The NFL season is right around the corner which means its time for every Philadelphia Eagles fan to dig that Dawkins/Trotter/Westbrook Jersey out of the closet and get ready for another season of football. There isn't much buzz around the 2016 Eagles team but with a fanbase as dedicated as Philadelphia's is, there is no such thing as a boring season. Here's what to look for from the Eagles in 2016.
The Coach
The Chip Kelly era in Philadelphia is over and fans from South Jersey to the Lehigh Valley rejoiced. Kelly decimated a once promising roster that featured two Pro Bowl receivers, Maclin & DJax, a record shattering running back, Shady McCoy, and one the strongest offensive lines in football. Kelly transformed this dangerously talented offense into a 6-10 team in just 3 very long seasons. The Eagles replaced Kelly with Andy Reid's offensive coordinator and former Donovan McNabb backup Doug Pederson. Pederson, if nothing else, will bring some consistency and professionalism to the Eagles offense which has spent the last three seasons running a college offense. There is no specific reason to be excited about Pederson other than the fact that he is NOT Chip Kelly.
The Quarterback
Former #1 overall pick Sam Bradford will enter the season as the starter after inking a 2 year, 36 million dollar extension. That's a lot of money for a Quarterback who has never had a winning season, never thrown for more than 21 TDs in a season, and has started just 63 of a potential 96 games in his 6 seasons in the NFL. But regardless, the NFL is Quarterbacks league and paying Bradford isn't that ridiculous when you realize the San Francisco 49ers are paying Colin Kaepernick 61 million in guaranteed money over the next 6 years.
What's ridiculous is that Chase Daniel, Bradford's backup, is getting paid 21 million over 3 seasons. 7 million a year for a backup who has only thrown 77 passes in his 7 years in the league. Pro Football Focus rated the Daniel signing as the 9th worst move of the offseason.
What makes both of these signings even more ridiculous is the fact that the Eagles traded up to the #2 pick in the Draft to pick a quarterback who received as many division 1 offers as yours truly. Carson Wentz has a lot of potential and I, like many Eagles fans, are really excited to see him play, but it's not a good look to trade up to draft a Quarterback whose best game last season was against University of Northern Iowa. Also he broke his ribs in his first preseason action and likely won't be healthy enough to practice until the regular season begins. Don't expect Bradford, Daniel, or Wentz to lead this Eagles team to a playoff victory this season.
The Offense
The muddled Quarterback situation is not helped by the fact that the rest of the Eagles offense has serious holes. The Eagles starting Left Tackle, and best offensive player, Jason Peters, is a 34 year old who quit on the team last year and reportedly has a degenerative lower body condition. I'm not going to blame the guy for quitting on Chip Kelly because if I had a coach that asinine I probably would've quit too, but its not a good look for your team leader to quit on the team.
The Eagles Right Tackle and former #3 overall pick Lane Johnson has been reportedly suspended 10 games for juicing. The offensive line which just 3 seasons ago featured 3 pro bowlers in Peters, Evan Mathis, and Jason Kelce is now going to be left with Allen Barbre and Stephen Wisnewski starting.
The Eagles swiss cheese offensive line will almost inevitably lead to starting running back Ryan Matthews suffering more injuries and fumbles and will not provide Bradford enough time to throw wobbly passes into double coverage so Jordan Matthews can drop them.
The only way the Eagles offense manages to score 20 points this season is if Nelson Agholor learns how to run routes, Jordan Matthews learns to catch, Ryan Matthews can touch the ball more than 3 plays in a row without fumbling or getting hurt, and Zach Ertz suddenly becomes Jimmy Graham. The offense is a mess.
The Defense
For the first time in several years Eagles fans actually have a reason to be excited about their team's defense. Malcolm Jenkins and Rodney Mcleod will finally fill the hole at safety that the Eagles have been trying to fill since the days of Brian Dawkins and Quentin Mikell. This seems like a good time to reminisce about the safeties that have come and gone in the recent years for the Eagles. Remember Nate Allen? Well here's good ole' Nate getting burnt for a 4th quarter, go-ahead touchdown. How about Kurt Coleman? Well here's Kurt giving Trent Richardson literally his only NFL highlight ever. What about Jaquan Jarret? The Temple was horrendous in the NFL and even made Andy Reid own up to a mistake, something he rarely does. But forget about all that because Jenkins and Mcleod are the real deal. Unfortunately Cornerbacks Ron Brooks, Eric Rowe, and Leodis Mckelvin aren't. Jaylen Mills however has a lot of potential and the defensive secondary can't possibly be worse than it has for the past several years especially with two talented safeties. The linebacking core for the Eagles has three solid starters in Jordan Hicks, Mychal Kendricks, and Nigel Bradham. Unfortunately the backups aren't as solid and it is very easy for a linebacker to get injured so depth at that position is crucial. The Eagles did sign former Detroit Lion Stephon Tulloch which does help but the lack of the depth is concerning especially considering how injury prone Hicks and Kendricks are. On the DLine, Fletcher Cox will continue to be a difference maker against the run and the pass. Bennie Logan is a solid gap eater as well, but on the edge the Eagles have some question marks. Connor Barwin will move back to his natural DE position after playing as an standup linebacker for the past several seasons under Billy Davis' scheme. Barwin has been a tremendous pass rusher for the Eagles the past couple seasons and hopefully he can continue to make an impact from the three point stance. Opposite of Barwin the Eagles will platoon Vinny Curry and Brandon Graham. Curry is big for a defensive end and isn't a great pass rusher, but he will provide some help against the run. Graham is a supremely talented pass rusher but gets pushed around far too easily against the run essentially making him a third down player. Pressure from the DLine is crucial in Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz's scheme because he does not like to blitz a lot. If the Eagles DLine can provide pressure, the linebackers stay healthy, and the Cornerbacks aren't too atrocious, the Defense should be pretty solid. It's also worth noting that Jim Schwartz is a certified nut, but any good defensive coach has to be a little bit nuts.
Special Teams
Caleb Sturgis the kicker who was on track to be the starter suffered a concussion after being hit in the head by an errant football.
Prediction
This Eagles team will be hands down the most exciting and frustrating 6-10 team you will ever see.
