THE EAGLES' wide receiving corps, in addition to being ineffective - yes, some of you are thinking of less kind descriptions - also was this: really young and inexperienced.
The sage of the group was 24-year-old Jordan Matthews, playing his third NFL season. This proved less than ideal, questions of talent aside. As Nelson Agholor's confidence melted down, there seemed to be no one on hand who could lead the 2015 first-round pick back from the void - even the team's 36-year-old wide receivers coach, Greg Lewis, was an NFL coaching novice.
The addition of wideouts Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith in free agency was about adding talent, certainly, but it also was about adding leadership, about providing experienced guidance, the first step there having been taken earlier in the offseason, when Lewis was fired in favor of veteran coach Mike Groh.