Eagles defense showing early signs of trouble through two weeks
Sep 20, 2026; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Zack Baun (53) and Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Jihaad Campbell (11) take down Tennessee Titans running back Nicholas Singleton (32) during the third quarter at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images
The Eagles are two games into the season, and the defense is already showing way too many signs of weakness for comfort.
They have played two poor teams in the NFL in the Washington Commanders and the Tennessee Titans, and the defense has simply not looked good at all. The Eagles have allowed 20+ points in both of the first two games of the year; last season, all of their losses came when the opposing team scored over 20 points.
This is a dangerous line to be teetering on for defensive coordinator Vic Fangio and the Eagles, and while it shouldn’t be expected that they should be allowing less than 20 points every week, it should almost be expected when playing opponents like Washington and Tennessee.
Last season, Philadelphia allowed under 20 points six times and went a perfect 6-0 in those games. Clearly, it is possible for this defense to play well enough to create this this season. To be fair, last year’s lineup included Reed Blankenship, Jaelan Phillips, and Nakobe Dean, three big pieces that are no longer a part of the squad. But other than them, this is a very similar unit.
In Tennessee specifically, the mixture of poor play with the defensive backs and defensive line led to what could have been a catastrophic loss had Jalen Hurts and the offense not had their astounding final two-minute drive that led to a Darius Cooper touchdown and the 24-20 win.
Looking back to the Week 1 game, Fangio commented on the inconsistency of the pass rush, saying they didn’t win enough of our one-on-ones across the board. Part of this poor pass rush may be due to Jonathon Greenard missing both of the first two games with a strained pectoral and being brought in by general manager Howie Roseman to help bolster this defensive line that has huge pieces in Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, and Moro Ojomo already. In letting Phillips walk this past year, the plan was to replace him with Greenard, who absolutely can make an impact once he gets back from his injury.
Greenard is a powerhouse on the line, and while he only played in 12 games with the Minnesota Vikings last season, his two seasons prior to that were All-Pro level. Greenard had 36 tackles and 12.5 sacks in 2023 with the Houston Texans, then followed that up with an even more impressive 41 tackles, 12 sacks, and 4 forced fumbles with Minnesota. Once he enters the starting defensive lineup, things could, without a doubt, change with the Eagles’ pass rush.
That being said, Fangio noted that it will take time for Greenard to be fully acclimated back to the standards Philly is looking for, just with the nature of the NFL.
“When he does come back, whenever that is, the thing you miss by not partaking in training camp — which he probably won’t — you gotta get calloused to playing NFL football,” Fangio said. “The banging, the running, the fatigue factor.”
For now, the Eagles are working without Greenard, and they need to step it up a notch as they head into Week 3, where they will take on the Caleb Williams-less Chicago Bears. This will be an excellent opportunity for this defense to improve and for Fangio to continue to learn and figure out what works for his guys.
Evan Hartenstein
Evan has been a member of the Philly Sports Reports team since March 2023. He is covering the 76ers and wants to pursue a long-lasting career in Sports Journalism.
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