Carson Wentz being accountable only matters if Eagles QB plays better

Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz is holding himself accountable but that only means so much.

Once upon a time, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz looked like an NFL MVP candidate and, given that he was in just his second season in 2017. But then came the torn ACL that made way for Nick Foles‘ run to the Super Bowl and things have been on a decline since. Even still, there’s no mistaking that the 2020 season has been a low point for both Wentz and the Eagles.

Philadelphia’s 3-7-1 record and the fact that they are no longer atop an NFC East race led by a 4-7 team speak to the issues their quarterback has endured this year. Wentz is 31st or worse in the NFL among qualified quarterbacks in completion rate (58.1 percent), interceptions (15) and sacks (46) on the year. And to watch him, it might look even worse — especially for Eagles fans.

But amid these struggles, the quarterback is apparently taking ownership of his mistakes and shortcomings. As defensive end Brandon Graham told Tim McManus of ESPN, Wentz was accountable for his actions and is working to rectify them:

"“The first step is admitting where you’re bad at, and that’s what I love that Carson did. When we talked to the team, he knew he had to own some of that stuff that he’s been doing, and he’s let us know that he’s working his butt off to make sure that he starts doing a lot of stuff better.”"

Graham went on to say that “taking ownership” in this type of situation is how players build relationships and earn respect. But while that may be true, it’s only part of the puzzle.

Carson Wentz’s accountability only matters if the Eagles see better results.

His teammate is right in that you want Wentz to identify his role in the team’s struggles and then do whatever he can to make those issues not matter. Having said that, being accountable for your mistakes as a player only truly hits home if the work pays off and those mistakes are eliminated.

Wentz can put in all the work that he can but if he continually makes head-scratching decisions in the form of turnover-worthy throws or just bad reads, among other things, the Eagles offense isn’t going to get any better. The quarterback dictates so much of the action for Philadelphia and nothing Wentz has shown to this point in the year makes you believe that is going to turn on a dime.

Furthermore, it’s hard to believe that Wentz has been able to look at his performance this season and just now identify where he’s messing up. This should have been and likely has been an ongoing process. Subsequently, the fact that he’s owning his problems doesn’t mean that much because his poor play has kept showing up on the field.

Again, any NFL team would want the leader on offense to be the guy who sees his mistakes and doesn’t hide from them. That’s a good quality. Having said that, when a quarterback is at the helm of a 3-7-1 team that is out of the playoff picture and has consistently been a primary reason for losing efforts and not much has changed, it’s hard to have much confidence in what that accountability means.