Eagles Clinch 2nd Straight NFC East Title Thanks to Strong Second Half
The Eagles had a struggle in the first half thanks to the struggles of Jake Elliott, but a strong second-half performance led Philadelphia to a 29-18 win in DC for the team’s second straight NFC East title. Finally ending the NFC East Curse of repeat champions after 20 seasons. Saquon Barkley had one of his bigger games of the season with 21 carries for 132 yards and a touchdown in this game, but the offensive attack was a much more balanced attack than normal. Which leads to my first takeaway.
The Offense Continues to Grow
The Philadelphia Offense has figured some things out, finally, as they have continued their improvement from the Raiders game and showed some promise, especially with some of the passing concepts. Jalen Hurts was 22-for-30 for 185 yards and two touchdowns, and he spread the wealth in this game. A.J. Brown had nine receptions for 95 yards, and Devonta Smith had six receptions for 42 yards and a touchdown. Dallas Goedert added a touchdown on three receptions to go along with Barkley’s huge performance.
The growth of Kevin Patullo as a play caller has been slowly improving, but he needs to continue to get better if they want to have a chance of being repeat Super Bowl Champions. Speaking of things that have to improve. JAKE ELLIOTT has to be a lot better.
Jake Elliott’s Performance Was TERRIBLE
Elliott will be considered an Eagles legend as he is one of the members of both Super Bowl teams and has made a bunch of clutch kicks throughout his career. But, if he doesn’t improve his performance soon, it might be time for the Eagles to look for a replacement at the kicker position next season.
That hurts to say, but when Cameron Dicker was in the building a few seasons ago and now has become one of the most accurate kickers in league history, and Elliott is now one of the most inconsistent kickers, it needs to be examined a bit.
The Eagles’ Defense Once Again was Great
The Eagles’ defense was once again the best unit on the field as they were able to survive a turnover on the opening kickoff to hold the Commanders to a field goal. They also only allowed a total of 220 yards of offense on the night, and grabbed an interception courtesy of Cooper DeJean.
Final Thoughts
Philadelphia still has some tuning up to do, but the progress is slowly coming along. If I’m an NFC team, currently wouldn’t want to face this Eagles squad if they fully figure things out because the pedigree of winning the Super Bowl last season is going to be a huge advantage for them as a team down the stretch of the playoffs. Step one was complete in clinching the division, and now it’s time to complete the rest of the journey of winning in the playoffs, especially if Hurts keeps up this play.
