5 questions Eagles must answer after bye week
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The Eagles haven't been as dominant as they were through the first nine games last season, yet are 8-1 for the second consecutive year.
Philadelphia is the first team since the 2005-2006 Indianapolis Colts to start 8-1 or better in consecutive seasons.
The Birds are the 11th team since the merger to start 8-1 or better in consecutive seasons, and eight of the previous 10 won the Super Bowl in that two-year span.
The Eagles have the NFL's best record at the midway point in each of the past two seasons, possessing the best record (or tied for the best record) since Week 1 of the 2022 season for 28 consecutive weeks, including this week's bye.
Even though things are going great for the Eagles, there are still some issues to address as they enter the second half of the season. These are five questions the Eagles have to tackle.
1. Will the run game correct itself?
The Eagles rank seventh in the NFL in rushing (129.7 yards per game), yet those numbers are highly deceiving.
The run game has averaged just 3.4 yards per carry since Week 4, which is 30th in the NFL. They're 14th in rushing yards in that span, but also inefficient in running the football. D'Andre Swift is averaging just 3.4 yards per carry since Week 4, 57th among 71 players with 25-plus carries in that span. Kenneth Gainwell is just averaging 3.0 yards per carry, good for 64th.
Rashaad Penny can't get on the field to help Swift out. Swift deserves some credit for being third in the league in rushing (614 yards) and ninth in rushing yards per game (68.2) but isn't getting much help and is losing some tread on his tires. Swift and Gainwell have also combined for five fumbles.
There are other factors that come into play, specifically Jalen Hurts' knee injury and Cam Jurgens' injury at right guard. Hurts overcoming the bone bruise in his knee will go a long way.
2. How's Hurts' knee going to hold up?
Hurts admitted the bye week couldn't have come at a better time in regards to his knee injury, which has lingered since Week 5. The Eagles quarterback has been playing excellent football since the loss to the New York Jets in Week 6. In the three games since Hurts is 69 of 92 (75%) for 805 yards with eight touchdowns to one interception and a 125.5 passer rating.
Hurts is third in the NFL in completion percentage, first in passing touchdowns and first in passer rating in that span. He only has 63 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in the last three games, clearly limited in mobility.
On passes in the pocket, Hurts has completed 60 of 78 passes (76.9%) for 671 yards with seven touchdowns to one interception (126.6 rating) over that three-game stretch. In essence, the knee injury hasn't affected Hurts' ability to throw the football.
If the knee is better after a week off, the dual-threat ability of Hurts will help the Eagles' run game and improve an offense that's already ranked second in the NFL in points per game. That's a scary proposition for opposing defenses.
3. Who will be the starting RG?
Jurgens was the starting right guard for the first four weeks of the season before going down with a foot injury. In the four games Jurgens started, the Eagles were second in the NFL in rushing yards per game (165.2) and third in yards per carry (4.7). The four games Jurgens missed? The Eagles are 19th in the NFL in rushing yards per game (99.2) and 28th in yards per carry (3.4).
Tyler Steen got the opportunity to start at right guard in the Week 9 win over the Dallas Cowboys. In 32 pass-blocking snaps, the rookie second-round pick allowed five pressures and one quarterback hit (15.6% pressure rate allowed per dropback). They also rushed for 100-plus yards for the first time since Week 5 (since Jurgens was out with the foot injury).
The Eagles want Steen to be the long-term answer at right guard and Jurgens to be the center. Will they follow through with that plan after the bye week?
4. How will the slot CB situation shake up?
The Eagles have been through a myriad of players in the slot thanks to injuries at the position. Slot cornerback has gone through Avonte Maddox, Zech McPhearson, Bradley Roby, Eli Ricks and Sydney Brown. The first two are out for the season and Roby missed multiple games due to injury, leaving the slot to a third-rounder and undrafted rookie to hold the fort down.
Of course, the plan going forward is Roby returning after the bye (he says he will be back), and he'll man duties in the slot. Ricks can go back to the outside (while hybrid in slot), while Brown will play the slot in box-nickel formations (three safeties on the field).
Roby is the slot cornerback as long as he can stay on the field.
5. What is path toward winning NFC East, home-field advantage?
The Week 9 victory over the Cowboys was massive toward the Eagles becoming the first repeat NFC East champion since they won four straight from 2001 through 2004.
The Eagles face a daunting stretch coming off the bye with the Kansas City Chiefs (road), Buffalo Bills (home), San Francisco 49ers (home), Cowboys (road), and Seattle Seahawks (road). Going 3-2 in that stretch gets Philadelphia at 11-3 with three games to play.
Philadelphia's final three games are New York Giants (home), Arizona Cardinals (home) and Giants (road). Assuming the Eagles win all those games, they'll finish 14-3 -- the same record as last year when they clinched the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage in the conference.
This all depends on the wins the Eagles get in that five-game stretch. Philadelphia can essentially lock up the division and home-field advantage with wins over San Francisco (5-3) and Dallas (5-3) in that five-game stretch, earning the head-to-head and conference tiebreakers in the process.
There's still a lot of football to go, but the Eagles going 3-2 or better in that five-game stretch sets them up to make another deep playoff run.
