Apologies for not writing a game review for the Cowboys game, and double apologies for not writing a pregame preview for the Chiefs. Life can be crazy. Regardless, I wanted to take some time to talk about what we have seen from the Eagles over the last two weeks.
He Just Wins
First and foremost, the Eagles are a winning franchise with Jalen Hurts under center. They start the season 2-0 after beating arguably their two greatest rivals—I count the Chiefs among their biggest rivals at this point—the first two weeks of the season. It has not looked pretty for the most part, but they get the job done. You may have seen the video of Chris Jones trying to discredit Hurts at the line of scrimmage as the Eagles lined up in victory formation. Jones tells Hurts, “You don’t even have 100 yards.” I won’t quote Hurts’ response; you can watch it for yourself. But he is exactly correct; the Eagles won the game.
In Week 1, Hurts’ did exactly what you want to see from your franchise quarterback. Detractors point to his target map as a point of emphasis on his limitations as a passer.
I see the target map as a reason you paid the man to be your franchise quarterback. The Cowboys’ defensive coverage shells kept everything in front of them. They entirely eliminated the deep ball. What Hurts did was get the ball where it needed to be on time to take advantage of the intermediate and shallow areas of the field. Take what the defense gives you; Hurts did that and then killed the Cowboys with his legs. He was masterful against the Cowboys.
The Chiefs prioritized pressuring Hurts via blitzes. They blitzed the most they have under Steve Spagnuolo. Blitzes have long been the way to slow the Eagles offense, as the offense does not have the best answers when the quarterback is hot. But in this game, Hurts was decisive with the football, getting the ball out quickly.
Hurts is absolutely deserving of the praise he gets. He is willing this offense to wins they do not deserve.
Defense is Improved
The first half of the Cowboys game had most Eagles fans worried about the personnel lost in free agency during the offseason. They could not stop the run. Adoree Jackson was dreadful at CB2. Drew Mukuba was generally invisible. The defense settled in during the second half and certainly showed out today in Arrowhead.
The Eagles biggest question mark was pass rush. It was obvious that Eagles were simply not generating enough pressure despite Josh Uche having the best pass rush win-rate in the NFL in Week 1.
Upon review, in a few snaps, the Eagles pass rushers were just a half-second too late.
The Eagles were getting pressure but were held to zero sacks. Overall though, the results were poor.
Noticing the obvious shortfall, Howie Roseman went out and acquired Zadarius Smith, who was impactful immediately. He played well. The analytics will not be available for Week 2 for another day or two, but I anticipate the results on paper will be much better.
Though the pass rush looked better, Adoree Jackson was still challenged on most snaps. He is simply not the answer at CB2. The Eagles will need to get Jakorian Bennett out on the field sooner rather than later, or perhaps even make a move for a better option (that Bennett has not yet replaced Jackson on the depth chart is more than a little bit concerning). Jackson has been picked on in both games and has not even looked as bad as he actually has been. He was bailed out today twice on Patrick Mahomes overthrows. Fortunately, Mukuba looked every bit the playmaker he was billed as during the draft. He just missed out on a pick six after getting caught by the fastest offensive lineman sprint in years. His interception saved the game. He also had a massive stop against Hollywood Brown to kill a Chiefs drive. With CJ Gardner-Johnson gone, Mukuba will need to continue to be a physical force for the Eagles to continue performing well on defense.
If this Eagles team succeeds, it will be on the backs of their linebacking core. Jihaad Campbell is the perfect partner-in-crime for Zack Baun. His natural feel in coverage makes it so difficult for teams to throw over the middle for quarterbacks. I haven’t seen a target chart combining the first two weeks, but to my eyes, almost every target was along the sidelines, deep downfield or along the seams. Campbell even broke up a perfectly thrown seam-pass from Dak Prescott in Week 1. You have likely seen that clip of him “running the pole.” In addition to Campbell immediately looking like he belongs, Baun has not lost a step from his All-Pro season last year. He chased down Miles Sanders to save seven points in Week 1. That play was ultimately the difference.
Kevin Patullo Struggles
I will not pretend to be an offensive guru (though I like to think I know more than the average NFL viewer), so take this with a grain of salt: this offense looks uninspired.
My first thought is that the offense is not utilizing the full field. The Eagles seem to be running a lot of condensed sets which naturally loads the box against the run. There’s just more defenders closer to the ball. Saquon Barkley has not been bad at all, but the running game has been inefficient. Again, rbsdm.com will not have the EPA/play and Success Rate metrics until after tomorrow’s games, but I would venture to say the Eagles’ running game success rate will be below average. For a team that has the best offensive line and running back in football, that is unacceptable.
Contributing to their inefficiency on the ground is their predictability. Too often Patullo uses the same script each series: run into a loaded box, run into a loaded box, shallow pass to the boundary for little gain and punt. Every yard seems painstakingly hard to earn. Any success comes from the talent of the players. That has been enough these two weeks because the Eagles’ players are so talented, but teams more talented than the Cowboys and Chiefs, the margin for error will be so much smaller.
That AJ Brown has basically been a non-factor in both Week 1 and Week 2 is unforgiveable. He is among the five best players on the entire 53-man roster. He is a top-5 wide receiver in the NFL. Use him.
Similarly, when the Eagles have been in 3rd and more than 10, Patullo has had the Eagles take the cowards way out and run to punt. This is an offense with AJ Brown, DeVonta Smith, Saquon Barkley, the best offensive line in football, and a quarterback who throws the best deep ball in the NFL. Take advantage of the personnel and be aggressive.
It is early, but the early returns on Kevin Patullo are not inspiring.
Discipline
This whole offseason, we have heard about the Eagles as the model organization in the NFL. National pundits, players, coaches and team staff members all rave about how the Eagles prepare so intensely in the details. Where is the proof? The offensive line has killed drives with pre-snap penalties. The defense has surrendered first downs due to undisciplined taunting, not to mention the Jalen Carter spit-gate.
The Eagles have won by the skin of their teeth twice, but both games should not have been that close. Their discipline, or lack thereof, is a major factor in allowing the Cowboys and Chiefs to stick around in games they had no business winning.
Looking Forward
I will have a game preview this week as the Eagles prepare to play the Los Angeles Rams. I’ve been fortunate enough to go to the Eagles-Rams games the past two season in LA (I live in San Diego). It is a shame I won’t make it to the game at home this year, but fear not, my dad carries the torch for me and will give me some live reactions from the Linc.
In terms of the game itself, my initial thoughts are that the Eagles will need to win in a shoot-out fashion.
If the Eagles continue to play with Adoree Jackson on the field, Sean McVay is going to expose him with both Davante Adams and Puka Nacua. Stafford and the rest of the Rams’ offense looked much improved in Week 2.
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