The Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings are set to lock horns on Monday Night in what promises to be an explosive affair. We sat down to go over the game and give our predictions ahead of this week 2 showdown.
Liam Jenkins
This matchup is interesting for so many reasons, but what it will ultimately come down to is whether or not Jonathan Gannon can take even a minor step forward after the underwhelming defensive effort we saw in week 1. Kirk Cousins seems to have a tendency to rip the Birds to shreds, Justin Jefferson is a superstar, and Dalvin Cook is as ferocious as ever. It doesn’t matter how smoothly the offense hums on Monday night if Gannon’s defense can’t stop the bleeding.
Before the season, I would’ve backed the Eagles for a convincing win. But after week 1 showed 0 defensive improvements despite such a transformative offseason, that’s now going to be a lot more difficult. My prediction is a high-scoring affair decided by a Jake Elliott field goal.
Bryan Cameron
While week 1 had its fair share of fireworks for the Eagles, we can’t ignore the fact that the offensive line was a bit rusty and the defense looked a bit lost. The Vikings are riding a high after their blowout of the Packers but sometimes teams can get addicted to the high and end up falling flat on their face. If the Eagles can clean up the messes of week 1 and show some type of consistency then they would take down the Vikings but after seeing how long it took them to put it together last season, I’m not too confident.
I believe the Vikings’ air raid and the ground game may be too much for the birds to handle. Justin Jefferson has his revenge and Gannon’s seat gets hotter but Hurts and the Eagles’ offense puts up a fight until the very end.
35-27 Vikings
Nick Faria
This game scares me for many reasons. Philly hasn’t started 2-0 since the Super Bowl, and they have been very bad against Kirk Cousins-led teams. Jalen Hurts will need to play like an MVP candidate to have any shot in this game. The Vikings sent a major message last week with their dismantling of Green Bay and new head coaches usually get a few weeks of dominance before teams figure them out. The trenches will end up deciding the game as always, but I’m not confident in the Eagles finding ways to limit the Vikings’ offensive attack
34-17 Vikings
Matty Breisch
I want to believe.
In Week 1, the Minnesota Vikings were a better team than the Philadelphia Eagles. Their pass rush was dominant, their win was more impressive, and even their high-usage star wide receiver had a better outing which is a tough task to do considering just how dominant A.J. Brown looked on his debut. Still, this is the Birds’ home opener and after beating the bricks off the Vikings in the 2017 playoffs in the very same stadium, the ghosts of Minnesota Super Bowls pasts could haunt the purple and gold. Give me Birds by three in a shoot-out.
35-32 Eagles
Morgan Burkett
Although these two teams are evenly matched on paper, the Vikings looked a lot more sound while dismantling the Packers than the Eagles did eking out a win against what was supposed to be easy competition. However, looks can be deceiving. Green Bay seems to struggle every September trying to re-find their identity and the Lions were always going to be a better team than first imagined.
While many factors will play their part, this game will come down to the quarterbacks and their ability to play mistake-free football. Kirk Cousins is notoriously bad on Monday night but has beaten the Eagles in their last two matchups.
The Eagles will have to find a way to put pressure on him early and often. Jonathan Gannon cannot afford to revert to his soft zone coverage and let Cousins dink and dunk his way down the field, nor can he allow his safety tandem – which is still learning to play together – to be exposed by the electric Justin Jefferson.
Jalen Hurts will be counted on to will the Eagles to victory and should be able to count on his receivers finding ways to get open against the Vikings’ corners. The Minnesota defense will live and die by their ability to get to the quarterback. Expect Sirinanni to throw some wrinkles into the run game to keep this Eagles offense in 2nd and manageable as much as possible.
Either team has a chance at winning this game, and although I think the Eagles will be the better team come playoff time, the Vikings are a more stable team this early in the season.
Vikings 27-24.
Colin Newby
The Eagles have yet to prove they can contain a talented quarterback and defeat a team with a high-powered offense since Nick Sirianni and Jonathan Gannon took over. Kirk Cousins might not be in the NFL’s top tier, but Week 1 was as good of an example as you’ll find of what he can do when he’s in rhythm, especially with a dynamic receiver like Justin Jefferson. Until Gannon shows us that he can utilize the new personnel on defense properly, he won’t get the benefit of the doubt.
Vikings 34, Eagles 30
Ethan Rappleye
I believe that this will be one of the toughest challenges the Eagles will face all year. Minnesota has a chance to be the most improved team of the season in comparison to last year, so the birds will have to come prepared for this one. The number 1 priority of the game is to make sure that Justin Jefferson is somewhat contained. If he gets 100 yards I can live with that, but if he ends up with 180 yards like against the Packers, the Eagles will almost certainly lose.
I think Darius Slay is capable but as good as he is, you cannot leave him on an island in coverage against JJ. The Eagles have the advantage in most other areas in personnel, and I expect a big week out of the pass rush with the home crowd behind them. It’ll be close and go down to the wire, but I think the Eagles can edge out the Vikings.
27-24 Eagles
Bolder predictions:
1) DeVonta Smith will outgain AJ Brown.
2) Darius Slay gets a pick while defending Justin Jefferson.
3) Jalen Hurts has 4 total TDs.
4) Eagles win on a field goal at the buzzer.
Photo by Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire
