2023 Eagles Season Preview

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2023 Eagles Season Preview

Posted: September 9th, 2023 | Author: Tommy Lawlor 

The Eagles had a magical season in 2022. They started 13-1 before finishing 14-3. They steamrolled the Giants and Niners on their way to the Super Bowl. That’s where the magic ended as they lost 38-35 to the Chiefs. Great season, painful ending. The goal in 2023 is to get the ending right and win the Super Bowl.

Don’t expect things to be as easy or fun this year. The schedule is tougher, with some potentially really challenging games.

@ Jets
Miami
Dallas
@KC
Buffalo
SF
@Dallas
@Seattle

I left off games with the Vikings and Giants since those teams are less certain to be top tier.

The 2022 schedule was easy. That made for a fun season, but it didn’t help the Eagles to get ready for the test they faced against KC. The Eagles were only tested a few times last year.

The Lions game was close, but the Eagles had a big lead and Detroit cut into it. That’s different than a back and forth game with a tight score. The Eagles fell behind Jacksonville 14-0 and then dominated.

The game in Arizona was close, with the Eagles winning 20-17. That was a sloppy performance against a bad team and it could have gone to OT if not for a missed FG by the Cardinals.

The Colts game required a comeback to win. That was a sloppy performance against a bad team (sound familiar). It was good to see Jalen Hurts come up with a game-winning drive, but that was largely helped by a PI call that flipped the field. Hurts only completed one pass on that drive. After that 39-yard penalty, the Eagles turned to the run game.

The game in Dallas was a true test. Both teams had the lead multiple times. The Eagles failed to make clutch plays and lost the game 40-34. Gardner Minshew was in at QB, but the overall team failed to make the critical plays needed to win.

The Super Bowl was the ultimate test. The Eagles had some crucial situations that could have changed the game, but failed to make the needed plays. That happened on offense, defense and STs. The hope is that tougher tests in 2023 will better prepare the team for the postseason. That means a 13-1 start is a lot less likely to happen, but the team will be in better position to win if they make it back to the big game.

History is filled with dominant teams that lost a title game because they hadn’t been tested enough. The Eagles will be tested this year and that’s a good thing.

*****

Nick Sirianni has built something special. He knows what he’s looking for in terms of talent and personality. He preaches the important of competing and connecting. The Eagles do a great job in both areas and that tight bond feels like it gives the team an advantage. Players are happy. They buy into Sirianni’s messaging. It helps them when they do have some adversity to deal with.

*****

Jalen Hurts was great last year. I think he’ll be even better in 2023. QB is one of those positions where experience is absolutely crucial. Hurts now has 34 starts in the NFL. He’s started four playoff games, including the SB. He’s seen a lot. That means Hurts can study tape and work with coaches to improve on his weaknesses.

Hurts should have even better chemistry with AJ Brown, DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert. The more a QB plays with receivers, the more they start to see things the same way. That allows them to adjust in the middle of a play and still be on the same page.

A big part of all this is Hurts desire to improve. Not all QBs embrace criticism. Some guys can’t stand being coached hard. They want praise, not tough love. I’ll let you see if you can think of a player who might fit this description. Hurts is wired differently. He wants to be the best and is willing to pay the price to get there.

The Eagles passing game was mediocre in 2021. It took a huge step forward last year. Look for the passing game to get even better this year.

*****

I expect the running game to be erratic at times. The Eagles are going RB by committee. They have the players to make that work. The coaches have experience with doing things that way. Still, it can take time for the coaches to figure out just what they have and how to use those RBs to get the most out of them.

D’Andre Swift and Rashaad Penny are new to the team. The coaches had the spring and summer to work with them, but that’s not the same thing as regular season games. There are going to be times when the running game will click and look really good. There will probably also be some times when the running game looks disjointed as the coaches struggle to figure out which buttons to push.

I am excited to see how Penny and Swift fit into this offense. Swift got all the hype this summer, but don’t sleep on Penny.

Kenny Gainwell and Boston Scott have been key role players the past two years. That will continue.

