Week 1 is in the books. It was not pretty, but it was a win. Eagles fans may still have some lingering PTSD from all the “ugly wins” last year, but we should not overreact to 1 week. It was a tough trip, vs a good team, on a bad field. You take the win. Now they have the Falcons coming to town for the 1st real home game of the season.

Related: Eagles Win Sloppy Game On Back Of Saquon Barkley

If you thought the Eagles looked ugly, the Falcons were disgusting. They played a worse team, at home, and looked lost. They fell to a mediocre Steelers team with Justin Fields at QB. It’s not like the Steelers looked great, they were just better than the Falcons. With all that talent on offense the Falcons couldn’t even move the ball.

The Eagles also get some extra rest before the game. They played Friday and then won’t take the field again until the following Monday Night. A couple of extra days compared to the Steelers, though the crazy travel might even things out a bit.

There were good things to take away from game 1. The offense was not at its best, and they still scored 34 points. The defense gave up some big plays, but they held the Pakcers to being 1 of 4 in the Red Zone. New blood like Quinyon Mitchell and Zack Baun looked fantastic. And Saquon Barkley was as good as advertised.

(Photo by Pedro Vilela/Getty Images)

On paper, it is a game the Eagles should win. They are currently 6.5 home favorites, and that number is moving in the Eagles’ direction. Vegas money thinks the Eagles win.

Who needs to step up to make sure that happens though? Which players have the best matchups for Monday Night’s game? What areas can the Eagles take advantage of the most?

Here are 6 Eagles Players In Store For Big Games Against The Falcons:

• DeVonta Smith

  AJ Terrell is a solid cornerback. He will likely shadow AJ Brown most of the game. Brown will certainly get his against Terrell, but he will at least battle a corner who stands a chance at covering him. After Terrell, the Falcons have no one capable of covering DeVonta Smith on the other side.

  Mike Hughes? Dee Alford? These guys are not starting caliber corners. DeVonta Smith will dominate whichever guy they put on him. Brown will have a good game regardless of how covers him, but Smith could have a great game. We already saw him do damage against a much better secondary vs Green Bay. But Monday Night he should go off.

  NFL on X (formerly Twitter): "DeVonta Smith. Always reliable.📺: #GBvsPHI on Peacock pic.twitter.com/iIw8UOZtIh / X"

  DeVonta Smith. Always reliable.📺: #GBvsPHI on Peacock pic.twitter.com/iIw8UOZtIh

• Josh Sweat

  The Steelers D-Line dominated the Falcons O-Line last Sunday. They have a great line, but it was more than just that. Kirk Cousins was incapable of escaping, and the Line had no answers. Pass Rush was an issue in week 1 for the Eagles. But they need to improve week 2. It is clear the Eagles don’t trust Bryce Huff or Nolan Smith. It needs to be Josh Sweat stepping up. 

  Sweat didn’t do much week 1. He was okay, but not an impact player. He is their most proven Edge Rusher though, outside Brandon Graham who is just older now. He needs to be the one to step up and make Kirk Cousin uncomfortable among the Edge Rushers. 

  NFL on X (formerly Twitter): "First down? Josh isn't Sweating it.Eagles recover the fumble! @SweatyJ_9📺: #WASvsPHI on ESPN📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/qDn7D0vc2b pic.twitter.com/4fQMwfyhDo / X"

  First down? Josh isn't Sweating it.Eagles recover the fumble! @SweatyJ_9📺: #WASvsPHI on ESPN📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/qDn7D0vc2b pic.twitter.com/4fQMwfyhDo

• Jalen Carter

  All the things I just said about Sweat, apply to Carter too, except he was actually really good in week 1. He never got to the QB, but we saw him blow up the pocket multiple times, and the Packers got away with a few holds on him. The inside of the Falcons line is especially vulnerable. According to PFF, they allowed 9 pressures, a sack, and 2 QB hits. This matchup is one for Carter to feast on. And while Love was mobile enough to avoid inside pressure, it is hard to see Kirk Cousins being able to do so with how immobile he looks right now.

