Week 3 was an absolute disaster for the Philadelphia Eagles. Almost nothing seemed to go right for this squad on offense, and the entire team seemed completely lost. However, as Jalen Hurts noted, we can’t look at the deuce this team took for too long. Now we set our sights on week 4, where the Eagles will take on Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.
Yikes.
Quarterback
Jalen Hurts looked completely lost in week 3 against the Cowboys. He seemed to be missing tons of reads, his accuracy was off, and he simply wasn’t making good decisions with the football. We’ve seen this season that Hurts can run a productive offense, but this game was simply too egregiously bad to be simply brushed off as a fluke. Some of Hurts’ issues may have come due to some terrible play calling decisions, but it’s apparent we’re going to need to see some changes if Hurts wants to make a case as a long term option at QB for the Eagles.
Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback in the NFL and possibly the most talented QB we’ve ever seen. Aaron Rodgers is the only other player who is in the same stratosphere as Mahomes. This needs no more discussion. Point Chiefs.
Running Back
While Miles Sanders continually shows he has the potential to be a star running back in the NFL, the Eagles coaching staff refuses to use him with any consistency. Sanders consistently makes the most of the limited snaps he gets, with a league leading 8.9 rushing yards on first down, but instead of using him to take some pressure off of a young quarterback, the Eagles brass instead keeps him sidelined in favor of passing concepts that don’t seem to be working. Kenneth Gainwell still seems to be a nice piece in both the rushing and receiving game, but with the incredibly limited volume of this running game, it’s very fair to question the impact of these two backs.
Former first round pick Clyde-Edwards Helaire headlines the somewhat weak Chiefs running back room. CEH has been pretty disappointing since he was selected 32 overall in 2020, not seeing much when it comes to efficiency on the ground or through the air. A lack of volume is expected when you’re talking about a pass first offense like the Chiefs, but it’s notable when the running game ranks among the bottom of the league. This point, due to personnel, goes to the Eagles.
Offensive Line
It just seems to be getting worse and worse for this Eagles offensive line. What started as one of the best units left to right in the NFL has lost LT Jordan Mailata (1-2 Weeks) RG Isaac Seamalo (Season) and LG Brandon Brooks (9 Weeks). The saving grace of this offensive line is the depth. Landon Dickerson continued to have some hiccups in week 4, but it’s expected that he needs some time to settle in. Andre Dillard filled in surprisingly well for Jordan Mailata, showing that he’s far from a lost cause. It’s expected that Nate Herbig fills in for Seamalu at Guard, who was playing some of the best football of his career before he went down. Herbig showed some really nice things in 2020, so he’s far from a death sentence. This line isn’t the completely dominant force it began 2021 as, but with Johnson and Kelce along with three super high end depth pieces and high upside players, it’s not the worst thing ever.
The Chiefs revamping their entire offensive line was one of the bigger stories of the 2021 off-season. After the release of both RT Mitchell Schwartz and LT Eric Fisher, NFL fans were questioning what exactly KC was planning to do when it came to the trenches, particularly because the lack of depth there was a main reason they came up short in the Superbowl. The Chiefs quickly answered these questions by trading for LT Orlando Brown from the ravens to pair with returning opt out Lucas Niang to form a tackle duo that should be able to give Mahomes some peace of mind while he’s making magic from the pocket. When it comes to the interior, the Chiefs overhauled completely. They signed former patriots guard Joe Thuney, an absolute rock at the guard position. They then spent two draft picks to cap off the revamp, getting what most consider to be steals in center Creed Humphrey and guard Trey Smith. This line, while much better than last year, has multiple question marks in the rookies and Niang. These have made themselves apparent, as the Chiefs line hasn’t been all-world as many projected. The Eagles, even with the injuries, certainly have more star power, but as a unit, I’ll give these two lines a tie.
Wide Receivers
It’s apparent that the Eagles wide receiver core has much more talent than they do production. Devonta Smith is getting constant separation, and he’s either being missed on the read or missed on the throw. Speedster Quez Watkins continues to catch everything thrown his way, whether it’s with separation or contested. Jalen Reagor, while probably the most disappointing player in this core, still is showing he can separate and be a threat in the screen game. This is another situation for the Eagles where the coaching simply needs to figure out how to maximize the talents of these young players.
The Kansas City wideout core lacks depth, but that’s hard to scrutinize when your number one weapon is THE Tyreek Hill. Hill has solidified himself as one of the most valuable players in the league, and his combination of speed, finesse, and route running makes him virtually unguardable one on one. If you don’t gameplan directly around him, he’ll tear up your defense until you dedicate the whole game to stopping him. As previously mentioned, it’s thin behind Cheetah. Mecole Hardman hasn’t shown much more than being a low end wide receiver 2, and the WR3 rotation of Demarcus Robinson and Byron Pringle is not something that needs to be worried about much. It almost feels criminal leaving the tight end room out of this grade, but even without it, this Chiefs WR core edges out the Eagles just due to Tyreek’s proven lethality.
Tight Ends
The Eagles tight end room is incredibly talented, but unfortunately aren’t seeing production due to… are you seeing a pattern here? Yes, when Dallas Goedert gets the ball in his hands he’s lethal, and Zach Ertz, while definitely far from his prime, is still not useless. If Goedert can be utilised well, he can easily solidify as a top TE in the league. But we know this. It’s a question of if and when it will finally happen.
