The New Look Eagles
By: Herby
The off-season is upon us once again and the mysterious moves from all angles are coming around. We have seen it all this off-season from the house being sold for the #1 pick, to Longville doing Longville things and continuing the questionable trades we have all grown to expect each cycle. However, there are a few things that can be noticed throughout, and no it is not the chargers roster missing 20 guys before FA1. The Eagles have gone through and revamped their team and have filled the holes that opened, from season 78 to season 79, in hopes that season 80 will put them back on top of the division.
In this small article we will go through the position groups and look at the new additions to the team, while looking at returning players to see how they will fair in the upcoming season. To start out we look at the offensive line. This line was one of the best, if not the best, when the cycle started. With Mailata, Kelce, and Johnson leading the charge they were a force within the league. In season 78 (Kelce), then season 79 (johnson) the eagles were left with acquisition Ryan Ramczyk as the anchor of the line. Season 80 is showing the revamped line to be one of power again with the average overall being a 81. Newcomer Alex Cappa is going to take the move to guard to help solidify the open hole with a +3 overall improvement from last year.
Dak Prescott looks to build on a solid 4,200-yard season in season 79. With all weapons returning it looks like this will be another solid year as the WR core continues to improve. While they do not have any record breakers, the eagles WR core does show promise with two 1,000-yard receivers returning. AJ Brown, DeVonte Smith, Allen Lazard, and second year man Romeo Perkins looks to continue this massive improvement as the season comes in.
To that the Eagles still have Dallas Goedert, who led the teams in receiving TDs, returning for his final year on his contract. Newcomers Maxx Williams, and Nick Boyle will help sure up a lack luster TE group with their blocking and leadership. This will be a spot of focus in the next off-season.
The strong point of the Eagles has been their defense in three seasons. Season 79 was a season to forget however, due to the middle of the road results. The Eagles spent money in season 78 to fix up the defensive line by bringing in Chris Jones, JJ Watt, and Nick Bosa. However, they were not able to live up to the hype and only recorded 22 combined sacks. This year the Eagles have switched back to the base 3-4 utilizing the athleticism and speed of the defense to add pressure to the opposing offenses. New comers Shaquil barrett and Arnold Ebiketie will look to be that difference off the edge with Jones, Davis, and Bosa being the down linemen.
To finish off the off-season review new comers Murphy-Bunting, and Amani Oruwariye will help sure up the secondary with returning Avonte Maddox to help shut down opposing WR. This secondary is younger, faster, and better in coverage than season 79’s starters. Winfield, on his franchise contract, and Brian Colon will continue to sure up the back half of the secondary.
Overall, this Eagles team looks to be on par with the beginning of cycle team, if not better. With massive contracts coming to an end of season 80, and picks being stacked up this Eagles team is not in a bad position. Season 80 is a redemption year for the organization in hopes to prove doubters wrong. Unfortunately, they do not have the extra motivation of ruining Kelly’s day by giving him a worse pick. Thank you for taking time to read this poorly written article as more will be coming up as we finish up the off-season and move onto season 80.