A Promising Start, But . . . .
For a change today, I will try not to be an insufferable killjoy. The Eagles won their opening game against a formidable opponent in a foreign country. They are undefeated. Bravo.
In fact, I will begin this post with all of the positive impressions I derived from the 34-29 win over Green Bay in Brazil. There was a lot to like about this start to a new season.
The biggest plus, at least to me, was the lack of evidence that the horrific team that ended 2023 would reappear to start (and probably ruin) the new season. That did not happen. The offense saw that it would not happen when it held the ball for the 7:25 in the fourth quarter, leaving Green Bay with 22 seconds to try to score a touchdown and win the game.
If this was last season’s Eagles, I would not have ruled out a comeback even then. (The memory of that improbable comeback by Seattle still stings.) But this team shed some of the stench of that team, which lost six of its last seven.
Another big plus, of course, was the debut of Saquon Barkley, who was even better than I expected. Putting aside one of his main functions – blocking for the blitz – Barkley proved equally adept at running for touchdowns or catching them. And those cuts? Have the Eagles ever had a running who can cut like that?
At the same time, I couldn’t help but question the sanity of the Giants and the rest of the NFL for devaluing the running-back position. New York was dumb enough to let Barkley go, and the Eagles appeared to be the only team willing to pay the running back what he had earned, a three-year, $37.5-million deal. If he stays healthy, that contract will be a bargain.
Jalen Hurts will always face criticism for turnovers, and he is dealing with lots of negative buzz this week for the two interceptions and fumbled snap that led to some serious early issues for the Birds.
I blame Hurts not at all for the first two botched plays. This is the insanity Nick Sirianni repeats every summer when he refuses to put his starters into preseason games. Now that they found a way to win, there’s no doubt Sirianni will repeat the mistake next year. (If he’s still here.)
The second INT in the back of the end zone was awful, though. You simply cannot be an elite quarterback and make that throw. But otherwise, Hurts was good enough to win, with a major assist from an otherwise struggling defense.
The offensive line seemed to handle to massive loss of Jason Kelce pretty well, and the incredibly talented receiving corps barely scratched the surface of its potential. The Eagles will score points this year. No worries about that.
On defense, well, the boys survived. That’s about the best we can conclude from that opening game. When they needed a stop in the fourth quarter, they got one. Remember, the Packers were on the doorstep late, with the ball on the Eagles 8-yard line midway through the fourth quarter, before the defense held Green Bay to a field goal.
Statistically, the D still is not very good — unless you have a better way to describe allowing 29 points and 414 yards to a Green Bay offense riddled with drops and penalties. And how many times did the Packers have to rush to the line because the play came in late? They were not close to what they will be later in the season.
The most positive development defensively was the work of the often-ignored linebackers, and most notably Zack Baun and Nakobe Dean.
Someone needs to tell Baun, a free agent from New Orleans, that Eagles linebackers simply never record 15 tackles and two sacks in one game. At this rate, GM Howie Roseman might actually start to respect the position.
And Dean, part of that national champion Georgia defense of three years ago, finally got to show his speed and leadership with some big plays that included a couple of bone-rattling hits. Now he just has to stay healthy. (Fingers crossed there.)
What did I like about the first game? The play-calling was much better than at any point last season, the defense was much more aggressive, the running and passing games were equally dangerous and the refs were unusually kind – especially in those two questionable holding calls against the Packers on the last Eagles drive.
What didn’t I like?
The stupidity of not playing starters in the preseason continues to resonate at the beginning of every season, as mentioned earlier. Hurts would have had a much better game, and the outcome would have been far less in doubt, if Sirianni just gave his best players a chance to shake off the rust in the games that don’t count.
It’s time our coach grew a pair, don’t you think?
And speaking of the coach, having running back Kenny Gainwell on the field in the red zone makes no sense. Why are the Eagles paying Barkley all that money? That decision seems like Sirianni’s more than offensive coordinator Kellen Moore’s, but whoever thought it was smart should be placed in concussion protocol. It was not.
This may also be a good time to cut back on the Tush Push. The Eagles failed at least once in Brazil, no doubt because Kelce is not in the middle clearing space for Hurts to jump over the pile. There is, after all, only one Jason Kelce.
On defense, there are still lots of issues that need to be addressed. How did the D shut down the run so well in the first half and then allow almost eight yards per carry in the second 30 minutes? Did the Packers provide the blueprint for how to run against this unproven front line?
I still feel the weakest element of the Eagles is the pass defense, in all of its forms. The pass rush is unreliable. (Where the hell was new acquisition Bryce Huff? He had no sacks, no hurries and no tackles.) The secondary still looks vulnerable in the middle of the field and is still prone to breakdowns that lead to big plays. The tackling is still iffy, at best. The blitz remains impotent.
All I can say about special teams is that the coaches and players had months to learn the new kickoff rules, and still they lined up wrong on the opening kickoff. That is not a good reflection on the coaching.
But why quibble when you won the opening game? In the interest of full disclosure, I was predicting a loss for the Birds, on route to a 5-12 season.
If I was wrong about the first week, maybe I’m wrong about the season, too.
I hope so. I received lots of texts and emails from fans delighted by the win. Nothing matters more in sports than how the Eagles did that week. This will be a good 10 days before the next game on Monday night.
Enjoy it. Your team is undefeated. Go Eagles.