*****

The Eagles lost some key players in the offseason. You hate to lose talented players, but it does open the door for young guys to step up. And those young guys will bring energy to the team. They have a natural excitement that can be infectious.

Cam Jurgens will do a good job as the team’s RG. He’s not the biggest guy in the world, but has outstanding movement skills and will be a good fit in the Eagles creative run game.

Reed Blankenship stepped up when the Eagles needed him last year and I think he’ll build on that. Blankenship had a terrific summer and should be a breakout player this year.

I don’t have a great feel for Nakobe Dean. He didn’t play much last year and we didn’t get to see much of him this summer. Still, the Eagles were excited when they drafted him and he seems like a terrific fit in this defense. He’s instinctive and a playmaker. Those are critical traits for good LB play.

Jordan Davis, Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith are going to bring juice to the defense. Those guys were all first round picks and I think they’ll make their presence felt this year. I love BG calling Carter "Baby Rhino”. Expectations have really grown for Carter. I hope he’s able to live up to them. Anything close and it will be huge for the Eagles defense.

*****

The defense will be better this year, but it might be tough to see that. The defense was second in yards allowed and eighth in points allowed last year. They played really well at times. They also benefited from playing some bad offenses and QBs. When the Eagles did face good offenses, they had some struggles. Dallas and KC combined for 71 offensive points in a pair of late season games. That’s not ideal.

Sean Desai is the new defensive coordinator. He has experience as a DC so the challenge for him is figuring out what works for these players and how to get the most out of them. Desai learned directly from Vic Fangio so he should have answers to a lot of the problems that pop up.

Desai might be more aggressive, but I think he’ll definitely be more creative. And that’s critical. QBs are so good these days that you can’t play generic coverages. You must give them different looks, pre- and post-snap.

Going againt A-Rod, Tua, Dak, Mahomes and Josh Allen won’t be good for the Eagles stats. It will be good for Desai to see what works and what doesn’t as he gets his defense ready for the postseason. Figuring out how to come up with a key stop here and there can be critical.

*****

Special teams will be an adventure this year. The Eagles have a great snapper and kicker. Things are wide open after that. Arryn Siposs will be the punter in Week 1, but the Eagles obviously don’t feel that strongly about him since he’s on the practice squad. Britain Covey will be the punt returner. He finished last season well. The question is whether that was legit or just a few good games.

Several key cover guys are gone from last year. There are some talented replacements in guys like Nolan Smith and Sydney Brown so the Eagles might be fine. Still, there is the possiblity of some growing pains early in the year. Christian Elliss was the best STs player in 2022 and he’s back so that is a huge help.

*****

Zach Cunningham isn’t a player a lot of Eagles fans had ever heard of prior to this summer. He played well and should start alongside Dean. I think we’ll look back at Cunningham’s signing as a really good move.

Elliss will get some snaps on defense. He made a lot of plays in coverage this summer.

Quez Watkins had a down season last year. He had a good camp until getting hurt. Watkins is healthy now and could prove to be a key role player. His speed gives the offense another weapon if you can count on him to catch the ball and hold onto it.

I don’t feel good about Marcus Mariota as the backup QB. Let’s hope he’s only playing in blowouts.

I have no idea who will start at safety beside Blankenship. Sirianni wanted to keep that a mystery. Job well done. I do think the coaches will use all three guys as they try to find out who the right guy is.

*****

The Eagles have the best roster in the NFL. Beyond talent, the Eagles have great leadership. This isn’t just a talented roster, this is a good team.

They have a top flight QB who is on a mission to get back to the big game. The team learned some tough lessons in last year’s Super Bowl and that should serve them well this year. I think Desai is an upgrade at DC and that will make a difference in some big games.

Sirianni has done a great job of pushing the right buttons in the past two years. I expect that to continue.

I think think the Eagles will go 13-4 and win the NFC East.

I think they’ll make it back to the Super Bowl. This time they’ll be the guys celebrating in a shower of confetti.

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