By Tucker Bagley, Sports Talk Philly staff writer 
It's time once again for the complete breakdown of everything from Sunday's Eagles loss to the Bengals. Let's get started.
Going Deep
The Philadelphia Eagles are not a good football team. They have proven that over and over again over the past few weeks as they have consistently been out-classed by their opponents.
It's apparent to everyone that they're a bad team. Well, everyone except for the men who work at the NovaCare Complex. As Doug Pederson continues to shoulder the blame for the team's shortcomings week after week, it seems like the accountability in the locker room has been lost.
"It's not a lack of effort," Pederson said, just minutes after his team got beaten up and down the field by the Bengals who entered the game with only three wins on the year.
"We still have a month of football left," the coach went on to say. "Obviously three of the next four are division opponents. We've got some challenges I told the guys in the locker room at the end of the game, this can go either one of two ways. I only know one way that it's going to go, and that's up. We just have to dig ourselves out of this hole, and it starts next week."
That sounds good. Almost too good, considering it's the same thing he said a week ago. Pederson has started to learn the right things to say in front of the cameras, but as the results have slipped, his words now ring hollow. After watching the poor effort his team put forth for him yesterday, it is worth wondering whether it feels that way in the locker room too.
Take Fletcher Cox, for example. The $103-million man refused to admit the Eagles pass rush is struggling, despite strong evidence that proves otherwise. Instead, the defensive tackle argued the opposing offense's insistence on throwing short passes has rendered the pass rush useless.
Even Zach Ertz has fallen under this illusion of comfort and complacency.
"The second half, we played with a lot of urgency," Ertz said. "I thought we played a lot better. Obviously, you can make the argument they were just trying to protect the lead, play prevent defense, but we moved the ball better. I thought there was more of a sense of urgency. I don't think guys gave up, by any means."
The fact that any NFL player would even find it alright to point to meaningless stats from garbage time is laughable. Even if the Eagles really believe they moved the ball well, they still scored only 14 points in that half of football. But, remember, this is the player who thought this was an acceptable blocking effort:
Great block from Zach Ertz! pic.twitter.com/rk3xPcj8K7
— Kyle Scott (@CrossingBroad) December 4, 2016
The Eagles have problems that run deeper than just not being talented enough. They have simply regressed as the season has worn on, which is a reflection of Pederson and his coaching staff not being able to stay one step ahead of the opposition. With yesterday's loss, all hope for this season is gone, but perhaps a leader can emerge on this roster and give the team the rude wake-up call they need.
Injury Report
Did Not Play: Ryan Mathews (knee), Jordan Matthews (ankle), Halapoulivaati Vaitai (knee)
Dorial Green-Beckham: In the third quarter, Green-Beckham took a vicious hit from Vontaze Burfict and left the game holding his ribs. The wide receiver went into the locker room for x-rays and never returned. The Eagles were already shorthanded at receiver with Matthews out and finished the game with just three guys healthy.
If neither Green-Beckham nor Matthews are healthy by Sunday, the Eagles will have to make a roster move. They recently signed former Texas Longhorns receiver Marcus Johnson to the practice squad, so he would seem to be the logical choice, should it come to that.
Numbers Game
60: Wentz became just the second rookie quarterback to attempt 60 passes in a game yesterday. The first was Chris Weinke who attempted 63 passes in a 30-7 loss to the Arizona Cardinals in 2001. The Eagles offense has become tremendously unbalanced over the past few weeks and hopefully this was the tipping point. Despite being dominated for the entire game, the Eagles still ran 80 offensive plays and won the time of possession battle.
I understand that with Mathews out and Darren Sproles nursing a broken rib the Eagles were a bit thin at running back, but passing on 75 percent of your plays when you have a struggling rookie QB is not smart.
80: Rookie wide receiver Paul Turner picked up 80 receiving yards on six catches yesterday in just his second career game. Like a lot of the Eagles numbers, his were inflated a bit during garbage time, but it's still an impressive stat line for the undrafted free agent from Utah State, so much so, he surpassed Nelson Agholor's career highs in those categories.
Turner isn't a game-breaking wide receiver, but he has good hands and is a decent route runner. At the very least he can help move the chains for a struggling Eagles offense.
1: The Eagles defense defended just one pass yesterday, and that was by Cox who batted a ball at the line of scrimmage. Andy Dalton absolutely carved up the Eagles yesterday and the fact that not one of the Birds' defensive backs even got their hands on the ball is absurd.
Quotables
Jalen Mills should support a Burn Unit with his cleats.
— BleedingGreenNation (@BleedingGreen) December 4, 2016
Mills wasn't as bad as some of his teammates, namely Nolan Carroll and Leodis McKelvin, but it may have been one of his worst performances of the year. I'm still surprised that the rookie doesn't get a chance to see significant snaps until one of the two veterans screws up. Why not play him first so there aren't any screw ups, you know?
#mycausemycleats pic.twitter.com/PMXY1ngFRw
— 4th and JAWN (@4thandJawn) December 4, 2016
I think this is a cause we can all get behind.
Weekly Awards
No one on the Eagles really did much yesterday to warrant adoration, sarcastic or otherwise. So we'll leave this section blank for the week and hope the act stings enough to inspire better play.
Three-Step Drop
1. A report came out yesterday morning saying the Eagles are interested in signing DeSean Jackson when he becomes a free agent in the offseason. While it will certainly be cool to see Jackson back in midnight green, he would have to come at a discount. Jackson has missed a lot of time in recent years due to injuries and as he ages, his speed will diminish, rendering his most-powerful tool ineffective. He is certainly a name worth exploring, but if the Eagles really want a veteran presence in their receiving corps, a guy like Anquan Boldin could be a better option.
2. We'll stay with the wide receiver theme for a second and talk about Nelson Agholor who came back and did what was asked of him. He didn't have any game-breaking plays, but he also didn't have any garish drops or bone-headed mistakes either. Four catches for 23 yards isn't a particularly good day, but for Agholor, it is a step in the right direction.
3. The Eagles were able to force two fumbles at the end of the game, but the defense has really lost their nose for the football in recent weeks. The Birds forced a turnover in each of their first nine games, but had gone without one in their past two contests. Granted, it is hard to force Aaron Rodgers or Russell Wilson into mistakes, but when you can't punch a ball loose or impose your will for two games, your effort will be questioned.
Who's Next
The Eagles will continue their search for a win back at Lincoln Financial Field when they host the Washington Redskins on Sunday afternoon. The Eagles are still winless in the division and lost to the Redskins in Landover, 27-20, back in October.
Washington is riding a two-game skid after losing to the Arizona Cardinals yesterday. Kirk Cousins has really started to put things together over the past few weeks and has a passer rating over 100 on the season. With the Eagles pass defense really struggling, especially against short passes, Jim Schwartz's crew will have their hands full with Cousins.
