The Philadelphia Eagles are fresh off another blowout loss after falling victim to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at home. It was not the showing the team needed with the Dallas Cowboys getting a big win in Tony Romo's return. The concern for the Eagles is the lack of production from the offense that managed just 17 points altogether. With issues at the quarterback position, could Mark Sanchez's starting job be short-lived?
With Sam Bradford dealing with a separated shoulder, Sanchez got the starting nod in Week 11 and did very little to make the most of it. The quarterback went 26-of-41 in passing for 261 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. He also had a very public spat with Darren Sproles on the sideline. It has now become a vintage Sanchez performance. That type of production is not what the team needs going into a game against the Detroit Lions and now many wonder if Kelly will make a move. With just Thad Lewis as the only other option, Kelly denies Sanchez will be benched.
"I mean, it was the first game Mark really played for us [this year]," Kelly said, via ESPN.com. "He came in at the tail end of the game last week against Miami, but that thought did not cross my mind, no."
Prior to the game, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reported that Sanchez was fighting to be the permanent starter for the Eagles with Bradford hurt. Rapoport writes that Bradford is expected to miss at least two games, opening the door for Sanchez. At the moment, the Eagles have very little invested in Bradford meaning they can make whatever move they want in the offseason. If Sanchez can show he is the guy then the job might be his considering Bradford has not been lighting it up in Kelly's offense. After Week 11, that stance has likely changed once again.
"It's not like the Eagles can say 'we've invested a ton of guaranteed money in Bradford, he's for sure our starter,'" Rapoport said, via NFL.com. "If Sanchez plays well enough to, say, win two games, it seems as if the team would continue to use him as the starter going forward. And then this offseason, with seven college quarterbacks rated in the first three rounds, the Eagles will once again be exploring the quarterback market."
The Eagles are playing on a short week and have injury issues that could really set them back. Ryan Mathews missed Week 11 with a concussion and has yet to be cleared by the NFL to play. Zach Ertz is now dealing with the same thing as the tight end left the game with a concussion in the second quarter. That could leave the team very short-handed with two of their favorite targets out. In their place, Brent Celek and Riley Cooper had big games while DeMarco Murray was quiet with 64 yards off 13 carries.
