pocket to step into.
T McClain plays a bit out of control. He is quick upfield and disruptive but he doesn't maintain control and cannot finish. Melton didn't play much and got a LOT of attention when he did.
Lawrence saw a lot of runs and held his own at the poa. He uses his arms to his advantage. His pass rush moves are unrefined to say that least and his handwork is a work in progress. Lack of training camp impacted him severely.
WIlber didn't see much action in the first half. We played a lot of Heath at nickel LB with Spillman andWilcox behind. When Wilber was in he wasn't effective.
Rolando looked like much of our defense: slow. He gave good effort but the eagles did a good job getting guards onto him and he was forever on the chase. He was not prepared to cover routes into his zone.
Hitchens was targeted and exploited in the run and pass all game long. He was dominated against Celek and the OG at the poa. Blown off the ball and gave up huge runs. They ran routes at him continually and he failed to keep up with Celek on a crossing route giving up a TD. He gave up another big play on the Bruce Carter special being baited underneath and giving up a play over the top
Carter was playing scared and uncertain once again. You cannot do that against runs up the middle and sharp off tackle. Instead of filling holes he was a step slow. He came closest to executing his zones but failed to makes plays on the ball.
Church looks slow and they ran right at him in the nickel and he caved. Did okay chasing off the back end but he cannot get outside to the sideline on deep throws when taking a deep drop. Was pushed around on teams as well.
Wilcox was up and down but he was relentless and aggressive. His play in the second quarter was inspiring and got some stops but the offense's turnovers made it all for naught. He did make some mistakes in coming up too aggressively and taking bad angles but he continues to make plays and I expect those bad decisions to become less and less as he gains experience. He can get to the sideline and he likes to hit.
Spillman got plenty of time and was targeted and exploited as well. He lacks awareness and doesn't anticipate throws or routes into his zone. Sanchez was not scared to throw into the middle of the field due to atrocious coverage from LB and S.
Corners were okay. Carr is a favorite whipping boy but outside of the in route off cover 3 he was fine. He is not equipped to play that coverage well especially with LB who don't know how to buzz routes worth a flip.
Scandrick was flattened in the run game multiple times and surrendered crossing routes.
Moore was consistent in coverage and made plays the few times he was thrown on.
Garrett and company got outcoached and outmaneuvered. Spillman, Wilber, Heath, Hitchens, Hayden, Smith, Leary, Hanna, and Romo were all targeted successfully and exploited resulting in the butt whopping we all watched.
