Saquon Barkley Drop

Saquon Barkley’s crucial drop late in 4th quarter stuns Eagles in 22-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons

The Philadelphia Eagles are now 1-1 after a gut-wrenching loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football, falling 22-21 in a game that felt all too familiar.

Last season, the Eagles stumbled in three games with under two minutes remaining – a script they replayed yet again in their home opener. There were a million mistakes made but for now, we’ll focus on Saquon Barkley.

After posting 132 yards from scrimmage in his Eagles debut against the Packers in Week 1, Saquon Barkley put up 116 total yards and on Monday night against the Falcons but a dropped pass that would have iced the game on 3rd-and-3 proved to be costly late in fourth quarter.

To be very clear: Saquon Barkley has to catch the ball in crunch time. No excuses.

The Eagles were in a perfect position to close out the game against Atlanta, sitting on a 18-15 lead late in the fourth quarter. With two fresh first downs and Atlanta forced to burn their last two timeouts, it felt like Jalen Hurts and the offense had the game in their under control as they were faced a 3rd-and-3 at the Atlanta 10-yard line.

Hurts put the ball right on target, but as it hit Saquon Barkley’s fingertips, he dropped it.

That one catch could’ve iced the game with a first down and a chance to run out the clock with just 1:46 left. Instead, the Eagles had to settle for a 28-yard Jake Elliott field goal, clinging to an 21-15 lead and giving Atlanta the ball back on their own 30-yard line with 1:39 remaining.

Saquon Barkley drops wide open pass from Jalen Hurts on 3rd and 3

That drop? It can’t happen. Saquon Barkley knows it too.

“Once I knew it, I thought it was a great play call,” Barkley said. “I just gotta make the catch.” 

It wasn’t the only reason the Eagles lost, but it sure made things a whole lot harder for Nick Sirianni’s brain to comprehend that he shouldn’t have been passing and that not going for it on 4th down was one of the dumbest decisions ever.

Why Nick Sirianni is throwing the ball when the Falcons have zero timeouts in the first place? On top of that, once Saquon Barkley drops the completion, Sirianni decided to send out Jake Elliott? Am I taking crazy pills or what?

It was a decision beyond comprehension. Sirianni proved yet again to be way too inconsistent with his decisions on whether or not to be aggressive. It seem’s like the it’s the easiest ones he struggles most with too.

Going up 6 points there was completely pointless. The Eagles were going to lose if the Falcons scored a touchdown either way. You have to go for it. Jalen Hurts needed the football in his hands and an opportunity to convert a first time, run out the clock, and win the game but nope – Sirianni and company opted a Jake Elliott field goal to put the Eagles up six-points.

Not to mention, even if you didn’t get a first down, Atlanta would have started on the 10-yard line and been dealt 20-25 more yards to deal with on their touchdown drive.

That changes everything with play calling – specifically when they were faced with a third down – in field goal range on what turned out to be the game-winning drive.

It wasn’t just one play, but a series of them that led to the dramatic turn. The dagger came when Kirk Cousins connected with wideout Drake London in the right corner of the end zone on a 3rd-and-5 from the Philadelphia 7-yard line, tying the game.

Atlanta got hit with a 15-yard penalty after the score, pushing back the extra point to a daunting 48 yards. No problem for Younghoe Koo, though. He drilled it, giving the Falcons the lead and turning the momentum completely in their favor.

What a nightmare.

The Eagles got the football back, down one point with 34 seconds left on their own 30-yard line. On 1st-and-10, Hurts connected with Dallas Goedert for 13 yards and burned their second timeout. Now on the 43-yard line, Hurts threw a deep pass intended for Devonta Smith but it was intercepted by Jesse Bates at the Atlanta 32-yard line to ice the game. 

I question that decision too. I know Hurts got hit when he threw the ball but you need to use your legs and get out of the pocket and at the very least throw it away. There’s 26 seconds on the clock and you have one timeout.

A field goal wins that game, not a home run to DeVonta Smith.

Just a very bad loss in what should have been an Eagles victory on Monday Night Football. Now, the 1-1 Eagles will have to win on the road against the New Orleans Saints next weekend to avoid a 1-2 start to the season.

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