Written by Marc Sessler at NFL.com
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz started off his NFL career a winner as Philly (1-0) topped theBrowns by a 29-10 score at home. Wentz went from possibly being inactive to the Eagles’ starting quarterback after Sam Bradford was dealt to Minnesota. So far, so good.
1. Carson Wentz played just 38 snaps in the preseason, but the No. 2 overall pick looked at home in his NFL debut. The Eagles rookie quarterback opened the game completing four of his first five throws, leaning on his tight ends before unfurling a beautiful 19-yard, over-the-shoulder scoring strike to Jordan Matthews in the left corner of the end zone. While he sails the occasional throw, Wentz — 22 of 37 for 278 yards with two touchdowns — deserves a ton of credit for directing five scoring drives against aBrowns defense that tried everything to apply pressure. Wentz stood in the pocket and showed off his strong arm on a variety of lobs, including a key fourth-down conversion that saw the rookie complete a money throw to Zach Ertz before hooking up with Nelson Agholor for his second touchdown pass of the day. It wasn’t perfect, but what Wentz accomplished on Sunday should create a lively week for talk-radio hosts in Cleveland.
2. The Browns were invisible on offense until constructing a seven-play, 75-yard touchdown march midway through the second quarter to cut Philly’s lead to 10-7. Prior to that drive, the Eagles had seven first downs to zero for Cleveland. The tone of the game shifted when Robert Griffin III hit Terrelle Pryor on a 44-yard bomb that set up that first score, but the quarterback — 12 of 26 for 190 yards — later saw an off-target pass to Corey Coleman tipped and picked off. The rookie wideout made up for it with a 58-yard grab in the second half, but Cleveland’s offense feels like a deep-ball-or-bust operation. Griffin wasn’t helped by a nonexistent ground game or by second-year center Cam Erving, who floated a snap over RG3’s head and out of the end zone for a game-changing safety. The second half saw Griffin hammered by Philly’s defense, which piled up three sacks and forced the passer into a handful of rushed, erratic throws. The Browns are a long way away from fielding a sustainable attack.
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