This was a terrible game. My entire Monday was ruined. It was hard to watch, but I honestly felt pretty good at halftime. The Eagles were down only 10-7, they were set to get the ball to start the third quarter, Saquon Barkley had finally found some room in the ground game, and Jalen Hurts had just led a touchdown drive. Then the second half happened: three straight three-and-outs, Case Keenum picking apart the defense, and a 27-7 loss to a team starting its third-string quarterback.

The Eagles are still 2-1, but that felt like more than a loss, that was an annihilation.

1. Case Keenum shredded the defense

This was the game I hoped The Birds would force their first turnover of the season, and it was the game I hope the sacks would finally pile up. Neither of those things happened.

Keenum completed 24 of 34 passes for 247 yards and two touchdowns, added a rushing touchdown, and was not sacked even once. The most frustrating part: Keenum was got the ball and quick and seemingly was never hurried.

Kalif Raymond’s 41-yard touchdown in the third quarter was a dagger, and it was emblematic of the coverage breakdowns that turn an efficient night for an elderly third-string quarterback into a truly humiliating one for the defense. Andrew Mukuba was beat on that play, and as I’ll cover throughout this article he, Marcus Epps, and others couldn’t guard anyone all night.

Keenum deserves credit for recognizing where to go with the ball. Ben Johnson deserves credit for making his job easier. Fangio’s defense definitely deserves the criticism that comes with letting a 38-year-old quarterback, making his first start since 2023, control the game this comfortably. The Bears finished with 375 yards, 24 first downs, and nearly 37 minutes of possession. It was hard to watch.

2. How have the Eagles still not forced a turnover?

Three games. Zero takeaways. The defense was generally bad all night. But as a fan, the most infuriating aspect of watching the defense this season is the lack of big plays.

The really maddening part is that the Eagles have come close. In Week 1, Jalen Carter forced a fumble from Jacory Croskey-Merritt, but a Washington lineman recovered it. In Tennessee, Jihaad Campbell knocked the ball loose from Tyjae Spears, only for it to go out of bounds. On Monday, Greenard forced a Keenum fumble, and Keenum recovered it himself. Three real chances to change a game, and none became an Eagles possession. Quinyon Mitchell also broke up two passes against Chicago that he should have really intercepted. We need our top guys to make the plays, and we need a little luck to bounce our way.

Vic has shown that his defense can create takeaways without gambling recklessly. His 2024 Eagles finished with 26, including 24 after their first six games. I am hoping this start is another slow stretch before the takeaways arrive. But hoping does not recover a fumble.

Here’s the thing that really stings: Nakobe Dean. The Eagles let him leave in free agency while giving Jihaad Campbell the starting job beside Zack Baun. Dean is now on a 3-0 Raiders team, and Las Vegas credits him with 27 tackles, 1.5 sacks and three forced fumbles in three games. PFF has him at an 84.5 overall grade, third among qualified linebackers. He has forced as many fumbles by himself as Philadelphia has recorded sacks as a team. That does not prove the Eagles made the wrong long-term choice, but it is hard to watch Dean punch the ball out week in and week out, while we still have no turnovers.

3. The interceptions were brutal and hurt my soul

Andy Dalton’s interception near the goal line hurt me, my vocal chords, and my sould. The Eagles had driven nearly the length of the field after a defensive stop, with a chance to erase a miserable stretch of football. Hurts was undergoing a concussion evaluation after a sideline hit, and Dalton threw into the end zone for an interception. Losing points there was crushing; losing them while Hurts was visibly desperate to get back into the game made it worse.

Hurts said afterward that he felt fine and was waiting for clearance, adding that he wished the process could have been expedited. Sirianni told ESPN at halftime that it was frustrating but the doctors had to do their job. He later said he considered a timeout to give Hurts more time to be cleared, but did not know whether one would make the difference. I wish he had taken it, given the field position and what was at stake.

I came out of that sequence wanting Tanner McKee as QB2, an experienced backup’s job is to not make the major mistake (ie Keenum.)

