If there was an award handed out to the best preseason team, the Philadelphia Eagles would win this year’s award unanimously. That’s terrific. It also means absolutely nothing, considering every NFL game played in the month of August (and early September) will quickly be forgotten as soon as the Eagles travel to Atlanta in the real season opener.
The big question, however, is whether the dominance the Eagles have shown in their first three preseason games actually means anything when evaluating the 2015 squad. Or should it just immediately be dismissed as a terrific stretch of play by a very good but flawed team that hasn’t won a playoff game in six seasons?
Let’s examine the positives from the three preseason games that have already been played.
The most important takeaway is that the Eagles haven’t suffered any major injuries to key players. The biggest loss is rookie nickel corner JaCorey Shepherd, who suffered a season-ending torn ACL, but with all due respect to Shepherd, his injury will have no impact on the win-loss record of the 2015 Eagles.
The biggest question for the Eagles heading into the preseason was whether former number one overall draft pick Sam Bradford would be worth the hefty investment the Eagles paid for him. Bradford didn’t play against the Colts in Week 1 and he was adequate against the Colts in Week 2 but he was completely dominant against the Packers in Week 3. Bradford completed all 10 passes for 121 yards and three touchdowns, looking every bit like the Heisman winner from Oklahoma in 2008.
The running game was as lethal as the first two games, with starters DeMarco Murray and Ryan Mathews barely playing, and backups like Kenyon Barner and Raheem Mostert doing the brunt of the damage.
What makes the Eagles’ offense so scary is that Sam Bradford, DeMarco Murray and Jordan Matthews barely played in the preseason, and Zach Ertz didn’t play at all, and the Eagles still couldn’t stop putting up points. Say what you want about the Eagles not facing Andrew Luck, Joe Flacco and Aaron Rodgers, and those are very valid points. I don’t think the Eagles would hold the Colts to 10 or the Ravens to 17 with those quarterbacks playing.
But I do believe the Eagles’ offense is as deadly as they’ve shown in preseason. When a team remains the same as it has in previous years, I’m not a fan of using preseason performance to evaluate the upcoming regular season. But after a wild offseason that features 10 new starters on offense and defense, any small sample size for new faces like Bradford and Walter Thurmond has to mean something.
The sacks will come, as they have in the last two seasons. So will the turnovers. And the defense will undoubtedly be significantly better with the offseason additions of linebacker Kiko Alonso, cornerback Byron Maxwell and defensive backs coach Cory Undlin.
These three preseason games have also shown that last year’s special teams dominance clearly wasn’t a fluke. After all, the Eagles have two punt return touchdowns, a long kick return, a partially blocked punt and a forced fumble on a kick in just three games.
In all three phases of the game, the Eagles have improved from the 2014 season. You really can’t say that about too many teams across the National Football League, especially the division rival Dallas Cowboys.
I don’t believe the Eagles should have the fourth-highest odds to win the Super Bowl, as evidenced by the latest Vegas odds. That’s a little extreme. They’re definitely worse than Green Bay and Seattle in the NFC and New England and Denver in the AFC. I’d put them on par with teams like Dallas, Indianapolis and Baltimore.
However, this preseason was about a) no injuries and b) Bradford showing that he can lead Kelly’s offense. So far, it’s safe to say both have been a major success. Bradford, of course, just has to stay healthy for 16 straight regular season games, something he’s done in two of his five seasons.
It’s crazy to call the Eagles a Super Bowl favorite, especially since they haven’t won a playoff game in either of Kelly’s two seasons at the helm. It’s fair, however, to call the Eagles a Super Bowl contender, especially in an era where so many teams win the Super Bowl despite not posting the conference’s best record during the regular season.
Then again, the Eagles have been so thrilling, so explosive, and so dominant during the past three preseason games that it’s safe to say the majority of the fanbase has fully bought into what Chip Kelly did this offseason.
The real test, of course, starts in Atlanta on Monday Night Football in Week 1 and ends in New York in Week 17. The Eagles will be ready. The question is – will the rest of the NFL?
