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PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
Chip Kelly

Bell: Under Chip Kelly, Eagles look inept in every way

Jarrett Bell
USA TODAY Sports
Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly looks on from the sidelines against the Washington Redskins in the second quarter at FedEx Field.

LANDOVER, Md. – They have become the Murphy's Law of the NFL.

Whatever bad can happen for the Philadelphia Eagles, will happen.

At least that was the rule during the latest implosion by the team that Chip Kelly built, as the Eagles stumbled through a 23-20 loss to Washington that left them in last place in the NFC East.

Never mind that the Eagles (1-3) sit just one game out of first place after the Dallas Cowboys' overtime loss at New Orleans on Sunday night.

This glass is half-empty.

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Do you realize how bad a team needs to be to claim last place in the NFC Least?

Look in the mirror, Eagles.

On Sunday, the defense gave up a game-winning, 90-yard touchdown drive that was not engineered by, say, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning or Aaron Rodgers.

The Eagles were struck down by Kirk Cousins, who until Sunday had never produced a fourth-quarter comeback victory in the NFL.

Before that meltdown, the lowlights included the Zach Ertz touchdown taken off the board just before halftime because rookie receiver Nelson Agholor lined up to create an illegal formation. Then they wound up with nothing, when new kicker Caleb Sturgis missed a 33-yard field goal to end their latest scoreless first half.

Another glaring sequence also involved Agholor. On the next snap after the rookie hauled in a 45-yard catch in the second quarter, the Eagles called for a reverse. It backfired. Agholor fumbled the exchange from Ryan Mathews.

Washington recovered.

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The Eagles, though, will be hard-pressed to recover from this early-season funk.

Sure, there's time. It's a long season, and the NFC South was won last year by a team that couldn't even produce a winning record.

But the Eagles look anything like a team to be trusted.

After Sunday's debacle, Kelly, the coach who should question the essential general manager (himself) for the fallout from his questionable offseason moves, lamented the execution (again).

DeMarco Murray, meanwhile, lamented his lack of touches.

DeMarco Murray not happy with role in Eagles' offense

Murray - who was lured from Dallas with a five-year, $42 million contract, but didn't start after missing the previous week's victory at the New York Jets because of a hamstring injury - ripped off a 30-yard run on his first carry.

He gained 6 yards on his other 7 rushes in the game.

Fast fact: The Eagles are 0-3 in games with Murray this season, 1-0 in games without him.

Kelly's creative offense? My, how it fizzles. So much for revolutionizing the NFL.

Now Kelly's offense specializes in three-and-outs.

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In 16 quarters this season, the Eagles have laid goose eggs in half of them. Until Sam Bradford hit Riley Cooper for a 62-yard touchdown early in the third quarter on Sunday, the Eagles had gone four quarters, dating to the previous week against the Jets, without scoring a single point.

Four quarters, as in a single game.

Hey, the blocking was spotty again, as Washington's defensive line sacked Sam Bradford five times and hit him at least eight other times. He was sacked on back-to-back plays to pretty much sum up the last desperate drive in the final half-minute.

Then there are the injuries. They keep piling up. All-pro left tackle Jason Peters left with a quad injury and right tackle Lane Johnson suffered a knee sprain, casting doubt on their effectiveness in the near future, if not their immediate availability. The defense was undermanned on Sunday when cornerback Byron Maxwell (quadriceps) and linebacker Mychal Kendricks (hamstring) went down with injuries on the first drive. Then defensive end Brandon Bair was knocked out of the game, too, with a groin injury. And it's still uncertain when big offseason acquisition Kiko Alonso (knee) will return to his inside linebacker post.

Tough times for a team that can't get out of its own way.

But at least there's plenty of blame to go around – which must be some other type of law.

Follow Jarrett Bell on Twitter @JarrettBell.

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