BALTIMORE -- Doug Pederson's decision to go for two at the end of regulation backfired, and if the Philadelphia Eagles were competing for a playoff spot, he would be getting crushed for it.
But they aren't. All Sunday's 27-26 loss to the Baltimore Ravens did was move the Eagles' chances of making it to the postseason from something like 5 million-to-1 to zero. What's important now for the Eagles -- losers of five in a row and nine of 11 -- is that the team stays together and develops a little experience and trust to carry over to next season.
To that end, Pederson seemed to hit the right note by rolling the dice on the two-point try.
"Our coach is aggressive, and he believed in us," said quarterback Carson Wentz, who drew the Eagles within one on a 4-yard touchdown plunge.
"I think you ask anybody in this locker room, everybody's going to tell you they loved it," added linebacker Jordan Hicks. "He is who he said he was going to be -- he said it earlier in the year, that he was going to be aggressive and he was going to battle with us. Love that."
The particulars of the play can be picked apart. Pederson chose to go with rookie Byron Marshall in the backfield even though veteran Ryan Mathews had ripped up the Ravens (128 yards, TD). And instead of running the ball or rolling the QB out, he had Wentz in the shotgun and opted for a quick slant into the teeth of the defense. Baltimore brought a Cover Zero blitz, and Wentz's pass over the middle to Jordan Matthews was tipped at the line by linebacker C.J. Mosley and fell incomplete. Multiple players suggested Matthews was interfered with on the play by defensive back Jerraud Powers, but no flag was thrown.
The play call can join a long list of questionable decisions the rookie coach has made through 14 games. With the team at 5-9 and tumbling, Pederson won't be mistaken for a Coach of the Year candidate any time soon. The jury is still very much out on him.
What can be said is that there is no noticeable dissension in the ranks -- at least not yet. As opposed to last season, Chip Kelly's final one in Philly, where the cracks in the foundation became more and more visible, this group seemingly heads into Thursday night's game against the New York Giants still largely on board with its current leader. The chatter in the locker room following yet another disappointing loss helped underscore that point.
"I've learned that Doug believes in everybody in this locker room," Matthews said. "He has faith in our team. He knows that we're young and he's not going to let that be an excuse. He's going to put us in position to win games in big moments. So when a guy is trusting you like that, we've got to go out there and execute."
"Doug is doing a great job," said veteran tackle Jason Peters, not one to dole out false praise -- as was clear in the final months of the Kelly era. "Ain't nobody just putting a whupping on us. We're beating ourselves out there ... making bad decisions, bad plays, mental errors and stuff like that. But Doug is getting us ready every week, and we're just playing the cards we're dealt. Week in and week out, we're going to give it our all and try to finish up strong."