Why You Should Buy Into The 2022 Eagles

Sep 9, 2022

The Regular Season is officially under way.

With the Bills beating the Rams 31-10 in last nights season opener. We’re officially less than 48 hours away until the Eagles kickoff against the Detroit Lions. There’s lots of buzz behind a lot of teams this year. Will the Bengals have another trip to the Super Bowl? Which stacked AFC West team will come out victorious? What week will the Cowboys have their regularly scheduled collapse? But the most important one is whether or not you should believe in this Eagles team, the answer is surely yes. With successful off-season moves that have kept the Eagles with multiple 1st round picks, and no glaring holes in the roster. Let’s dig deeper to see some more reasons why this could be a great season for the Birds.

The NFC Is Open

After yesterday’s outing. It’s clear this Rams team might not be as successful as it was last season. With an extremely difficult schedule that sees them playing against the NFCW and AFCW, arguably the deepest divisions in the league with 7 of the 8 teams attempting to make the playoffs (sorry Seahawks) the Rams could struggle if they put up similar performances against any team comparable to the Bills.

The other teams I’ve got penciled in to competitive playoff spots in the NFC are:

Packers
Buccaneers
Saints
49ers
Cardinals
Vikings
Cowboys

Some Glaring Concerns

A few of these teams, namely the Cowboys and Packers took some steps back this year. Will Rodgers still succeed and attempt a three-peat MVP without Davante Adams at WR1? Will Jason Peters actually be a reliable LT for the Cowboys?

The Cardinals are already suffering a plethora of injuries and with DeAndre Hopkins suspended until week 7, the Cardinals might face a difficult road after starting the season against the Chiefs, Raiders and Rams.

The last NFCW team that continues to gain hype is the 49ers. Personally, I don’t see it. They can continue to take advantage of other teams downfall in the playoffs. But Trey Lance has more question marks than Jalen Hurts does heading into this year and I’m not convinced this team got better compared to last years 10-7 record with an easier schedule. If you’re aboard the 49ers train, great. But I’m tired of hearing Shanahan praise for him to blow another Super Bowl lead.

Jalen Hurts is 2-0 against the Saints in his career, and with a weakened secondary after trading Gardner-Johnson the Eagles revamped WR core should feast against the Saints for the 3rd year in a row.

The Vikings spent several draft picks to acquire Jalen Reagor… I’m not sure if that’s a great guideline to explain this new regime, but if the Vikings don’t show any improvement this year. It will be time for Cousins to move on, and for GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to assess how much of the current roster is expendable.

Tampa Bay has one more year of Tom Brady. And maybe another year after that if he comes out of retirement, again. Probably the most consistent team this off-season. With some major blows to their OL already, Brady might not have as comfortable a pocket as he’d like.

There’s no clear cut winner here. The Eagles improved every position and have assets to spare if any issues come up during the season.

Something To Prove

The Eagles had a 9-8 record last season. With low expectations coming from the 4-11-1 season before that, it was impressive to watch the Birds make the playoffs AND be able to play a meaningless week 18 game. With tons of additions this off-season the Eagles are looking to prove they can come out on top of the NFC. There’s a lot of talent on this roster that wasn’t there last year. Acquiring a bunch of young guns in A.J. Brown, Kyzir White, Haason Reddick and Chauncey Gardner-Johnson while simultaneously drafting Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean will help fill this roster for years to come.

While I’d love to give the Eagles a standing ovation and write a 17-0 prediction on the year, I’ve got to keep my expectations in check. However the schedule makes that hard to do.

@ Lions – Blowout rematch – W
Vikings – They’ve had our number ever since the NFC Championship Game – L
@ Commanders – No Chase Young – W
Jaguars – Not blown away with the roster moves –W
@ Cardinals – No Hopkins – W
Cowboys – I hope Philly wins this game at home. It would be a big boost heading into the Bye. However, Cowboys. – L?
Bye
Steelers – I’m not sold on Trubisky at QB1, yet – W
@ Texans – The Texans roster isn’t threatening to this Eagles squad. W
Commanders – This is the equivalent of last years Week 12 Giants game. I could see the Eagles blowing this one. L
@ Colts – The Colts season depends on Matt Ryan’s play. If he’s an upgrade on Wentz, the Colts can do some damage. – L?
Packers – I would love to write a win here. But I’d be lying if this isn’t the biggest worry of the season – L?
Titans – lost a bunch of players this off-season. Can Tannehill, Woods and Henry carry an entire season? – W
@ Giants – If Kenny Golladay keeps putting in this much effort. Yikes. – W
@ Bears – I don’t see the Bears being competitive with Fields, yet. – W
@ Cowboys – If the Cowboys collapse again, the Eagles have the opportunity to embarrass them in Jerry World. W
Saints – We’ve had their number the last few years. We will again. – W
Giants – If the Giants are still trying in Week 18, I hope the Eagles have clinched by now. – L (If starters play this is easily a W)

There you have it. A fairly simple 11-6 prediction. The bar for this team has to be 10 wins after proving they could do 9 last year. But with a meaningless Week 18 and a few questionable matchups that can go either way. There’s room for this team to win 14 games.

Go Birds.

Photo Credit: Ronald Martinez / Getty Images

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