The Philadelphia Eagles are one of the biggest unknowns in the NFL heading into the 2021 season. Philadelphia has a first-year head coach in Nick Sirianni, and is turning over a revamped offense to 2020 second-round pick Jalen Hurts. The Eagles have strong offensive and defensive lines that are expected to carry the team, a good indicator that the roster has an opportunity to compete in a weak NFC East.
Philadelphia's defense has had an excellent camp thus far, becoming a unit that appears to be capable of carrying an offense that has struggled to find its footing. There's talent on the Eagles' offense, but the pieces have yet to come together. Fortunately, the Eagles still have five weeks to figure things out prior to their season opener against the Atlanta Falcons.
As the season draws near, the Eagles look to compete for their fourth playoff berth in five years as a surprise contender for the NFC East crown. Living up to these three bold predictions will go a long way toward Philadelphia accomplishing that task.
DeVonta Smith becomes first Eagles rookie with 1,000 receiving yards
DeSean Jackson, who holds the Eagles franchise record for receiving yards in a rookie season with 912, is one of the few rookie wide receivers to start Week 1 of his first season and make an immediate impact. Smith will have that same effect on an Eagles offense that badly needs him.
Smith is the No. 1 wideout in a subpar receiving corps. Hurts is going to find his former teammate at Alabama to get the passing game going. Zach Ertz is the second-best receiver in this team -- and the Eagles are asking a lot from Jalen Reagor and Travis Fulgham to contribute consistently. If Reagor and Fulgham can have spurts of success, that will free up Smith to make big plays and ignite a passing game that desperately needs a spark.
Regardless of whether Hurts is consistent on the intermediate routes, his deep ball is going to find Smith when Philadelphia opens up the passing game. A 17-game season also favors Smith, as he only needs to average 58.8 yards per game to hit the 1,000-yard mark.
Expect Smith to get 1,000 yards in an offense that needs him to produce immediately.
Jalen Hurts has 30 combined touchdowns
This prediction could completely blow up if the Eagles traded for Deshaun Watson, but Hurts is the QB1 of this team -- even if Nick Sirianni won't name him as as the starter yet. Hurts won't have the best completion percentage, but he's going to produce in an offense that is going to need his legs to move the chains.
Philadelphia is going to tailor the offense to Hurts' strengths, which means the quarterback will roll outside the pocket to find an open receiver and have the option to use his legs and extend the play. The Eagles need a red zone threat as well, which gives Hurts the ability to score touchdowns on the ground.
Hurts throwing 20 to 25 touchdown passes in a pass-happy NFL and running for another 5 to 10 TDs isn't far fetched, especially since the league is trending toward running quarterbacks. Hurts had 10 total touchdowns in his four starts last season, averaging 2.5 touchdowns per game. In a 17-game season, that's 42 touchdowns at that pace.
Hurts won't get that many in his first full season as a starter, but 30 is more than reachable.
Philadelphia leads the NFL in sacks
The Eagles finished third in the NFL with 49 sacks last year, which is clearly the strength of the defense. The unit has improved this offseason with the signing of Ryan Kerrigan -- an addition to a pass rush that already possesses Brandon Graham, Josh Sweat and Derek Barnett at defensive end. Let's not forget Fletcher Cox and Javon Hargrave at defensive tackle.
Here's why the Eagles can lead the league in sacks. Sweat has had the best camp of anyone on the roster and should start over Barnett opposite Graham -- who had one of his best seasons last year at 32. Barnett will be efficient as a third down pass rusher behind Sweat or in the rotation and Kerrigan will play the Anthony Barr-type role as an extra pass rusher in Jonathan Gannon's defense. Philadelphia has six pass rushers that can consistently get to the quarterback.
The Eagles' defense has been excellent throughout camp, specifically the pass rush as they are consistently getting to the quarterback. While Philadelphia's offensive line is banged up in camp, the defensive line is using multiple fronts, blitzing more, and has depth on the ends and at tackle. Third-round pick Milton Williams has had an impressive camp and the Eagles are lining him up at end and tackle, adding even more depth to the pass rush.
Reaching 50 sacks is more than attainable with this defense that focuses on attacking the quarterback. The Eagles linebackers and secondary are better too, giving the line more time to get to the passer. An aggressive defense that blitzes more frequently will have the pressure and see its sacks total increase.
