Could The Eagles Get Doug Pederson Fired 2 Times?

Imagine being the local legend who did something that nobody else managed to accomplish. Dick Vermeil tried, Andy Reid tried but you managed to succeed. The man who brought the elusive Super Bowl championship to Philadelphia was the guy once voted “least likely to succeed” by the dopey analysis of Mike Lombardi. Doug Pederson did it and will forever be in the good graces of this fan base.

Yet his is a complicated story of the decline of a young star QB, a messy divorce from his position and a second chance job that is spiraling in disaster. Could this story really end again in Philadelphia?

Pederson was the definition of pushing all the right buttons in 2017. His team lost their first road game of the season in Kansas City and then proceeded to rampage to an 11-2 record in frequent blowout fashion before the season-ending injury to Carson Wentz.

What followed was a bumpy transition to Nick Foles and then the creation of the perfect “backup offense” that they used to win that ring. He was aggressive and innovative. His team played with an arrogance and swagger. They never flinched and it seemed like it was the start of something incredible.

The team declined in 2018 but managed to overcome the next injury to Carson Wentz behind Nick Foles once again. The infamous double doink win in Chicago wildcard weekend was followed up by a heartbreaking loss to New Orleans in the divisional round. The 2019 season was on a losing trajectory before the team rattled off four December wins to finish 9-7. Another early exit for Carson Wentz against Seattle ended that hot streak. We all know that in 2020 the bottom fell out in a 4-11-1 season.

Many will say it was injuries that caused the decline of Carson Wentz. I’ve always believed it was a deadly cocktail of injury, poor coaching, and a clear lack of public support from Pederson. When Doug bragged about wanting to draft Jalen Hurts in the 2020 Draft with a second-round pick when the team had more obvious needs, the undermining of Wentz began. It all created a negative energy that led to his exit to the Indianapolis Colts. Any story of what might have been with Wentz must include Pederson.

Pederson got the Jaguars to a wildcard berth in his first season and won a playoff game. Since then it has been a complete downward spiral. He has failed to develop Trevor Lawrence and the team defense is horrible. Stop me if you have head this before. The fans are questioning the caliber of his assistant coaches.

Jacksonville sports radio has speculated he could be coaching his last game on Sunday night. How ironic would it be if the new life that he found in Florida ended at the same place his first career stop ended. No Eagles fan wishes ill on Doug, but we all want 6-2 badly. Sorry, bring on a blowout and let the chips fall where they may!

The Eagles came into the game on a 2-game winning streak. Their last game was their best game in the past 2 years, crushing the Giants 28-3. But beating the Browns and Giants left some people unimpressed. Those are two bad teams. They may have good defenses, but their offenses are two of the worst in the league.

Maybe beating the Bengals will change that tune. Yes, their record is not very good, but they took the Ravens to OT, and kept things close with the Commanders and Chiefs. They came into week 8 having won 3 of their last 4 games.

Related: Eagles Make A Strong Statement In Win Over The Bengals

You can't discount this win the same way people did the last two. The Eagles were betting underdogs. It was in hostile territory against a team desperate for a win. Joe Burrow and the Bengals offense tore apart the Ravens and Commander's defense earlier this year. This was not an easy game, and this was an impressive win.

But how impressive? What should we take away from them putting up 37 points while holding the Bengals to just 17? Is this team ready to really compete, or are there still things to be concerned about? Is this defense legit? Is the offense finally living up to the hype?

With a day to think about it, let's go over the game again. Fans have good reason to feel good about this team now. They are 5-2, with wins over the Packers and Bengals. Their only losses came with several key players missing. Now that they are healthy, they might be a team to watch.

Eagles fans have been through it, and have good reason to be skeptical. But here is why you should feel confident in the Eagles going forward.

A lot was made of the Eagles' slow start. But most of that worry came from the 3 games AJ Brown missed. They averaged 17.2 points per game in the 3 games Brown missed. In 1 of those games, they were also missing Devonta Smith and Lane Johnson. But remember, in game 1 they scored 34 on the Packers. Now they have scored 20, 28, and 37 in the 3 games since he returned.