Hurts’s own interception on fourth-and-five was a different kind of frustration. Watching live, it looked as though he had decided on DeVonta Smith before the coverage declared itself. Hurts’s explanation was more specific: Chicago showed an all-out blitz, dropped out, and he tried to find Smith in a spot between defenders. He acknowledged that Makai Lemon was available on a hitch to the field and that he could have taken it. That pick pretty much sealed the game.

4. Enough with the Makai Lemon Bubble Screens

The first Eagles offensive play went to Lemon on a crossing route for 19 yards. When he caught the ball moving through space, he looked like a real receiver who could help this offense. But, he finished Monday with three catches for 29 yards, including multiple screens that lost yards.

The screen problem goes beyond Lemon. An early-season review counted seven Eagles screens for minus-15 yards through the first two games. Brian Baldinger’s breakdown of the repeated screen design focused on the perimeter blocking: the Eagles were showing similar motion and formations, then failing to secure the defenders outside. Monday supplied another ugly example. When a play keeps asking Lemon to dodge a tackler before he can even reach the line of scrimmage, I do not think the resulting stat line tells us much about his receiving ability.

I want more of the routes that let him separate across the field, settle into open space and give Hurts a clear target on schedule. If I see another bubble screen to Lemon I will scream (maybe we can hit them with a fake on it.)

5. The first-half run game gave us something, then disappeared

Saquon Barkley had 73 yards on 11 carries before halftime, which looked like the beginning of a proper Eagles rushing performance. Yet, he only got nine yards on four carries after halftime.

Drew Kendall was one encouraging part of the night. In the clip of his block on Grady Jarrett, Kendall resets his hands, drives through the rep and finishes Jarrett on the turf. NBC’s film review also credited him with no pressures allowed in 33 pass-protection dropbacks against Chicago. His PFF season grades now stand at 63.3 overall, 67.8 in pass blocking and 60.3 in run blocking.

Cam Jurgens has been harder to evaluate positively since moving to left guard after Landon Dickerson’s injury. PFF charged him with four of the line’s seven pressures allowed against Chicago. His season grades are 48.9 overall, 32.2 in pass blocking and 62.1 in run blocking. There were run snaps where the interior got movement, but the pass-protection issues and the second-half results make it difficult to call the whole line performance a success.

6. Three straight three-and-outs after halftime were unbearable

The Eagles entered halftime down only 10-7 after Hurts returned and scored on a sneak as time expired. They had survived Dalton’s interception and still had a real chance. Then the first three possessions of the second half were three-and-outs. Sitting through one is frustrating. Watching three in a row while the Bears steadily take over the game is the kind of stretch that makes it hard to be a fan.

This is more than a one-game complaint. Through three weeks, eight of the Eagles’ 11 third-quarter possessions have been three-and-outs. NFL.com had Philadelphia 31st in three-and-punt percentage after the Bears game. The Eagles converted only two of nine third downs Monday after entering the game at 53.1% across the first two weeks.

This has got to change!

7. Kenny Moore is here, Campbell needs to improve, and Sunday cannot look like this

The Eagles moved Kenny Moore II from the practice squad to the active roster on Tuesday. I am not expecting him to solve the secondary by Sunday simply because he has a roster spot, but he could be big at nickel or safety.

The linebacker spot deserves some scrutiny and change. Jihad Campbell has made plays in pursuit and has 28 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble through three games, so I do not want to dismiss everything he has done. His coverage has been a serious problem, though. One tracking account has opposing quarterbacks at a 138.9 passer rating when targeting the player he covers, with 10 completions on 12 targets for 128 yards and a touchdown. Combine those completions with the tackling mistakes, and I think Jeremiah Trotter Jr. has earned a real look for more defensive snaps. Fangio said a Trotter rotation is possible, and with Baun in concussion protocol and OUT this week, we will get some snaps from Trot.

The Rams come to Lincoln Financial Field Sunday at 1 p.m. on a short week. Fangio has acknowledged the quick-pass communication mistakes and wants more game-speed takeaway practice; Greenard should have a chance for a larger role as he works back. On offense, I want to see the first-half run game survive halftime, Lemon get useful routes, and one third-quarter drive that lasts long enough for me to stop dreading the punt team. I hope Chicago becomes the embarrassing game we point back to after the Eagles correct it.