Getty Philadelphia Eagles QB Jalen Hurts.
The Philadelphia Eagles have morphed into the offseason’s media darlings. Many odds-makers and plugged-in analysts are installing them as the favorites to get back to the Super Bowl. And, more importantly, to bring the Lombardi Trophy home.
But not all prognosticators are created equal. FOX Sports Radio’s Colin Cowherd recently went on a 5-minute rant where he explained why the Eagles might be ready to “fall off a cliff.” He referenced the plights of some dominant playoff teams in previous years that failed to repeat their success due to injuries and poor offensive line play.
“Now do we think Philadelphia is the best team in the NFC? I do,” Cowherd said. “Second-best roster to San Francisco but this team got really good when Nick Sirianni said I’m giving up the play-calling. Shane Steichen is who Justin Herbert had a great rookie year with and who Jalen Hurts went from, is he any good? To a possible MVP. Coaching matters. He’s gone.”
Cowherd is right about Steichen. The lead play-caller left to take the head-coaching gig in Indianapolis. The Eagles also lost defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon. And leading rusher Miles Sanders in free agency.
“I know Eagles fans, you know you’re getting back to the Super Bowl. But there’s a lot of blinking lights here.”
— @ColinCowherd on potential drop off from Philadelphia
Then, Cowherd brought up Hurts’ reputation as a dual-threat quarterback. He is prone to injury due to his reckless running style, although Hurts is a physical specimen who always seems to gut it out and fight through the pain.
“I think Philadelphia is really good, but there’s some blinking lights,” Cowherd said. “Old O-line. Lose your OC. Jalen Hurts moves. Schedule’s brutal. No breaks in the middle. Lost your leading rusher.”
Eagles’ Schedule is Absolutely Brutal
It’s easy to pick holes in a lot of Cowherd’s arguments. For starters, the offensive line isn’t really that old outside of Jason Kelce (35) and Lane Johnson (33). The average age among the pile pushers upfront is 28.2. The Eagles turned the group over in impressive fashion following killer drafts in back-to-back years.
Let it marinate
However, the schedule is brutal. The Eagles will play 10 playoff teams from the 2022 campaign, including a murderer’s row after the bye when they get Kansas City (road), Buffalo, San Francisco, Dallas (road), Seattle (road), and New York Giants in consecutive weeks.
And, if you want to expand the schedule, Philly’s 10-game stretch from October 8 through December 17 is no joke. Cowherd singled out matchups against Matt Stafford and the Rams and Aaron Rodgers and the Jets.
“Long trips, a lot of trips, great quarterbacks week after week,” Cowherd said. “That is a ten-game stretch with only one layup, and that’s divisional rival Washington, a team that is more talented than they get credit for.”
Top 5 “hardest” schedules based on strength of schedule:
1. Eagles
2. Dolphins
T-3. Giants
T-3. Patriots
T-3. Cowboys
(via @NFLResearch)
Nick Sirianni Dismisses ‘Super Bowl Hangover’
Forget the national media. Head coach Nick Sirianni has already gone on record saying he doesn’t care about alleged “Super Bowl hangovers” or anything like that. The Eagles are going to follow Jalen Hurts and stay starving for a championship.
“We’re not going to talk about, ‘Hey, the Super Bowl, the Super Bowl, gotta get back.’ You’re not going to hear us say that,” Sirianni told reporters. “You’re going to hear us say, ‘We gotta go attack the next segment of our process.’ There’s that thing that (Jalen Hurts said), he’s like, ‘I’m not hungry. I’m starving.’ I think (losing) just makes you more hungry, makes you more starving.”