In games where AJ Brown plays, they average 29.75 points per game. Remember, that is with them pulling started in each of the last two games. The starters didn't see the field in the 4th quarter against the Giants. Will Shipley was getting carries late vs the Bengals.  They took their foot off the gas and still put up crooked numbers. When AJ Brown plays, this offense is elite.

The defense did not get off to a good start. Joe Burrow picked them apart with way too much ease early in the game. It is not how you start though, it is how you finish. The thing that separates Vic Fangio from past coordinators here who ran the same scheme, is adjustments. He is capable of adjusting in-game. We saw that on display Sunday. Joe Burrow had their number early, with 175 yards in the first half. Fangio adjusted and shut the Bengals down. Just 7 points in the 2nd half.

But it got even better in the 4th quarter. It might have been a 20-point win, but things were tight to open up the final quarter. It was 24-17 Eagles. They kicked a FG to open the quarter to make it 27-17. It was only a 2-score game, with a lot of time left. The Bengals could have easily come back. Instead, the Eagles gave up just 29 yards across 3 drives in the 4th quarter. They also got 2 takeaways and got a turnover on downs.

That is as encouraging of a sign as there can be. Seeing this defense struggle early, adjust, and then shut down a talented offense was so impressive.

A lot was made about Fred Johnson vs Trey Hendrickson this week. After he struggled a bit against Brian Burns in pass protection the week before, there was concern about how he would hold up against another elite pass rusher. Turns out there was no reason to worry because Johnson was fantastic as a pass blocker.

In 22 pass block snaps, he gave up just 1 pressure. A pressure rate of just 4.5% against him. 13 of those snaps came against Trey Hendrickson. That is one of the better pass rushers in the league, and Johnson shut him down. Fred Johnson has been great as a run blocker ever since get got here, but to see him be that good against the pass is an encouraging sign. Not just for the meantime while they await for Jordan Mailata to return, but going forward for any case where they might need a backup.

Few players protected the ball worse than Jalen hurts going into the bye week. But no player has protected the ball better than him since. In the last 3 games, Hurts has 0 turnovers. Not only that, but he has 0 turnover-worthy plays.

But it is not like they are no longer taking risks. he has a TD pass of at least 40 yards in all 3 games. They are taking shots. Hurts is 12th in the league in Average Air yards intended.  This is not them only letting him make easy throws because they don't trust him. He is still making great throws every game. Both deep down the field, and in the intermediate area of the field. He was 6 for 7 with a  TD on passes of over 10 yards.

That throw to Devonta Smith was elite. it was tight coverage, and deep down the field. He still delivered the perfect pass, where Smith made a great play. Don't look now, but 2022 Hurts might be back.

I fully admit to losing faith in Nolan Smith. After he couldn't get on the field last year, and struggled early this year, I had major doubts about him. But it was another fantastic game by him. But in the past 3 weeks, he has made me look foolish for doubting him.

Smith now has 3 sacks in his last 3 games. He had just 1 last season. But more than the sacks, he is consistently winning his matchups. His Pass Rush Win rate on Sunday was 35.7%. For the context of how good that number is, Aidan Hutchinson has the best pass-run win rate among Edge Rushers this season with 35%. Smith was very good on Sunday.

As a group, the sack numbers fell. It was hard to see them continuing to get that many sacks every week as they did vs the Browns and Giants. But they did still get pressure. Bryce Huff fell off again, but Nolan Smith has 3 straight good weeks now. Maybe he has figured something out.

The Eagles have 10 games left, and those team teams are a combined 36-39 (.480). That is the 18th easiest schedule left in the league. But honestly, it might be easier than even that. Because there are only 4 games left vs an opponent with a winning record, the Ravens, Steelers, and the Commanders twice. The other 6 teams are 14-30 (.318).

This is a very manageable schedule for the Eagles. Jaguars, Rams, Giants, Panthers, and the Cowboys twice. Even if they split the 4 tough games, there is still a path to 13-4 or 12-5. They have recently beaten up on bad teams, and there are a lot of bad teams left.

If you go by ESPN FPI, they have the easiest schedule the rest of the way, and they have been the 4th best team so far.