Wentzlemania
We’ll have the full Bird Droppings coming shortly, but just a few quick thoughts on the impressive 29-14 win.
Carson Wentz is incredible. He looked like Peyton Manning on the first drive, with all of its obvious passing plays and no-back sets. How many other rookie quarterbacks are directing their blockers and receivers – going so far as to walk over to the slot receiver – at all like that during their rookie year, let alone their first drive on the road on Monday Night Football? It doesn’t happen. Hell, most veteran quarterbacks aren’t capable of that sort of thing. For a moment, you wondered who was calling the plays– Wentz or Crusher Doug.
It only got better from there.
I can’t recall more than one bad throw. Everything is on the money. Wentz doesn’t make mistakes. He doesn’t force things. Take that first drive, for example– he easily could’ve tried to force something on third and goal – say, a backhand shovel scoop to Trey Burton? – but he didn’t and calmy scampered out of bounds and took the easy three points. I’d wager that most rookies, and many vets – especially that chain-smoking goof Jay Cutler, who was out there like a quarterback in NFL Street just mashing buttons trying to make something happen – would try to force a throw there or do something foolish and try to break for the end zone.
The only negative from Wentz last night was his reverting back to his preseason self and putting his human vessel in danger, twice taking scary blows outside the pocket. He’s big enough to withstand them – Sam Bradford would’ve needed both medical doctors and a mental health professional had he taken the one hit – but it’s unsustainable. He didn’t do this in the Browns game. He’ll learn how to protect himself, but it needs to happen before he breaks into pieces of me, Ashlee Simpson.
His stats were muted because Jordan Matthews and Nelson Agholor continue to have hands made of stone. Matthews dropped a beautiful touchdown pass– the type of pass top wide receivers in the NFL never drop. The ball was just floated in there, in the end zone, and Matthews straight-up dropped it:
Jordan Matthews a good player, but that’s a 4-point drop. Just a ridiculous drop.
— Peter King (@peter_king) September 20, 2016
And then there’s Nelson Agholor, a high-end athlete who is deceptively a puss when it comes to making tough catches. Twice Wentz got him the ball in tight spots (one a touchdown) and twice Agholor didn’t have the strength to hold on. Those attempts were a higher degree of difficulty than Matthews’ dropped touchdown, but they were still highly catchable.
I’d argue that a third touchdown – Wentz’s pass to a Celek on the first drive – was nullified only because of an outstanding defensive play.
If two of those would-be touchdowns find their way into receivers’ hands, we’re looking at a 250 yards passing, three touchdown, no interception performance from Wentz last night. It just doesn’t make sense how he can make the jump from I-AA whatever it’s called to the NFL and be that poised… while the rest of us lose our minds at his potential.