Philadelphians are known around the National Football League as “perfectionists” due to the fact that they WILL let their team know when they don’t like what’s going on. Between boos and banter the stadium will erupt over one mistake even in some cases when their team is winning. After a strong 6-1 start to the season, fans still don’t know what to make of this team because none of these wins have come easy. Nonetheless, in his last 27 games Jalen Hurts has a very impressive record of 25-2, which is a historical stat. One would assume that this is very good, and that this team is essentially unbeatable, which is not the case.
The Eagles have struggled to stay consistent and have been streaky on both sides of the ball. This is disappointing because the front office made many off-season acquisitions and re-signings, like running back D’Andre Swift and cornerbacks James Bradberry and Darius Slay. The main cause of Philly’s struggles is their red zone execution. Philly ranks 27th in the NFL with touchdowns in the redzone converting only 38% of their 21 redzone appearances. Philly ranks 28th in points per red-zone drive with a staggering 3.95. Out of those two drives, they converted eight touchdowns, nine field goals, had two failed fourth down conversions and a turnover.
Nick Sirianni blames the running game on first and second down saying “We’re getting ourselves in third-and-long and that’s tough. As the field shrinks, the deeper you get in third down, any time you get deeper in third down, it’s going to be harder to convert, but especially down there. And so we’ve got to put them in better positions to succeed.”
The pass game has been just atrocious, as Jalen hurts ranks 30th in the NFL in passer rating in the end zone. Hurts is just 19 for 21 on pass completions with two touchdowns and even an interception. Star receiver A.J. Brown has been essentially unused in the red , with just two catches and zero touchdowns. The bulk of the Birds touchdowns come from the rushing game with five total redzone touchdowns but still at an inefficient rate of 2.9 yards per carry.
When asked about the Eagles struggles, offensive coordinator Brian Johnson said, “For us, it’s really just a balancing act, we have to do a great job of putting the plan together and putting those guys in the position to make plays. Secondly, we got to do a great job of executing and then we have to be great in our operation, whether that’s in and out making the proper checks, putting those guys in the position to be successful on a down in and down out basis down there.”
The Eagles rank third in yards per play at 6.3 behind only the Dolphins and 49ers. Looking at these stats compared it’s only logical to assume that the Eagles will start to put things together in the red zone and the stats will even out.
Although there have been many struggles this season for the Eagles, it would still be silly to say they aren’t having success. Their run defense has been outright unstoppable with a league best 61.2 rushing yards allowed per game and 3.4 yards per carry allowed which is fourth best in the NFL. Key components to the defensive line include the interior linemen Jalen Carter, Fletcher Cox, and Jordan Davis. The Eagles heavily invested in their core, spending a first-round pick on two interior linemen in 2022 and 2023.
Jalen Carter has started this season spectacularly and is shattering expectations earning the nickname “baby rhino” and looking like a generational player for years to come. He has a league leading two forced fumbles and is tied for third most sacks in the NFL by a defensive tackle. He also has 11 quarterback pressures and six quarterback hurries. The extraordinary thing about his stats is that he has done this whilst playing only 51% of defensive snaps.
Philly’s secondary has also been very lackluster with the eighth worst pass defense in the NFL, but it is not something that fans should worry about just yet. In just five games, eight defensive backs have gotten a starting gig, with key players like cornerback Avonte Maddox and safety Reed Blankenship missing games. The Eagles secondary has been serviceable, and it is scary to think that it is only going to get better as players get healthy. After missing key defensive pieces in their loss to the Jets, they followed up by allowing 10 points to the Miami Dolphins who led the league in passing, rushing, and receiving touchdowns.
The Eagles offense has been using a controversial method to move the ball on short downs. The infamous “brotherly shove”, or “tush push” has been basically automatic with a 92% success rate. So much so, many teams have come out and claimed that it is cheating, and the play is not football-like and should be banned. Coming into the Rams game, Philly had a third down conversion rate of 43.6% success rate and a fourth down conversion rate of 71.4%, and both of these stats are greatly inflated by this single play. Against the Dolphins, the Eagles ran this play three times in one drive and converted it all three times.
After the game when asked about the play, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said, “Every first down in a first and nine.” What Sirianni is insinuating is that this play is a free yard whenever they need it. Teams like the Giants have tried to imitate the play but failed miserably by not converting and injuring two linemen on the play. The NFL stated that they will review the play at the end of the season and determine whether to ban it.
Scoring in the first quarter has been critical for the Eagles offense as they are averaging 7.2 points which is fourth amongst all teams. This has led to the Eagles trailing only once at halftime.
Star receiving duo A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith have solidified themselves as a top wide receiver duo in the league after last year’s franchise setting record of each having over 1,000 yards receiving. It seems every single week one of them is bound to have over 150 yards total.
A.J. Brown is showing no regression with 1005 receiving yards, which is the second highest in the league. Brown earlier this season recorded six straight games with 125+ receiving yards, beating Calvin Johnson for the all-time NFL record.
Devonta Smith had a touchdown in his first two games but has slowed down a little since due to Brown’s recent success with the ball in his hands. Offseason acquisition D’Andre Swift has been nothing less than terrific and is fourth in the league in rushing yards after six tremendous games. He combines that with a career high of 5.7 yards per attempt, third best in the NFL.
The Philadelphia Eagles have had their ups and downs this year but still prove to be contenders with a great core of players who have great chemistry. With a few tweaks and changes, this team is destined for a deep playoff run.
