The Eagles’ coaching genius isn’t on offense, he’s on defense.
Any Eagles fan who watched the San Francisco 49ers and Chicago Bears go up and down the field in a wildly entertaining game on Sunday Night Football this week, won by the Niners 42-38, had to wonder if they were watching a different sport.
There was 936 yards of total offense. The teams combined for 58 first downs. Both quarterbacks threw for over 300 yards. There were five combined passing touchdowns and big plays all over the field.
With both offenses sprinting up and down the field, one couldn’t help but marvel at the genius of the architects of those two offenses, Kyle Shanahan and Ben Johnson. And after the 49ers snuffed out the Bears’ last gasp at the goal line as time expired, one was left with the impression that these were two juggernauts in the NFC. These were elite teams playing at an elite level.
And, that was partially correct. The offenses were elite.
The defenses, though. Yikes.
Contrast what we saw from Chicago and San Francisco with the display the Eagles put on in Buffalo on Sunday. During a solid first half in which Jalen Hurts and the offense piled up 174 yards of offense and scored on three of its five possessions, it felt like the offense was continuing the improvement it showed against lesser opponents the previous two weeks. But then the offense gained 17 total yards on their final five drives in the second half, failing to gain a single first down on their last four and Jalen Hurts 0-for-7 after halftime.
This isn’t new. The Eagles did the same thing in losses to Chicago and Denver earlier this season as well as in slim victories against Tampa, Detroit and Green Bay. It was gross and once again put the onus on Vic Fangio’s incredible defense to stop a high-powered Buffalo offense that had averaged 29 points per game this season.
Of course, Vic’s boys came through. It wasn’t easy, and the dam nearly broke by the end of the game. Being on the field for two-thirds of the second half will wear down even the deepest of rosters, and it was clear the defense was a bit gassed on that final drive. That said, it took three miracle catches and some incredible Houdini acts by the reigning NFL MVP and his receivers to even put Buffalo in a position to tie the game at the end of regulation.
The Eagles have their very own Kyle Shanahan or Ben Johnson in Philadelphia. He simply coaches the other side of the ball. The question is whether or not the Eagles can repeat as Super Bowl champions with their star coordinator coaching defense rather than offense.
Here is how the rest of the NFC playoff teams stack up in terms of scoring defense (I’m including the Panthers and Bucs, as both are still alive for the NFC South title):
- Seahawks 18.1 (2nd, giving up 21.0 the last 3 games)
- Eagles 18.8 (3rd, giving up 10.0 the last 3 games)
- Rams 19.9 (7th, giving up 29.7 the last 3 games)
- Packers 21.5 (11th, giving up 32.3 the last 3 games)
- 49ers 22.4 (13th, giving up 29.7 the last 3 games)
- Panthers 22.8 (16th, giving up 22.3 the last 3 games)
- Bears 24.8 (22nd, giving up 20.3 the last 3 games)
- Bucs 24.8 (22nd, giving up 24.0 the last 3 games)
In terms of offense:
- Rams 30.5 (1st)
- Seahawks 29.4 (2nd)
- 49ers 27.1 (8th)
- Bears 26.6 (10th)
- Packers 24.3 (13th)
- Bucs 22.8 (18th)
- Eagles 22.6 (19th)
- Panthers 18.6 (27th)
The Rams and Seahawks jump off the page as both are in the top-10 in offense and defense. Other than that, every NFC team is clearly better in one aspect or the other. As Eagles fans, the defense is their superpower, and no unit is playing better than Philadelphia’s defenders over the last six weeks.
Watching Sunday’s second half offensive dry heave was torturous, and there is nothing more frustrating to watch than a struggling offense, no matter the sport. Fans always feel better watching a team score while giving up a lot of points over a team that is stingier on defense but finds scoring arduous. For teams like the Bears, 49ers, and Packers (now without Micah Parsons for the rest of the season), their defensive struggles are every bit as real as the Eagles’ offensive issues. They’re just easier to paper over when you score a bunch.
It remains to be seen which will win the day in the postseason. It is unlikely a team is going to be able to win the Super Bowl by being truly awful either on offense or defense. One of these teams, like the Eagles did last year in the postseason, is going to have to get enough out of their one lackluster unit to make sure the one that has carried them all season can get them to the finish line.
It’s why the Eagles have every bit as good a chance to win it all as anyone. Despite the inconsistency, the offense remains loaded with talent. Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, Devonta Smith, Dallas Goedert and yes, even the struggling offensive line once Lane Johnson returns, have proven themselves capable of getting hot and putting points up on the board. Can the 49ers, Bears or Packers defense say the same?
When the tournament begins in two weeks, we’ll find out if the Eagles can rely on their genius, Fangio, the way the offensive-minded teams can rely on theirs. Fangio’s defense just held Allen to 12 points, only gave up 17 points to Patrick Mahomes in Week 2, 7 to the Packers in Week 10, 9 to the Lions in Week 11, and pitched a shutout against the hapless Raiders two weeks ago. They’ve given up more than 24 points just three times this season, all of them prior to Week 6.
It’s reasonable to believe the Eagles defense can shut down Brock Purdy, Caleb Williams, Matthew Stafford, Jordan Love, Sam Darnold and anyone else that comes their way in these playoffs. Can Kevin Patullo and Nick Sirianni get out of the way and actually help him out a little by just being average?
Category: General Sports
