Jim Schwartz said Thursday's game against Cleveland would "go a long way'' in determining who would be his season-opening nickel corner. But it appeared the Eagles' defensive coordinator already had made up his mind before the opening kickoff. Sidney Jones took almost every first-half rep in sub-packages and turned in a solid performance.
Yes, they were missing their starting quarterback, their starting left tackle, three of their top four wide receivers and their top three running backs. But what passes for the Eagles' No. 1 offense right now continued to struggle against the Browns. The Eagles failed to score any points on six first-half possessions with their, uh, starters.