Eagles can't stop making mistakes, scrap to tie against Bengals

PHILADELPHIA – The Eagles didn't lose, but it certainly feels like they did after they self-destructed in the final seconds of overtime and settled for a 23-23 tie against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.

The Eagles (0-2-1) are winless after the first three games of the season for the first time since 1999, Andy Reid's first season.

The Eagles, who had to rally late in the fourth quarter just to tie the game against a winless Bengals team, had one last chance to win, taking over at their 45 with 1:41 left in overtime.

The Eagles reached the Bengals' 41 when quarterback Carson Wentz threw incomplete on 3rd-and-7.

They came out for a 59-yard field goal attempt with 19 seconds left. But offensive lineman Matt Pryor was called for a false start, pushing the ball back five yards. Elliott's record is 61 yards, which is also a team record.

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The Eagles sent out the punt team.

It was that kind of day. 

Wentz led the Eagles back once. He couldn't do it in overtime.

In regulation, the Eagles trailed by a touchdown with 3 minutes left. Wentz took them down the field, scrambling for a first down on 3rd-and-9 to get to the Bengals' 19, then diving into the end zone on a 7-yard run with 21 seconds left to tie the game.

Then he did it again in overtime as neither team scored on their first possession. Nickell Robey-Coleman had a game-saving play, breaking up a deep pass to Tee Higgins that would have gotten the Bengals to midfield.

Instead, they punted from deep in their end, giving the Eagles the ball near midfield with 1:45 left in overtime, with one last chance to win the game.

The Eagles only have themselves to blame.

Wentz attempted seven straight passes in the first half, despite the fact that the Bengals had the second worst run defense in the NFL, allowing an average of 185 per game.

There was Wentz missing an open Miles Sanders deep down the sideline early in the fourth quarter. It would have gone for a touchdown. When Wentz got back to the sideline, he slammed his helmet in frustration. 

The Eagles lost three key players to injury in wide receiver DeSean Jackson, tight end Dallas Goedert and cornerback Avonte Maddox. Darius Slay was also injured one play after Maddox left in the third quarter, but Slay returned.

Wentz threw two more interceptions and has 6 through three games. He threw only 7 in each of the last three seasons.

Wentz finished 29-for-47 for 225 yards, with a touchdown and 2 INTs. He was outplayed by Bengals rookie Joe Burrow, who went 31-for-44 for 312 yards and 2 TDs.

And yet, the Eagles still had a chance. 

The Eagles' offense finally came to life in the final seconds of the first half, as Greg Ward's 29-yard touchdown reception with 16 seconds left for a 13-10 lead. They added an Elliott field goal, his third of the game, this one from 54 yards out, to start the second half.

But the Bengals found their rhythm on offense. Burrow hit rookie Tee Higgins for a 4-yard TD to retake the lead. Wentz was intercepted for the second time, near midfield and the Bengals converted that into a field goal.

On that drive, both Maddox and Slay were hurt, leaving the Eagles with Trevor Williams and Cre'Von LeBlanc on the outside. Still, the Eagles held the Bengals to a field goal. 

Then Wentz missed Sanders deep on 3rd down, and the Bengals converted a 3rd-and-15 when Burrow hit Giovani Bernard on a short pass that he turned into a 42-yard gain. That put the Bengals into field-goal range, and they took a 23-16 lead with 3:05 left.

Wentz, however, led the Eagles back, helped by two defensive pass interference calls on passes to rookie John Hightower. Wentz scrambled for 9 yards on 3rd-and-6 to get to the Bengals' 19 yard line with about a minute left. 

He hit Ward on 3rd-and-3 to the Bengals' 9. And then he scrambled out of pressure from the 7, headed toward the end zone and dived in with 21 seconds left to force overtime.

It was a slog the entire game.

Sanders had 8 carries for 64 yards in the first half, and as a team, the Eagles had 111 yards rushing in the first half. Sanders finished with 18 carries for 95 yards.

Still, the Eagles continue to get plagued by their own mistakes. On the Eagles' first possession, Wentz tried a third-down pass to Jackson with three Bengals players nearby. The ball was tipped at the line of scrimmage and intercepted.

Then the Eagles embarked on a 16-play drive that reached the Bengals' 3 yard line. But Wentz was sacked on third down and the Eagles settled for a short field goal.

Then the Eagles, for some reason, got away from the running game after racking up 62 yards in the first quarter, averaging nearly 6 yards per carry. 

They attempted 7 straight passes. Wentz completed two of them for a total of 3 yards. He was sacked twice. The Eagles went 3-and-out two straight times, and the Bengals tied the game on a field goal midway through the second quarter.

Arcega-Whiteside disappears

The Eagles were without wide receivers Jalen Reagor and Alshon Jeffery, and DeSean Jackson left with a hamstring injury late in the first half.

Still, J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, the Eagles' second-round pick in 2019, didn't get a pass thrown his way. He was hardly on the field in the second half. 

Deontay Burnett, called up from the practice squad, caught a pass. So did veteran tight end Richard Rodgers, who was signed last week.

Arcega-Whiteside doesn't have a reception this season.

Hurts lines up at QB

The Eagles gave rookie Jalen Hurts a snap at quarterback early in the third quarter. He lined up in the shotgun, took the snap and ran to the left, picking up eight yards before getting knocked out of bounds.

Wentz was lined up out wide and was not involved in the play.

It was Hurts' first career touch in the NFL. He had another chance early in the fourth quarter. But Hurts fumbled the exchange with Sanders. Hurts recovered the fumble.

Hurts was listed as the Eagles' backup QB for the second straight game. Last week against the Rams, Hurts got into the game for three plays. He never touched the ball.

Cox plays through injury

Defensive tackle Fletcher played through an abdominal injury Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Eagles had their entire defensive line intact for the second straight week with Cox playing. Javon Hargrave and Derek Barnett returned last week from preseason injuries.

Eagles inactives

The Eagles started Nate Herbig at left guard to replace Isaac Seumalo, who went on injured reserve (knee) last week, and Matt Pryor at right guard. That is where Herbig played the last two weeks.

The Eagles other inactives are QB Nate Sudfeld, RB Jason Huntley, S Rudy Ford, DE Casey Toohill and OL Jamon Brown.