NFL
By: Mark T. Wilson
The Philadelphia Eagles open their 2024 NFL season against the Green Bay Packers in Sao Paulo. Both teams are coming off a playoff berth and will enter the new season under immense pressure and expectations. The offseason for the Eagles was anything short of great. Howie Roseman pulled off another great draft and managed to snag Saquon Barkley from the New York Giants.
It’s Super Bowl or Bust for this team. What ailed them last season is hopefully in the rearview mirror. This game is a chance to put that abysmal second half of the 2023 season behind them. First up is the newly minted highest-paid QB and the storied franchise of the Packers.
Here are 3 keys to victory for the Philadelphia Eagles against the Green Bay Packers.
Pressure Jordan Love
The Eagles must find a way to get back to harassing opposing QBs the way they did during their Super Bowl run in 2022. Last season, due to a mixture of Defensive Coordinators, they failed to replicate that success in 2023. With Vic Fangio running the show, the Eagles should be set free to get back to their wild days. However, the personal has changed some. Fletcher Cox is retired and now the Eagles will rely on younger and newly acquired players.
Jordan Love had a great stretch to end the season and proved he’s a franchise QB (at least money-wise) during the playoffs. The Eagles will need to hit him early and often. At the end of the day, he’s still a QB with 20 games of experience under his belt. If the defense can knock him off his rhythm, this could be a long day for the Packers’ offense.
Establish The Ground Game
No matter who the Eagles throw in at RB, the starter will go over 1000 yards. While that might be true, they now have one of the best dual-backs in the league with Saquon Barkley. Despite having AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith as receivers, Kellen Moore has to pound the ball as much as possible.
To be honest, their first 3 plays should be runs. Let the Packers know what type of game this is going to be. Moore is more of a Passing coordinator but with weapons like Barkley and Hurts in the backfield, he may be forced to adjust his way of thinking.
Stop The Run
The Packers signed former NFL leading rusher Josh Jacobs this offseason in hopes he would give the Packers stability at RB. Last season, especially during their second-half decline, the Eagles were downright awful at stopping the run where they allowed opposing RBs to hit 100 yards in 9 straight games, including the playoffs. For this defense to be successful, it has to start with the front 7.
Early reports from Training Camp is that the secondary is improved. If that’s the case, in the first game, this should allow the Eagles to stack the box against Jacobs. This is the time for Devin White to prove he was worth a shot. Letting Jacobs hit holes early may cause the Eagles to revert back to bad habits. Stopping him early is key. Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis should have a field day in the backfield.
