Walking The Tightrope — Eagles Move to 4-0
Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images
The MVP of the Eagles’ season thus far may be their star Kicker Jake Elliot. Elliot has been incredible so far this season and hit a 54-yard game-winning field goal in overtime. After yesterday’s 34-31 victory over Washington, the Eagles remain 4-0 and atop the NFC East.
Get Right Game
All season long I have been asking for the Eagles passing game to look like the passing offense they were last season. Yesterday they returned to form. Jalen Hurts kept the ball out of harm’s way and passed for 319 yards and 2 touchdowns. He was a lot more decisive than he had been in the past and was able to connect on a few deep balls. Overall I thought it was an extremely encouraging game for Hurts and the passing game, that they can take into games moving forward.
The other star of the offense was A.J. Brown. Browns’ great performance in week 3 went under the radar because of the play of D’Andre Swift, but this game will not go unnoticed. Brown caught 9 catches for 175 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Eagles’ offense was able to move the ball deep down the field through the air, and Brown was the main reason why.
The one part of the offense that I would still like to see improve moving forward is Hurts in the running game. The Eagles offense was so potent last year because they were 3 dimensional. Hurts ran the ball 9 times for just 34 yards in yesterday’s win. He has not looked as explosive as he did in the first few years of his career, and I would love to see the Eagles offense get back to that three-dimensional offense.
Defense Struggles Again
After listening to 94.1 WIP all week you would have believed the Eagles defense was the next coming of the 1985 Bears defense. To the host’s credit, it was not coming from them, they were pointing out that the defense had not played any good QBs yet. Many fans believed that this defense was going to be way better than last year’s defense, solely because they have a new coordinator. The Eagles have a defensive philosophy that will not change, no matter who the coordinator is. Do not give up big plays, and swarm the stuff underneath.
The Eagles’ defense in the passing game has been a problem all season, but yesterday it was really exposed. The Eagles’ defense is giving up an average of 279 passing yards per game. While this is not an insane number, the Eagles have not played the best Quarterbacks so far this season. They will play some of the elite QBs in the future like Pat Mahomes and Josh Allen, and I think they may have to make a trade before then. The Eagles have had injuries in the secondary, but coming into the season we knew that Safety was a weak point of this team. Hopefully, Howie Roseman can work his magic and get the secondary some help.
Looking Forward
The Eagles will fly to Los Angeles next week to take on the Rams, then they will head up the turnpike the next week to play the Jets. The Eagles need to keep taking advantage of playing weaker teams and just keep stacking wins. We all want to see them play a complete game, but the most important thing is the one seed. Keep stacking those wins.
LET’S GO BIRDS!!
I’m thrilled to see the Eagles’ passing game finally hitting its stride! Jalen Hurts looked sharp and in control, throwing for 319 yards and 2 touchdowns. His improved decisiveness and deep ball accuracy are promising signs. A.J. Brown’s outstanding performance can’t be overlooked either, with 9 catches for 175 yards and 2 touchdowns. The passing game is on fire!
However, I do agree that we need to see Hurts regain his running game explosiveness to bring back that three-dimensional offense we had last year. Overall, a great game and plenty of optimism for the future!