Many reporters, and fans thought the Eagles would be better than the national pundits were giving them credit for. I don’t think anyone could have predicted the absolutely dominant form the Eagles displayed against Atlanta on Sunday.
Fresh off the team’s 32-6 victory on opening day, the Eagles have excited fans all across the globe on the idea that this “rebuild” could actually be moving a lot quicker than anyone anticipated.
As normal, this team will go as far as the offensive line will take them. And boy did they hold up their end of the bargain on Sunday.
Nobody was as pumped as Brian Baldinger either:
But let’s pump the brakes.
Yes, Eagle fans should be very happy about the way the team executed on both offense and defense. They should be ecstatic with the way the trenches performed on Sunday. They should be thrilled with how the coaching staff showed a commitment to utilizing the skillset of the players they have.
But it was Week 1. And it was the Atlanta Falcons.
The schedule is about to get a lot tougher with San Fran, Dallas, KC and Tampa Bay upcoming.
While there was a ton to love, there were things to be concerned with too.
Mike Davis and the Atlanta Falcons offense rushed for over 100 yards within the first quarter and a half. Yes, the defense ended up shutting down the Falcons offense shortly after, but their gameplan was hardly bulletproof, as we later found out.
Zeke Elliott, Christian McCaffrey, Saquon Barkley and many others await.
The Eagles did not look good in the preseason against the run with better offensive lines. What’s going to happen when they play the league’s best running teams?
You could say that I’m grasping at strings for what was an awesome opening day. It was awesome. That isn’t to say this team can’t surprise people either. I think they proved last week that this roster, and coaching staff definitely can!
But it’s far more likely opening day was more of a mirage than a consistent barometer for this team throughout the year.
The 2016 Eagles, the first year under Doug Pederson and a brand new QB, opened the season at 3-0 before falling apart and going 7-9. Everyone talks about that first year being the stepping stone for the championship season a year after.
The 2021 Eagles do have a better roster than 2016, but this coaching staff is far more inexperienced than Doug’s original staff. As good as the coaching staff looked on Sunday, the learning curves will certainly show up later in the year against better teams.
And it honestly might be for the best too. If Jalen Hurts continues to show potential like he did last week, the need for being aggressive at the QB position goes away, and the Eagles would have three 1st round players next year to improve the team.
It’s a great setup as long as this team continues to grow. But let’s not think this is suddenly a playoff team.
There’s still a loooong way to go.
Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire
