TAMPA, FLORIDA - SEPTEMBER 29: Jalen Hurts #1 of the Philadelphia Eagles throws a pass against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half at Raymond James Stadium on September 29, 2024 in Tampa, Florida.
It seemed like the Eagles stock was on the rise after an impressive performance by their defense in week 3. But it was followed by an immediate collapse the following week. How far have they fallen after being embarrassed by the Bucs? Let’s check it out in the week 5 Eagles Power Rankings Round-Up.
“The Eagles signed Bryce Huff to a three-year, $51 million contract in free agency to be an impact three-down player, but he hasn’t been reliable against the run, in particular. Barring a significant uptick in play from Huff or 2023 first-round pick Nolan Smith Jr., this unit could be an issue all season.“
Of all the roster concerns, this is the biggest one. The rest of the defense could be fine. The DTs are too inconsistent, but we have seen them play well. The linebackers are ok enough to get by if every thing else works. But Edge Rusher looks like a disaster. Bryce Huff and Nolan Smith are giving you nothing. If that doesn’t change, it is hard to see this defense being good enough to win anything.
“Without Hurts displaying better ball security, a shorthanded Eagles squad isn’t going to win many games. This will be a frustrating bye week, but they’ll have the chance to get healthier and get back on track.”
Hurts has had a turnover problem for 21 games now. Since game 1 of last year he averages over a turnover per game, after protecting the ball better than anyone in 2022. His turnover in week 4 came at the worst time. They had a bit of momentum, they were driving with a chance to make it a 1 score game. Then he coughed it up, and they never had another chance to make it a game.
We have heard him say he needs to be smarter enough. he needs to stop saying it, and actually do it. Either that, or start playing so well that you can forgive the turnovers the way the Bills do with Josh Allen.
“First-round cornerback Quinyon Mitchell is one of the bright spots Eagles fans are holding on to after a frustrating start in Philadelphia. He has played 99 percent of the team’s snaps and is allowing a 47.1 percent completion percentage and 69.2 passer rating on balls thrown his way, according to Pro Football Reference.“
If you are looking for a bright spot, this is it. Mitchell is one of a small handful of defenders who has played well every week. You can’t say that about Jalen Carter, who has been inconsistent. Quinyon has flashed something evey single week. After years of wanting for a young star corner, they may have finally gotten one. It is too bad most of the rest of the defense looks this bad.
“A trio of inactive Pro Bowlers isn’t going to help the bottom line. Nor will QB Jalen Hurts’ now-chronic propensity for turnovers, which are now coming at nearly two per week. Early as it is, Philly’s Week 5 bye could be fortuitous.“
The offense gets a small pass for missing 3 All-Pro caliber players. Not a full one, Jalen Hurts alone should be good enough to compete. Other QBs do more with less than hurts had on Sunday. But missing those 3 guys is a tough test. And the early bye that looked like a negative when the schedule came out, suddenly is a blessing to get their star players healthy.
“The Eagles looked like a team that knew their bye was coming up in a week. There were the offensive injuries, too. Not much changed: The Eagles still aren’t a great team yet, just a good one with some flaws. That’s most of the NFL going into October.”
It is a fair point that a lot of teams look like the Eagles right now. I do think as a fanbase we tend to hyper focus on the flaws of our team, and perhaps miss the bigger picture. My problem is the issues we are seeing sunk this team last year. Nothing seems to have changed. So it is a bit hard to give them the benefit of the doubt that they will work out of it, when they had all summer and couldn’t fix these problems.
“I hate to get caught up in the Jalen Hurts needs to do more because…money argument. Look at what the Browns are getting out of Deshaun Watson, the Bengals out of Joe Burrow (so far), the Jaguars out of Trevor Lawrence. You’re wagering on potential and Hurts still has his moments. He’s also missing throws and doesn’t seem in the flow of the scheme.“
Jalen Hurts is not the only quarterback who has failed to live up to his big contract. That much is true. But he needs to be better. Outside of the turnovers, I actually like a lot of what I saw from him in the first 3 games. But week 4 was unacceptable from him.
“They have big problems. The injuries are one thing, but Jalen Hurts isn’t playing well and the defense is back to being bad. The heat is on Nick Sirianni.”
Nick looks lost. He looked lost last season too. 4 weeks in it looks like they made the wrong choice to bring him back. As of now, he has fixed none of the issues that caused the collapse in 2023. Lurie is not the type to fire people mid-season, but that may change if this gets ugly. Sirianni is coaching for his job every week at this point.
Dylan MacKinnon is The Digital Content Coordinator For 97.5 The Fanatic. he has been an Eagles, Flyers, Sixers, and Flyers fan his whole life. He graduated from Rutgers University with a Bachelors in Journalism. Dylan has worked at the Fanatic since 2016, starting as an Intern, moving to the Street team, and eventually was hired as an Associate Producer before settling into his current role in the Digital Department. You may hear him referred to on-air as "The D-Train."
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