  Philadelphia Eagles on X (formerly Twitter): "GOT THAT DAWG IN HIM @breadmanjalen#PHIvsLAR | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/NFx11jZORg / X"

  GOT THAT DAWG IN HIM @breadmanjalen#PHIvsLAR | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/NFx11jZORg

• Zack Baun

  I will admit I had very little faith in Baun. Them taking a rotation Edge Rusher, moving him to inside linebacker, and declaring him one of the best on the team, reeked of desperation to me. But 1 week in, he looked fantastic. Baun was everywhere in week 1. Tracking people down on the sideline, dropping back in coverage, and getting after the QB with the Eagles only 2 sacks of the game.

  Was it a fluke, or was it for real? Maybe we should have just taken Fangio at his word the whole time he was praising Baun. he has been honest with us about everyone else. We see with Bryce Huff that if he does not think a player is doing good enough, he will say so. Maybe Baun is actually a legit LB.

  They are gonna need him vs the Falcons. Bijan Robinson was held in check a bit in week 1. He had over 100 combined yards, but he was held to 3.8 yards per carry. The Packers’ Running Game got the better of the Eagles a bit, and they are going to rely on guys like Baun, and Jordan Davis, to keep Robinson from hurting them in week 2.

  97.5 The Fanatic on X (formerly Twitter): "Zack Baun showed out in his debut for the Birds, and @KevinNegandhi was impressed."Isn't it nice to have a middle linebacker who can make plays across all three levels of the field. That was refreshing."(via Kincade & Salciunas)📸Wagner Meier/Getty Images pic.twitter.com/ZMlQAxq7yx / X"

  Zack Baun showed out in his debut for the Birds, and @KevinNegandhi was impressed."Isn't it nice to have a middle linebacker who can make plays across all three levels of the field. That was refreshing."(via Kincade & Salciunas)📸Wagner Meier/Getty Images pic.twitter.com/ZMlQAxq7yx

• Saquon Barkely

  After he was the team MVP in week 1, he had to get a shoutout here. Barkley started his career with a bang, finding the End Zone 3 times. Expecting him to do that every week would be unreasonable. But can he still get 100 yards and a TD? Absolutely.

  The Falcons run D actually did a decent job in week 1 stopping the Steelers rushing game. They gave up 137 yards but on 41 carries. That includes a 10-yard loss for George Pickens, but even if you take that out, they still only gave up 3.7 yards per carry. With Saquon, and this O-line though, the Eagles should be able to run against almost anyone.

  NFL on X (formerly Twitter): "Saquon Barkley is having one of the greatest team debuts of all time.📺: #GBvsPHI on Peacock pic.twitter.com/Hvx7tUzGkI / X"

  Saquon Barkley is having one of the greatest team debuts of all time.📺: #GBvsPHI on Peacock pic.twitter.com/Hvx7tUzGkI

• Mekhi Becton

  Mekhi Becton was amazing in week 1. As a first-time RG, he drew a tough test battling with pro-Bowler Kenny Clark. He shut Clark down, giving up no pressures, and the Eagles actually had their most success on the ground running between him and Lane Johnson. We got to see why he won the job so quickly in camp. Despite being new to Guard, he looked like a natural. The Falcons don’t have a DT of Kenny Clark’s caliber, so expect Becton to look good again on Monday night.

  All-22 on X (formerly Twitter): "Did we write off Mekhi Becton too soon?A move to guard and a fresh start with the Philadelphia Eagles may have been all he needed to revive his career - Becton is a must-add ahead of Week 2.🧵pic.twitter.com/QgDhl3GnJq / X"

  Did we write off Mekhi Becton too soon?A move to guard and a fresh start with the Philadelphia Eagles may have been all he needed to revive his career - Becton is a must-add ahead of Week 2.🧵pic.twitter.com/QgDhl3GnJq

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