Seahawks 24, Eagles 10: Studs, duds, turning point and more

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SEATTLE — The Eagles talked all week about how important this road trip was going to be.

They talked about how these next few games could very well define their season.

Then they had a clunker.  

The Eagles went down early to the Seahawks at a raucous CenturyLink Field on Sunday night and never recovered. They committed too many penalties, had a major turnover, struggled to stop Russell Wilson and didn't get a consistent game from Carson Wentz or head coach Doug Pederson.

They lost 24-10 (see Roob's observations)

The Eagles dropped to 10-2 and lost their first game since Sept. 17 in Kansas City. They failed to set a new franchise record of 10 straight wins.

They also failed to clinch the division this weekend.

With the win, the Seahawks improved to 8-4 and avoided losing three games in a row at home. It would have been the first time that happened since 2008.

Thanks to a Vikings win earlier on Sunday, the Eagles are no longer the top team in the NFC. They have the same record as the Vikings, who would win in tiebreakers for the one-seed if the playoffs began today. 

The Eagles had a pretty awful first half, but trailed by just one touchdown heading into the locker room and got the ball back to start the second half. Unfortunately for the Eagles, Wentz fumbled the ball at the goal line on the first drive of the second half and the Eagles failed to get points.

During the week, defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz warned of how dangerous Russell Wilson can be. He was right. Wilson was tremendous for all of Sunday's game. His ability to use his legs to extend plays really hurt the Eagles.

Turning point
Wentz's fumble out of the back of the end zone in the third quarter was a disaster. The Eagles could have tied the game at 10-10. Instead, the Seahawks got the ball back and scored for a 14-point swing. 

Key stat
After the Bears game a week ago, Pederson warned that penalties and turnovers could come back to hurt the Eagles against better competition. That's what happened on Sunday.

The Eagles were on the receiving end of several questionable calls, but they still committed too many penalties. They had seven for 64 yards.

Offensive stud
Nelson Agholor was the Eagles' best receiver on Sunday. He had the first 100-yard game of his career.

Offensive dud
Wentz just didn't have his best game on Sunday. Even aside from that disastrous fumble out of the end zone, he didn't show his normal MVP-like form against the Seahawks. He made a couple fantastic throws, but it came too late (see report card).

Left tackle Halapoulivaati Vaitai, who has been solid recently, had a really bad game against Seattle. 

Defensive stud
Brandon Graham continues to play great football. He's a game-wrecker. In the first half, he sacked Wilson from his knees. He picked up another half sack in the second half. 

Defensive dud
A few players deserve blame. The Eagles' defense didn't pull its weight. Malcolm Jenkins, Rodney McLeod and Mychal Kendricks were beaten through the air. 

Key plays
• Kendricks was faked out of his shoes by J.D. McKissic in the fourth quarter on a 15-yard touchdown pass. After the Eagles made it a one-score game, the defense gave up a 73-yard touchdown drive to push the lead to 24-10.

• On a key third down in the fourth quarter, Wilson lateraled the ball after a six-yard carry to pick up the first down. Replays showed it might have been a forward pass, but the Eagles didn't challenge the ruling.

• On 3rd-and-13 in the fourth quarter, Wentz somehow threw an incredible 51-yard pass to Agholor completely off balance to extend the drive. A couple plays later, Wentz threw a beautiful touchdown pass to Agholor to make the score 17-10.

• The Eagles went for it on 4th-and-3 in the third quarter and failed to get a first down. Wentz tossed the ball out in the flat to Kenjon Barner, who lost his footing, and the pass hit the ground.

• On a 3rd-and-10, Wilson got a pass off before the blitz got to him and delivered a throw to Baldwin, who shook off McLeod on the play. The 47-yard gain put the Seahawks on the Eagles' 1-yard line. A few plays later, Wilson hit Tyler Lockett for a 1-yard touchdown pass to put Seattle up 17-3.

• On the first drive of the second half, Wentz scrambled for four yards and neared the goal line when he fumbled the ball out of the back of the end zone for a touchdown. The Eagles could have tied the game at 10-10, so this play was crushing.

• The Eagles had a 16-play, 75-yard drive in the second quarter, but came away with just three points. Jake Elliott hit a 26-yard field goal to make the score 10-3. The longest play on the drive was a 12-yard scramble from Wentz.  

• Ronald Darby was called for a ticky-tacky 19-yard defensive pass interference down the sideline. A few plays later, Wilson hit Jimmy Graham for an 11-yard touchdown pass to put the Seahawks up 10-0.

• The Eagles' defense didn't get off to a great start, giving up two third-down conversions, but held the Seahawks to a field goal on their opening drive.

Injury report
Joe Walker (neck) was inactive on Sunday after suffering a stinger against the Bears.

Zach Ertz left the game in the second half with a concussion.

Up next
The Eagles are leaving Seattle, but they're not going home just yet. Instead, they're flying to Southern California, where they'll spend the week practicing at Angel Stadium before playing the Rams in LA next Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET.

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