What a Monday Night it was for the Eagles! They took control of that game from the beginning and never looked back. They absolutely dominated the Vikings in every phase. It is their 1st 2-0 start since 2004 and below I will tell you why I think the Eagles are the best team in the NFC, and have a real chance at getting to the Super Bowl this season!
Offense
This team is a well oiled machine scoring 62 points in the 1st 2 games. I actually think it could be more, but they took their foot off the gas pedal in the 2nd half vs the Vikings on Monday Night. Jalen Hurts has shown real improvement so far in this early season. He knows when to run the ball and when to hit the open receiver. In the 1st two games, Hurts has a total of 723 yards thru the air and on the ground. He relied heavily on AJ Brown in Week 1, but in Week 2, he spread the ball around a lot more with 3 players having at least 5 catches (Goedert, Smith, and Brown). A big reason this offense looks like a well oiled machine is because of this offensive line.
This offensive line is so physical, and this allows their offense to be able to move the ball thru the air and the ground. Howie Roseman has done a great job building this roster. He has always preached the importance of his teams dominating in the trenches. You can see that come to life when you watch this Eagles team. When you have a dominant offensive line, it makes life easier on every other offensive player. It gives the WR’s more time to eventually get open, more time for Hurts to go thru his reads, and of course it’s much easier to run the ball as well. Hurts being able to rush the ball himself makes their offense that much more unique and hard to defend. I will be curious to see how this offense plays against one of the better defenses, but they have all the weapons on this side of the ball to dominate.
Defense
I know people had some questions about their performance in Week 1, but I think they took their foot off the gas pedal in that 2nd half. Even though it looks like the Lions offense is for real this season, that 2nd half is more of an aberration. This team is also loaded on this side of the ball. They added players like Hasson Reddick and James Bradberry to give them a stronger and deeper roster. The Eagles also drafted big DT Jordan Davis in the 1st round of the Draft. He is just another weapon that can help stop the run. With the Eagles already having a stout defensive line, this draft pick just showed how dedicated the Eagles were to dominating in the trenches.
This secondary, especially Slay, slowed down one of the more potent offenses in the league on Monday Night. That is no easy task when you face one of the best WR’s in the game in Justin Jefferson. Slay had 2 INT’s and the Vikings were stymied the entire night. The longest pass completion for the Vikings was 19 yards! They were able to get pressure on Cousins, while also locking down in the secondary. Eagles LB T.J. Edwards also had 10 tackles, a tackle for loss, and a QB hit. Everyone is feeding off each other on this side of the ball and they are having a lot of fun doing it.
Conclusion
I know it’s only 2 weeks, but I really do believe in this Eagles team. When you have a team that dominates in the trenches to go along with all the weapons they have in the passing game (Offensively and defensively), they can compete with anyone. All of the attention is on Hurts for good reason, but Miles Sanders is also quietly having a good start to the season. He has 30 carries for 176 rushing yards averaging just under 6.0 yards per carry. I don’t see any big weaknesses with this team, which I can’t say for many other teams in this conference. It also helps that they play in a weak division and are almost guaranteed at least 1 home playoff game. It’s very early, but if they can stay healthy, the sky is the limit for this Eagles team!
For more NFL and College Football Content
Follow me on Twitter at @Stephen_Robello or on my podcast twitter and channel for Just A Bet Outside and follow us at @GridironHeroics for more great content. To read more of our articles and keep up on all things football, click here!