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5 Things The Eagles Need To Do To Follow In The Chiefs Footsteps
The Eagles have won 1 Super Bowl in franchise history. The Chiefs just won their 3rd in the 5 seasons. They also lost 1 Super Bowl and were in the AFC Championship game in the other season. They are a force of sheer domination, relevant nearly every season. Even this year, when they did not look their best, they still won. The Eagles have one of the more consistent teams, but they are nowhere close to matching the Chiefs.
It is something every fan aspires to. A dynasty. We haven’t had the chance to see it for any of our teams. The Andy Reid Eagles made the NFC Championship seemingly every season. But they never won it all. The 1980s Sixers team was great, but they have just 1 ring to show for it. The Broad Street Bullies won 2, but even that is not quite a dynasty. The closest thing we might have is the Eagles who won 3 Championships before the Super Bowl era. But that was across 12 seasons, not 5.
3 championships is more than any team apart from the Eagles have in our town. The Phillies are 140 years old and have just 2. The Flyers have just 2 and the last one was nearly 50 years ago. The Sixers haven’t won since the 80s. And 3 of the Eagles championships were before the Super Bowl was even a thing.
We deserve better. But can the Eagles give us it? We thought so after they lost to the Chiefs last year. But the Eagles fell apart, and the Chiefs are right back in the ring of champions. So clearly there is still a massive gap between the two franchises. A lot of that is them having the guy who may go down as the greatest QB of all-time, and perhaps the greatest Coach of all-time. But we saw Jalen Hurts go toe to toe with Mahomes and arguably outplay him in their Super Bowl. If the defense got one stop in the 2nd half of that game, we may not be talking about the Chiefs as a dynasty yet. And if it wasn’t for the Chiefs elite defense this year, the 49ers may have run away with the game early on.
So what do the Eagles do to become a force like the Chiefs are? It starts with nailing this off-season and having a chance to win 1 Super Bowl. And here are 5 steps they need to take to get back to contending next season:
Get Younger, and Better, In The Secondary
For most of the Super Bowl, the Chiefs offense was doing nothing. With how poorly they were playing, the game could have easily gotten away from them. But their defense kept them in it. Their defense was what kept them afloat all season long while the offense scuffled. More importantly, their secondary kept them in it. Trent McDuffie in particular was making play after play to keep the 49ers off the board. And it’s something the Eagles need to start copying.
This season we saw their Cornerback room was too old, too slow, and not good enough. Howie Roseman has failed year after year to bring in top young corner talent. He has never spent a 1st on a corner and hasn’t spent a day 2 pick on one since 2017. But if they want to accomplish what the Chiefs have, that needs to change. Go get your own young dominant cornerback. Your version of Trent McDuffie. This is a great draft to need a corner. Howie needs to take advantage. Beyond drafting one, they should also go out and use some of their cap space on a veteran in the secondary too. Antoine Winfield Jr would be great, but there are other options too.
Hayden Winks on Twitter: "Unreal rep by Trent McDuffie vs. Deebo on a cheat motion. pic.twitter.com/utKoiMnWQI / Twitter"
Unreal rep by Trent McDuffie vs. Deebo on a cheat motion. pic.twitter.com/utKoiMnWQI
Let Kellen Moore Run The Offense
Nick Sirianni’s playbook was terrible last year. Brian Johnson was the fall guy, and fans want to heap most of the blame on him. But if you follow the reporting from trustworthy sources like Tim McManus, we know that it was Nick Sirianni’s design. Johnson just called the plays. The Eagles have told us that the new OC, Kellen Moore, will actually run the offense now. And that is something they need to stick to.
There are things Sirianni does well as a head coach. He has been effectively aggressive, even if he did make some cowardly decisions this past season. But his play design was terrible and a huge reason why the offense sputtered. He steadfastly refused to keep up with the times. He never used motion and hardly used the middle of the field. Those are two things the Chiefs do a lot of. Most elite offenses do. Luckily those are two things Moore excels at. Is Moore the answer? We will find out. But we learned this season Sirianni is now. And if the Eagles are going to get back it happens by Sirianni sticking to being a head coach and letting someone else run the offense.
