Eagles defense ‘not on the same page,’ as Ben Johnson and Case Keenum pick them apart
The Eagles made Keenum, a 38-year-old journeyman who hadn't played in a game in three years, look like prime Tom Brady in Monday's 27-7 loss to Chicago.
CHICAGO — A year from now, maybe two, when Case Keenum is done playing and looks back at a Monday night to remember, in the twilight of his football career, when he played an NFL game for the first time in three years and led a blowout Bears win over the Eagles, what will be the lasting image?
The Eagles allowed him a highlight reel worth of them in a 27-7 defeat. Multiple plays have a case.
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Will it be the flip pass to Luther Burden III to cap off a brilliant opening script? Burden bounced off three Eagles defenders, and then, with the help of a few linemen, was carried across the goal line. Maybe it will be Kalif Raymond with no Eagles defender within 10 yards of him over the middle of the field on his way to a 41-yard touchdown reception. Maybe it’s the sucker sneak Keenum ran in from a yard out to give the game its final scoring play — the finishing touches on an offensive game plan from Bears coach Ben Johnson that made suckers of those who pegged Vic Fangio’s defense as one of the league’s best entering the season.
Less than a year ago, Johnson’s Bears bullied the Eagles on the ground for 281 yards. On Monday night, a 38-year-old Keenum carved them up through the air for 247 yards while completing more than 70% of his passes.
“We just got beat, straight up,” said pass rusher Jonathan Greenard, who made his Eagles debut. “They had a hell of a game plan, came out of the gates slinging. We just weren’t on our P’s and Q’s, obviously the worst time to not be on your P’s and Q’s on Monday night primetime, but it is what it is, they came in with a good game plan and executed.”
The Eagles didn’t, and issues that have plagued the unit early in the season continued Monday night. Their safeties are struggling. They are missing too many tackles. They pressured Keenum just 10 times. Their vaunted interior front hasn’t been overwhelming. They still haven’t forced a turnover. They are, as Cooper DeJean said, not communicating well enough.
Johnson’s offense offers what Jihaad Campbell called “a variety pack of boots, receiver jets, screens, play actions” that can cause chaos and communication errors. On Raymond’s 41-yard score in the third quarter that upped Chicago’s lead to 20-7, DeJean followed a motioning Burden across the formation prior to the snap. But the Eagles then had DeJean and Riq Woolen both covering Burden while Raymond ran a crossing route over the middle of the field. Raymond then beat safety Andrew Mukuba in a foot race to the pylon.
DeJean said the play was a “miscommunication” but did not elaborate.
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“We just got to get on the same page,” he said.
Linebacker Zack Baun had a similar takeaway. The Eagles, he said, did a much better job stopping the run than they did the last time they played the Bears. Chicago averaged 3.7 yards per carry compared to 6.0 last season. But stopping the run, Baun said, came with a price.
“When you do a good job of stopping the run, you bring your safeties down and it’s harder to read run-pass for the safeties and linebackers, and they got us on those play actions,” he said.
“As a defense, it just comes down to being on the same page.”
It is a worrying issue for a defense that entered 2026 with high expectations based in part on its continuity. Core players have been playing in Fangio’s system for more than two seasons. But communication issues and poor tackling have been a big part of a sloppy start.
DeJean said tackling after last week’s performance in Tennessee was a “big emphasis” for the Eagles in the lead-up to Monday night. The Eagles were credited with nine missed tackles, according to Pro Football Focus, after missing a dozen last week. Campbell said: “It’s as simple as it is, we got to get the guy down.”
It is one of the many issues Greenard said the Eagles need to clean up.
“We just got to wrap, man,” he said. “Wrap up. Fundamentals. I think that’s a want-to thing. Tackling is just a want-to thing. Wrapping up and driving legs. They had a lot of leaky yardage. We make contact and they gain an extra three or four yards. You go from potentially a second-and-8 to second-and-6. Those two yards matter. We know that.”
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They also know that it’s early, and they’re still 2-1. But tougher challenges are ahead beginning Sunday when they host the Los Angeles Rams on a short week.
At one point in the locker room late Monday night, Jalyx Hunt turned to Baun and said: “Group film session when we get back?”
Baun planned to get a head start.
“I’m going to watch this tape on the flight back and I know I’m going to see some really, really good things that we did,” he said. “I thought we did a good job on the run. That was a big point of emphasis for us, especially with what happened last year against them.
“But then there’s other things that I know are going to be really bad. It comes down to communication, whether that’s hearing the call, playing the right thing, knowing the assignment. Those are the things we got to get better at.”
