Who doesn’t feel like coming out of the tunnel like Brian Dawkins thinking about tonight? The Eagles will be unveiling their newest Super Bowl banner before taking on the Dallas Cowboys. Before that though, let’s countdown all the ways this team is getting their 3rd title six months from now.
10: Management
Howie is not last on the list, just the first one I want to talk about. Word came out this morning that he made a serious effort to trade for Micah Parsons but was rejected by Jerry Jones. I f***ing love it. The man in charge of this team has made it clear that he is playing all angles at all times. He is constantly on the lookout for talent, draft picks, and whatever edge he can find (Willie Lampkin) in one of the most competitive arenas in the world. Most importantly though, he has a philosophy: pay the great players not the good ones because they can be replaced. That’s how we stay elite.
9: Coaching
Nick Sirianni received a contract extension this summer. For all the bullshit Nick hate out there, he is a top tier coach in the league. Why? Because he can adapt. Anytime things aren’t working on the field, Nick listens to his players and morphs the team into the best version of itself. That philosophy has led the Eagles to two Super Bowl appearances under his watch. For a sport that breeds stubborn wannabe alpha dog tough guys, Nick has shown that he is the perfect guy to lead a modern NFL team simply by being able to admit that he might not have all the answers. Very few coaches are able to put their ego aside like that, choosing instead to hammer that square peg into the round hole until they are fired. Oh yeah, and he has a career 48-20 regular season record, 2 Super Bowl appearances, and a title in 4 years.
Coaching doesn’t end with the top job though. I can’t tell you much about Kevin Patullo yet nor do I know anything about rising star Christian Parker, but I do know that Vic Fangio and Jeff Stoutland might be the best two at what they do in the business. Fangio’s no-nonsense approach seems to jive completely with this Georgia alum defense. They trust each other and they trust him to put them in a position to succeed. It allows them to dominate without tricks and without trying to be cute. For all the credit that Jeff Stoutland gets for molding offensive linemen, people don’t realize how much easier he makes Howie Roseman’s job. Howie can trust that if he gives Stoutland the clay, he will make something beautiful. That means money doesn’t have to be wasted in free agency and at the very least, a compensatory draft pick will be waiting to start the process over. Stoutland is a machine.
8: The Leaps
Who saw Zack Baun coming last year? Nolan Smith went from playing the whole preseason to being a star in the making. What about Milton Williams becoming the 2nd highest paid DT in the league? Someone is going to step up this season, but who? The candidates:
- Jalyx Hunt – Hunt went from barely seeing the field to playing about 50% of the snaps by the end of the year. He has only been playing defensive end for 3 years! There is so much untapped potential here that he has a chance at 10+ sacks in his 2nd season
- Moro Ojomo – All the reports out of camp have been that he is the most impressive guy out there each day. He will step into the same position vacated by Milton Williams. No, I don’t mean defensive tackle. I mean he’s the guy that gets to play next to Jalen Carter. This guarantees single blockers at all times so Ojomo only has to focus on beating his man and getting to the QB. He’s going to be a menace.
- Tyler Steen – This is like the offense version of “the guy who gets to lineup next to Jalen Carter.” With Lane Johnson on his right and Cam Jurgens on his left, Steen just has to worry about his man and keeping him away from Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley. The former Alabama tackle has looked impressive all camp after a fluke injury lost him the job last season.
- Nolan Smith – Who are we kidding, it’s going to be Nolan Smith again! He was just scratching the surface last year and was only hitting his stride by the end of the season. He still had 7.5 sacks. With the talent on this line, he has the chance to really level up. I’m not talking 10 sacks, I’m talking 15+. He has superstar potential.
7: Depth
When doing my previews for the rest of the NFC East, it struck me just how little depth Washington has. If they have injuries anywhere, they will struggle. The Eagles have an elite backup QB who is a walking first round pick at this point. On the line, they made sure to draft a backup center and brought back Fred Johnson as the swing tackle; not to mention the theft of Willie Lampkin. On defense, they were able to move on from Josh Sweat and Milton Williams because they knew they had Ojomo and Hunt ready to go. Now those guys even have backups with Ty Robinson, Azeez Ojulari, and Josh Uche. CB2 is the only possible weekness and even that position has Jakorian Bennett, Mac McWilliams, and Kelee Ringo fighting for the chance.
6: The Best Linebackers in Football
Zack Baun went from a $3.5m depth defensive end to the best linebacker in football in the span of about 6 weeks. Now he is teemed up with Jihaad Campbell to start and will have Nakobe Dean back in a few weeks. When can you remember ever having such an embarrassment of riches in the middle of the field? For a team that has notoriously devalued the position, we now have the best LB unit in the game. This allows everyone else on the defense to do their job better because they don’t have to worry about what is either behind them or in front of them.