Warren Sharp on Twitter: "Andy Reid used the same short motion to get the DBs to trade off assignments as he did to win last year's Super Bowl vs the Eagles 🤯🤯 pic.twitter.com/4xkjzP8NWo / Twitter"
Andy Reid used the same short motion to get the DBs to trade off assignments as he did to win last year's Super Bowl vs the Eagles 🤯🤯 pic.twitter.com/4xkjzP8NWo
Invest at Linebacker
The most consistent part of Howie Roseman’s career is how little he invests in LB. The Eagles LB groups are often made up of the leftovers in free agency, and young guys taken later in the draft. He occasionally will invest a 3rd rounder in a LB, like Nakobe Dean or Davion Taylor. But that is the most he will spend, and they never sign a guy to a new contract.
That has to change. I am not saying spend a 1st round pick on a LB. But just take the LB position seriously. Go out and sign a guy, and not just someone who isn’t getting any other offer. The Chiefs signed a quality Linebacker like Drue Tranquill for $3 million. That is not a lot of money. But the Eagles barely spent $3 million combined on their inside linebackers last season. In fact, you’d have to go back to Nigel Bradham to find the last LB the Eagles spent at least $3 million on. The Eagles won the Super Bowl with Bradham as their best active LB.
Having a Fred Warner would be nice. But all they really need is reliable LBs. Someone who won’t kill them on a weekly basis. Invest a little bit more than the bare minimum in the position. Tranquill is a free agent again. Go sign him.
LB Drue Tranquill thought he was going to be returning to the #chargers with everything Tom Telesco and the organization told him. They changed their mind. He was shocked he told me. He ended up deciding between the #dolphins, #Eagles, #chiefs and picked KC because he knew it…
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) February 8, 2024Jalen Hurts Needs To Get Back to 2022 Form
Jalen was as good as any player in the league in 2022. But he took a step back in 2023. He was still decent, perhaps better than people think. But he was not the same guy. Some of that was Sirianni making things difficult for him. Some of it was injuries hampering his ability to escape and run. But he also just regressed a bit. In 2022 we saw him confidently step into the pocket, and deliver throws.
The 2022 version of Hurts didn’t need his legs to be great, it was just another part of his game. 2023 Hurts lacked that composure. Too often we saw him bail at the first sign of pressure, and scramble to his right. And for whatever reason, the Eagles rarely had guys over there for him to dump it off to. So getting Hurts back on track starts with him just being better. It also means making things easier for him. Have checkdowns ready for when there is a blitz. Integrate more hot routes. Have the new QB coach Doug Nussmeier drill with him to get his 2022 mechanics back. Because Hurts is a great pocket passer. And getting him to stay there more often is the key to him bouncing back.
Jeff Kerr on Twitter: "Jalen Hurts was 4th in the #NFL on completion percentage inside the pocket (70.8%). Outside the pocket, Hurts had the 3rd-lowest completion percentage (39.8%). #Eagles / Twitter"
Jalen Hurts was 4th in the #NFL on completion percentage inside the pocket (70.8%). Outside the pocket, Hurts had the 3rd-lowest completion percentage (39.8%). #Eagles
Get Back To Sacking The QB
The Eagles defense put up historic sack numbers in 2022. Then they had 0 in the Super Bowl and lost. We can blame the field for that, but we cant deny the lack of pressure played a big role in the loss. And in 2023 they just fell off the face of the Earth in terms of generating a pass rush. And if Vic Fangio is going to turn this defense around, it starts with fixing the pass rush.
The news that Haason Reddick could be traded is not a great start. Hopefully he comes back with a new contract. But they need the whole D-Line getting after the QB, not just one guy. That means Josh Sweat being more consistent, and it means keeping guys like Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis fresh so they don’t disappear late in the season again. It could also mean getting Nolan Smith going. This defense relies on the 4-man pass rush working to get the job done. If they can’t get to the QB, things will go poorly. Having better corners will help. But the pass rush needs to step up their game too. If Haason Reddick does leave, then priority one is finding someone to replace him.
Ian Rapoport on Twitter: "Sources: #Eagles All-Pro edge rusher Haason Reddick has received permission to seek a trade following another disruptive season featuring double digit sacks. The 29-year old with 27 sacks over two seasons in Philly could land elsewhere. pic.twitter.com/WxIGTac24M / Twitter"
Sources: #Eagles All-Pro edge rusher Haason Reddick has received permission to seek a trade following another disruptive season featuring double digit sacks. The 29-year old with 27 sacks over two seasons in Philly could land elsewhere. pic.twitter.com/WxIGTac24M
