Where there’s a victor, there’s a loser, and sometimes, certain athletes contribute to their team’s shortcomings. These athletes are favorably called bobbleheads.
Philadelphia Eagles: Special Teams
When your team blows a double-digit fourth-quarter lead at home and then your former all-pro right tackle retires soon after, it’s hard to bounce back and go to London and play an international game against the Jacksonville Jaguars with hopes of bouncing back.
Still, the Eagles found themselves with a late lead in an all-around sluggish game for both offenses as Eagles kicker Jake Elliot made a 48-yard field goal to give his team a 17-16 lead with just 8 seconds left. All the kick return coverage team had to do was make sure Jaguars running back Ameer Abdullah would not return the kickoff into the long range of Jacksonville kicker Cam Little.
Unfortunately for the Eagles, Abdullah’s return measured 53 yards and he was tackled with just 1 second left on the clock. This allowed the Jaguars to send out Little for a 57-yard field goal, which he drilled as time expired to hand the Eagles their third consecutive loss.
Washington Commanders: Quarterback Jayden Daniels
The end-of-week 5 matchup between the New York Giants and the Washington Commanders will likely leave fans perplexed for a long time, and for good reason.
In a “next score wins” scenario well within field goal range, Giants running back Cam Skattebo ran the ball up the middle and fumbled. Skattebo won’t get the bobblehead nod this week though as the Washington offense managed to drive the ball into field goal range, but instead of spiking the ball or throwing the ball out of bounds and sending out the field goal team, Jayden Daniels took a sack as time expired and was unable to get back to the line as the game ended in a 27-27 tie.
Dallas Cowboys: Tight End Jake Ferguson
When you head home after a dramatic win on a short week and end up getting embarrassed by a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that is starting undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels at quarterback, there are several players and moments that viewers can point to as what cost the Cowboys the game: wide receiver Ryan Flournoy juggled a pass that hit his hands and ended up being an interception; kick return specialist Kavontae Turpin fumbled the ball on a kickoff return; and cornerback Daron Bland dropped an interception that he likely would’ve returned for a touchdown if it was 2023, when he set the single-season pick-six record.
However, in the end, Thursday night’s bobblehead ends up as tight end Jake Ferguson. After everything that could’ve gone wrong through the first 58 minutes of regulation, quarterback Dak Prescott and the Cowboys’ offense had the ball at the end of the game with a chance to tie the game. Prescott found Ferguson over the middle and hit him in the hands but Ferguson bobbled the ball, and it was in the air and then intercepted on the tip drill by Tampa Bay linebacker Alex Anzalone to clinch the first win of the season for the Buccaneers.
Marley Herndon is a beat reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on X @Dailylobo
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