Week 14 Eagles Power Rankings Roundup: Soaring To New Heights
8 straight wins. That is all you really need to say about the Eagles. You can’t even say it was weak competition anymore because they have beaten the Ravens, Rams, and Commanders the last 3 weeks. 2 of those came on the road. They have soared to being a truly elite team. But does the National Media agree? Find out in the week 14 Eagles Power Rankings Roundup.
Week 14 Eagles Power Rankings
ESPN- 4 (Previously 3)
“Philadelphia defensive coordinator Vic Fangio saw his potential as an inside linebacker, and Baun earned a starting role there. He has demolished expectations, posting 117 tackles (tied for fourth in the league), 2.5 sacks, an interception and four forced fumbles.”
I am sorry, they beat the Ravens, the 8th-best team in the league according to these same rankings, and you drop them 1 spot? They got jumped by the Bills. Saying the Bills are great is fair enough. But how can you justify dropping the Eagles a spot? If anything the Chiefs, who have barely beaten the Panthers and Raiders in back-to-back weeks, should be the team that falls out of the top 3.
CBS Sports- 4 (Previously 4)
“They are physical on offense, have an MVP candidate in Saquon Barkley and a defense that is suddenly tough to crack. Oh, they also have a favorable schedule down the stretch.”
CBS had the same exact top 4 as ESPN. But theirs stayed the same from last week, that I can understand more.
The schedule part is true. Not only that they face the Panthers, Giants, and Cowboys, who have a combined 5 wins, 2 of which came in games played between those teams. But also because 4 of the 5 games are at home, and the one-road game is a 2-hour bus trip away. They took their lumps with rough road trips to Brazil and LA, but the rest of the way they get to sleep in their own beds every night.
NFL.com- 3 (Previously 3)
“When the offense was stopped early, there was no panic; that’s almost a weekly plotline now. Eventually, Saquon Barkley and A.J. Brown did what they do, finishing off the Ravens. The Eagles are a seasoned, dangerous team that can win pretty or — like on Sunday — ugly.“
We keep saying the slow starts are not sustainable. That one of these games it will bite them in the ass. But if it was going to, it would have against a prolific offense like the Ravens. It didn’t hurt them though. Eventually, the dam always breaks, and Saquon goes for a big play. Maybe we need to just have faith in them.
Sports Illustrated- 2 (Previously 2)
“The play of this defensive line has reached an absolute peak, which is a tremendous credit to the back end of Philadelphia’s coaching staff, a group who has rounded out Jalen Carter, Milton Williams, and Jordan Davis into a gap-sound machine that almost takes away the need for a pass rush.“
Everyone on the defense is doing their job. They are where they need to be every play. No one is freestyling, or breaking from the called play to try and make a play themselves. That is what happens when a team trusts their coach. The talent on defense is much better this year. But Vic Fangio might be the biggest upgrade they made.
USA Today- 2 (Previously 2)
“One unheralded aspect of Philly’s success has been the arrival – literally and figuratively – of Zack Baun, who seems to make impact plays every week and is ranked by the NFL analytics site PFF as the league’s No. 1 off-ball linebacker.”
I will admit to thinking Fangio was crazy, or perhaps misspoke when he said Baun was the team’s best off-ball linebacker. But I guess a guy who has coached defense in the NFL for decades knows more than the rest of us, who could have guessed?
Yahoo Sports- 2 (Previously 2)
“Saquon Barkley is still alive in the NFL MVP race after rushing for 107 yards and a touchdown in a huge win vs. the Ravens. We know Barkley needs to be just about perfect and even if he is that probably won’t be enough, but as long as he keeps alive his streak of big games he’ll stay in the conversation.“
Saquon is still on track to break Dickerson’s 40-year-old record. The Ravens are the toughest run defense he will face all year, and he still had his way with them. Now, outside of the Steelers who are also a top 5 run defense, the other 4 teams they play make up 4 of the 6 worst run defenses in the league. He has a real chance to break it if he stays healthy. Chris Johnson’s Yards Of Scrimmage record is also in play. If he does, it will be hard to not call him the MVP.
Watch Kincade & Salciunas on the 97.5 The Fanatic YouTube page for discussion about the latest breaking sports news in Philadelphia.
6 Impressive Numbers For Eagles Big Win Over The Ravens
3
Obviously the goal is to win the 1-seed, and for that to happen the Eagles will need some help from other teams around the league beating the Lions. They do have some tough games left, including the Packers, Vikings, and Bills. But the Eagles do not control their destiny with the 1 seed.
Control of at least the 2-seed and the NFC East is within arms reach though. The best any team in the South can go is 11-6, and that would require either the Falcons or Bucs winning out. Not going to happen. 2 more wins by the Eagles, or even 1 win and a loss by those two teams, guaranteed they finish ahead of those teams.
Even if the Seahawks win out, they can go 12-5 at best. The same goes for the Commanders. That is a magic number of 3 for the Eagles before you even factor in the tiebreaker.
Any combination of 3 wins, or losses by those 2 teams, secures them the 2 seed.
