Yahoo Finance Eagles fail to score after Doug Pederson passes up game-tying FG on 4th-and-goal
With the third quarter winding down and a chance to tie the game with a chip-shot field goal on Sunday, Doug Pederson did what Doug Pederson does.
He rolled the dice.
Trailing 17-14 in an eventual 20-14 loss with zero chance of making the playoffs, the Philadelphia Eagles head coach went for it on fourth-and-goal at the Washington Football Team 4-yard line. Philadelphia did not convert. Jalen Hurts’ pass to Quez Watkins fell incomplete, and Washington took over possession while maintaining a three-point lead.
It was a puzzling decision that worked out for Washington and certainly infuriated fans of the New York Giants, who needed Washington lose to secure a playoff spot. Washington won and eliminated the Giants.
Big interception gone to waste
The decision arrived after a potentially game-changing interception by Eagles safety Marcus Epps to set Philadelphia up in the red zone.
He made the INT during the tackle?! #FlyEaglesFly
📺: #WASvsPHI on NBC
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/11BxUJlrSI pic.twitter.com/R6wyOFW8NV— NFL (@NFL) January 4, 2021
But instead of turning the game in their favor, the Eagles came away with nothing for Epps’ big play.
NBC’s Cris Collinsworth referred to an analytics chart that stated Pederson’s decision gave the Eagles a 5 percent better chance of winning the game than to kick a field goal. It makes one wonder if that chart takes into account how bad Philadelphia’s offense is.
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