5: The Twins, Kid N Play, Quality Control, The Outsiders, or anything other than Ebony and Ivory, etc.
For all the Exciting Whites fun last year, it should have been Quinyon Mitchell getting the tag team name with Cooper DeJean (no offense Reed!). These two transformed one of the worst secondaries in the league into one of the best. We have two LOCKDOWN CBs on the roster to the point that even a team like Dallas with 2 great WRs is going to be in bad shape trying to get either of them the ball. They are two league leading contract extensions waiting to happen and will both likely be All-Pros this season. How the f*** did the rest of the league let them get to us?
4: The Guys Catching the Ball
AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith might be the most complimentary receivers in football. You want to go man coverage, Brown is getting the ball. You want to go zone, that’s for Smith. The two are simply too unique and too good at what they do to both be stopped by a defensive scheme. Dallas Goedert took less money to stay with the Eagles this season because he KNOWS the advantage he has of being on the field with these two. In limited opportunity last year, Jahan Dotson showed that he can step up if anything happens to either of the top guys. Then there is Darius Cooper and John Metchie. Both are in similar spots with something to prove this year despite coming from completely different backgrounds. You are going to see one of those two guys make a special play each week.
3: Saquon Barkley and the Offensive Line
I can’t expect Saquon to have the same kind of season he had last year, but it is certainly on the table with this offensive line. What makes the combination so special is that because he has clear running lanes, Barkley can get to the second level of the defense faster than anyone in the league. This doesn’t allow a second linebacker or safety to get in position to help. Before anyone can adjust, Barkley just has to make one move on a slower linebacker and he is off to the races with nothing but daylight ahead of him. The rest of the league really let its most talented and complete running back get behind the best offensive line? It is an unstoppable combination unless you are willing to completely sell out like the Chiefs did. How did that work out?
2: Jalen Carter, DPOY
Bang the f****ng drum for Jalen Carter. He saved the season last year against the Rams in the snow. Before that moment, I think the casual NFL community had no idea the kind of impact he has on a game. He is still getting to the QB and stuffing runs despite getting double teamed damn near every time. He is the reason everything on this defense works. We can get away with only rushing 4 because he can beat his double team. Everyone else gets single coverage and no one has to cheat on the back 7. Not only will his stats be up this year, but there will be buzz about his true talents as the anchor of the best defense in the league…again.
1: Jalen Hurts, MVP
Every year, there can only be one winner. Sure the 31 other teams may be able to find something to be proud of or to build on, but there is only one winner and they are the best because they won. A great philosopher once said, “It doesn’t matter if you win by an inch or a mile, winning is winning.” He’s objectively correct. Here’s the problem though, that means that 31 other teams are objectively losers. They hate that. As has become increasingly more common, people who lose have found solace in either explaining away their loss or to claim that the winner simply isn’t that important for various reasons. This is how Jalen Hurts slander proliferates through the internet.
So many people out there can’t stand that Jalen Hurts says the right thing, does the right thing, and wins football games, seemingly because their team does not. They take their frustration out on him. He doesn’t throw enough, he runs too much, he has a super team around him, he can’t win it by himself, he’s a role player, and my personal favorite, winning isn’t a QB stat. Ok. Why on earth would he do something unnecessary if his team is winning? Is the goal not to win? Because if the goal is not to win, then I get it. That means Jalen Hurts is actually bad at football because he wins too much. That makes perfect sense. It’s actually the one team that’s bad and not the 31 others. Everyone gets a trophy right?
Get the f*** out of here. Jalen Hurts hears your doubts and sees your insults but he keeps “the main thing the main thing.” He wins. He can do all those things you want him to, but it wouldn’t be good for the team. Your loser team is apparently fine with that. Our winning team is not. This year he has to go through Dak, Mahomes, Stafford, Mayfield, Love, Goff, Herbert, Daniels, and Allen (what a gauntlet). In the end, when he wins another Super Bowl MVP, they will finally and begrudgingly give him the MVP award he earned back in 2022. All of you can stay mad and explain how bad that is if you want.
Prediction
From the bottom of my heart, I truly believe the Eagles are about to repeat as champions. We are the best team, with the best talent, the best leadership, and the best front office. I don’t think those points are even debatable. We are a standard deviation ahead of the next closest team. The only thing that can stop this dynasty in the making is injuries. Another healthy year and it won’t be possible to shut any of us up for a long time.
Philly Front Office 
Leave a comment