Eagles.com writer Tommy Lawlor evaluates how Mark Sanchez played in relief of the injured Nick Foles:
Sanchez played well and certainly offered hope that the Eagles will be fine without Foles. Sanchez connected with Jeremy Maclin on a deep ball on his very first play of the game. Sanchez also threw a pair of red zone touchdown passes. If a quarterback can deliver big plays and red zone touchdowns, you feel good about your chances to win games.
Sanchez made good decisions in the game. His throws were accurate. I thought he put great touch on several key passes. Sanchez hit Jordan Matthews on a fade for a short touchdown. That was an exceptionally good throw. The ball needed some air on it so Matthews could run under it, but the pass couldn't be too soft or the defender could get to it. Sanchez put the ball right where it needed to be and it had great touch. Matthews made the grab and got both feet down. The other red zone score was a pass to Maclin on the right side. Maclin was well-covered, but the defender had his back to the ball. Sanchez threw the ball low and Maclin went down to make the grab.
Both plays were impressive because it is hard to score in the red zone. You love having open receivers, but often the quarterback has to "throw his receiver open." Sanchez did just that on both plays. He put the ball in a spot where only his guy could get it. Also, Sanchez threw the passes so that they were catchable. There were times in the past when Mike Vick would put too much heat on his red zone throws and receivers couldn't handle them. Sanchez made good reads, quick decisions and the right kind of throws. That's what you want in the red zone.
We have Sanchez ranked #16 in our rest-of-season rankings. He's an attractive add mainly due to Chip Kelly's offense. He looked capable at times while with the Jets, but never had a good selection of weapons around him. He'll have plenty of talented receivers to throw to in Philly. His schedule down the stretch only has one scary matchup -- Week 14 vs. Seattle.
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