PHILADELPHIA _ In most Eagles seasons, a 28-point win would be celebrated as a dominant performance that could stand as their most convincing victory of the year. In 2017, that's just the standard.
The Eagles' 31-3 win over the Chicago Bears was their 10th consecutive victory and fourth straight by more than 20 points. They are 10-1 and on the verge of clinching the NFC East. They need either a Dallas loss on Thursday or a win against Seattle next week to earn a spot in the playoffs, but the division has appeared like a foregone conclusion all week. The Eagles have loftier sights this year, including a first-round bye and potential home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. They face a difficult West Coast stretch against Seattle and the Los Angeles Rams during the next two weeks.
It helps to have quarterback Carson Wentz, who gives them a chance each week. Wentz is getting used to watching fourth quarters on the bench, because the Eagles pulled him with more than nine minutes remaining in the game. Wentz finished 23 of 36 for 227 yards and three touchdowns and no interceptions. He also rushed for 29 yards.
The lead rusher was LeGarrette Blount, who had 97 yards and two fumbles. Tight end Zach Ertz became the first player on the Eagles to top 100 receiving yards this season, finishing with 10 catches for 103 yards. Alshon Jeffery scored against his former team and totaled five catches for 52 yards.
The defense cannot be overlooked. Although the Bears would not be considered the most formidable foe, it was the second consecutive game in which the Eagles didn't allow a touchdown. The defense has allowed only two touchdowns in the past four games. They bottled up the Bears' ground attack, limiting them to six rushing yards. Rookie quarterback Mitchell Trubisky was sacked two times and threw two interceptions.
After the Eagles were forced to punt on their opening drive, they didn't need Donnie Jones back on the field to punt for the rest of the half.
The scoring started when Wentz found Ertz for a 17-yard touchdown to take a 7-0 lead.
It appeared the Eagles would quickly build on the lead when Malcolm Jenkins intercepted Trubisky on the next play, but Jenkins fumbled the return and gave the Bears the ball back. The Bears couldn't take advantage, though, and were forced to punt.
The Eagles defense had little time to rest. After rushing for 35 yards on the first play of the next series, Blount fumbled for the first time in an Eagles uniform. The Bears recovered, although they were forced to a field goal that they missed to make three turnovers without anything to show for it.
That was the Bears' best opportunity to keep the game close, because the Eagles exploded for 17 second-quarter points. It started when Wentz hit Agholor for a 15-yard touchdown in which Agholor jumped over a Bears defender to flip into the end zone for the score. It was the sixth touchdown of Agholor's redemptive third season.
After forcing a Bears punt, the Eagles settled for a 45-yard Jake Elliott field goal to take a 17-0 lead. Elliott was cleared from his concussion on Friday and is now 18 of 22 for the season on field goals.
The Eagles finished the half with a 13-play, 69-yard drive that took 4 minutes, 33 seconds off the clock. The drive ended with Wentz finding Jeffery for an eight-yard score to give Jeffery five touchdowns in the past four games to take a 24-0 halftime lead.
The Bears couldn't even threaten the Eagles in the second half. They needed two Eagles penalties to help a drive when they had only 36 yards on 10 plays to get into field goal range, settling for three points to bring them within three touchdowns.
The Eagles weren't worried. Although they couldn't convert a fourth down on their next possession, they forced a three-and-out to get the ball back and scored on the next drive. But the touchdown came in unconventional fashion. Jay Ajayi rushed for 30 yards to the Bears' 5-yard line before he fumbled the ball forward as he went to the ground at the 5-yard line. Agholor jumped on the loose ball in the end zone. It was that kind of afternoon for the Eagles. It's also been that kind of season.
