A sloppy and disjointed performance across the board resulted in the Philadelphia Eagles (2-1) losing their first game of the season to the Chicago Bears (2-1) Monday Night at Soldier Field.
The defense was shockingly carved up by journeyman third-string quarterback Case Keenum, who threw for 247 yards and two touchdowns, while the Eagles offense couldn't get into a rhythm, committing a season-high 10 penalties.
It was a wild first half that saw a lot of action despite only 17 points on the scoreboard.
The Bears punched the Eagles in the mouth on a masterful scripted opening drive where third-string quarterback Keenum completed five of his six passes for 45 yards, capping the drive off with an eight-yard shovel pass to Luther Burden III for the touchdown to make it a third straight week the Eagles started a game trailing.
Offensively, the Eagles showed promise early, but hurt themselves with multiple penalties.
After a drive-opening 19-yard reception by Makai Lemon and a 12-yard run by Saquon Barkley followed, an intentional grounding call stalled the drive. After the defense forced a punt, Tank Bigsby fumbled on a short reception on the Eagles’ 15-yard line to set Chicago up swimmingly for points.
The Eagles caught multiple breaks on the ensuing drive. First, Colston Loveland, who was originally ruled in for a score on a short pass, was down a yard shy of the end zone. After Jalen Carter crashed through the line for a short loss on a D’Andre Swift carry, the Eagles somehow lost the Bears’ top wideout, Rome Odunze, in the back of the end zone, but the pass led him out of bounds. Chicago opted to go for it on fourth down, and Quinyon Mitchell came up with a big pass break-up to end the threat.
Taking over on their own three-yard line, Hurts and the offense went to work. With a good mix of run and pass along with a 21-yard defensive pass interference call, the Eagles were inside the red zone.
Hurts scrambled on a second and four and took a brutal hit from D’Marco Jackson while heading to the sidelines. The quarterback was forced to leave the game for a medical evaluation to be tested for a concussion.
While that took place, Barkley was able to get to the one-yard line, but the Eagles could not punch it in. While Hurts was still in the medical tent, Andy Dalton had to come into the game and threw an interception in the end zone on third and goal to end the promising drive in back-breaking fashion.
Chicago capitalized and drove 69 yards on 11 plays but stalled in the red zone and settled for a field goal to take a 10-0 lead.
With Hurts cleared and back in the game, the fired-up quarterback completed four straight passes, including a beauty to DeVonta Smith for 30 yards.
With no timeouts remaining and 19 seconds left on the clock, a quick screen pass went to Smith, who tried to power his way into the end zone but was stopped at the one-yard line. With the clock nearing zero, Hurts called for a rushed tush push and scored right before the clock expired to make it a 10-7 game at halftime.
The third-quarter woes, which have been an issue since last season and continued into this year, were on display once again. The Eagles went three-and-out on three consecutive drives in the quarter, totaling six yards.
While the offense struggled to generate any momentum, Keenum continued to carve up the Eagles' defense, finding a wide-open Kalif Raymond for a 41-yard touchdown to make it a 20-7 Philadelphia deficit.
It didn't get better for Hurts and the offense. The quarterback telegraphed his throw on a fourth and five near the end of the third quarter, throwing his first interception of the game.
The Bears put the game away after Keenum put an exclamation point on his improbable night with a quarterback sneak to make it 27-7 with 7:19 remaining. The drive was extended on a neutral zone infraction against the Eagles on a critical 4th and 2 when the Bears were just trying to get the Eagles to jump, which they did.The Eagles finished the game with 10 penalties, more than they had in their first two games of the season combined.
The offense has scored just six points in the third quarter this season.
The Eagles have had multiple turnovers in back-to-back games after having multiple turnovers in just four games during the regular season.
Meanwhile, the Eagles are the only team in the NFL without a takeaway through the first three weeks of the season. It's the first time since 1945 an Eagles team has started a season without a takeaway through the first three games.
The Eagles did a good job stuffing the potent Bears rushing attack that averaged nearly 213 yards on the ground per game through the first two weeks. However, they let Keenum, a journeyman and third-string quarterback for the Bears, carve them up throughout the game.
It doesn't get easier for the Eagles. They will welcome in the Los Angeles Rams (1-2) on short rest who look to take their frustrations out after blowing a lead in Denver on Sunday Night Football.
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