Travis Kelce transcends the Tight End position like no other. He both functions as a top receiving threat in the entire NFL as well as a capable blocker. He has size and fluidity like no other. In my opinion, he runs away with the title of the best TE in the league and even contends for the top offensive weapon in the league with Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams. This point goes to the Chiefs.
Defensive Line
The Eagles defensive line, as usual, proves to be the absolute strength of this team. Defensive ends Josh Sweat and Derek Barnett have proven to be a very nice starting duo coming off of the edge, even with the latter’s infuriating penalty issues. The whole line has been pretty hit or miss when defending the run, but the real strength of this pass rush. Surprisingly, this dominance comes from the interior, where Javon Hargrave is having a historic season with 4 sacks on the year already. He’s also benefiting from Cox’s attraction of double teams, but now that teams have to worry about both Fletch and Javon, it’s possible Cox sees some more action himself. Rookie Milton Williams and veteran Ryan Kerrigan haven’t seen much action, even within the limited time they see on the field. With quality starters across the line and the domination of Hargrave, this line is as scary as any in the NFL.
The Chiefs defensive line has struggled mightily to start the season. They’ve been ranked near the bottom of the league in both run defense and pass-rush, and it’s greatly inhibited this Kansas City defense. When you look at the personnel, it’s a bit surprising that this line has been so underwhelming. At defensive end is Frank Clark, a formerly consistent presence as a pass-rusher, but has looked terrible in the first three weeks of 2021. Across from Clark is former defensive tackle Chris Jones. Kansas City switched the former interior defensive lineman to the edge in order to proactively combat the lack of a pass rush, but his transition has been far from smooth. He’s been the best player on this line by far, but still not performing up to his usual standards. On the interior, the duo of former 2nd round pick Jarran Reed and former 3rd rounder Derek Nnadi have failed to both stop the run or provide a pass rushing presence. Right now, the combination of underperforming vets, lower quality starters, and a lack of any depth has caused this line to produce at a mark near the bottom of the NFL. This point goes to the Eagles.
Linebacker
The Eagles LB core remains one of the weaker position groups in the league. Alex Singleton and TJ Edwards can play the run well, but it’s simply not a high upside group. On the same note, Eric Wilson has struggled, but he’s still probably the best option for the birds when it comes to coverage. The upside in this group comes from rookie Davion Taylor, but he’s been struggling with numerous injuries and his status is once again a question.
The Chiefs linebacking core, much like the Eagles, is a relatively weak group. The only notable players here are the two starters, veteran Anthony Hitchens and rookie Nick Bolton. Neither has been great, and they sure haven’t helped the Chiefs struggles on defense, but Bolton has shown some nice things and neither have been absolutely terrible. This point is a tie as neither group really has much.
Cornerback
Even though the game started off a bit rough for the Eagles CB group, it’s hard to blame them for the affair against the Cowboys offense. Playing one of the most potent receiver groups in the whole NFL and being on the field for a crazy long time will cause any position group to tire and let up some points. The cornerback core is still very good, with Slay and Nelson both being consistent on the outside and Avonte Maddox flourishing in the slot.
Much like the rest of this Chiefs defense, the CB room has been surprisingly weak. Second year player L’jarious Sneed was expected to emerge as a true CB1 for this Chiefs defense after a 2021 campaign where he looked like the absolute steal of the draft, but he’s been only serviceable so far. Veteran presence Charvarius Ward has always been a stable piece on this secondary, but he’s seemed to take a step back this season, and has been dealing with an injury that’s putting his status for Sunday up in the air. Besides those two underperforming starters, the Chiefs have little to no depth. Mike Hughes and Deandre Baker seem to be the guys who will see the field in Nickel and Dime packages, but neither has shown much yet. Point Eagles.
Safety
The Eagles safety room is dealing with yet another injury in sophmore Kvon Wallace, who’s been placed on IR due to a separated shoulder. However, this room is also receiving a major boost with the return of veteran Rodney Mcleod, who should pair with Anthony Harris to form one of the stronger safety duos in the entire NFL.
The Chiefs safety room is the strength of it’s defense, headlined by veteran and pro-bowler/all-pro Tyrann Mathieu. He’s truly the most explosive player on this Chiefs defense, and you always have to be wary when he’s anywhere near the play. Next to Mathieu is Daniel Sorenson, who led the team in tackles in 2020 and is a very stable piece in the secondary. Both of these teams have a strong safety group, but the point goes to the Chiefs.
Conclusion
In overall position group points, the Chiefs outscore the Eagles 5-6 (two ties). Even though the teams seem to match up well, it’s pretty obvious that the Chiefs take the cake at the most important positions, and the separation between the groups is much higher. The Chiefs offense has been and continues to be one that will produce at an insane rate no matter the defense, so even though the Eagles have a stronger defensive unit than the Chiefs by far, that advantage is minimized. The Eagles offense has struggled these last two weeks, and if they want a chance to win this game, they need to fire on all cylinders against this struggling Chiefs defense. The Chiefs are a beatable team if you can get to Mahomes, limit scoring opportunities, and take advantage of the defense. Can the Eagles do it right now? I don’t think they’re in the position.
Prediction: 34-20 Eagles
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Noah Berger is a featured writer at The Birds Blitz. For more from Noah, check out his archive and read through our Eagles articles for the latest news about the Birds.
