The Wide World of Dirt

Well they proved me right!

It was a struggle to get going since they didn’t take the lead until the fourth quarter, but the Eagles won against a tough opponent that happens to be a rival on a short week.

Philly is objectively a good team, a REALLY good team. 8-2 is legit.

However, I am definitely still scarred from last year when they were 10-1. I just don’t want to get burned again; that last half of the season was the worst football I have ever seen leading to the least amount of fun I ever had watching football.

The Eagles have my heart again…I just hope they don’t crush it like last year.

They have a tough portion of their schedule coming up. If they can keep this run going, God help any other fan that isn’t an Eagles fan. The cockiness from Eagles fans will be back and better than ever (and will be spearheaded by yours truly.) 

Where would we be without Saquon Barkley?

I don’t want to live in that timeline. I don’t want to say I told you so, but I totally called this performance.

Lighter usage against Dallas + got to rest in the fourth quarter + short week + facing a defense that isn’t great at stopping the run + Jordan Mailata returning to have a fully healthy offensive line = vintage Barkley.

The Penn State powerhouse carried the ball 26 times for 146 yards and 2 touchdown runs with 2 catches for 52 yards. 198 yards from scrimmage.

Barkley has a legitimate case for Offensive Player of the Year. In all honesty, he should also get some MVP votes.

I don’t think we’ll see a running back win MVP in the upcoming seasons, but with high end running backs elevating teams in recent years (i.e. Christian McCaffrey on the Niners, Derrick Henry on the Ravens), I see a path to a running back bringing home the hardware for the first time since Adrian Peterson in 2012.

It’s a passing league, but the undervaluing of running backs has gotten ridiculous. I love Jalen Hurts, AJ Brown is a beast, Lane Johnson is a Hall of Famer, but none have had the impact this season as Barkley has had.

Saquon is the Eagles’ MVP, and I truly believe he is now their best player. If Jalen continues his strong play down this tough stretch, I will absolutely be pushing his MVP candidacy narrative, but my Barkley narrative will be just as strong.

Also, I will always be thankful for the Giants for deciding to pay Daniel Jones (who they just benched!) instead of Barkley. Long live the New York Football Giants!

Another week, another Philly Report where I am praising Vic Fangio.

Again, I said at the beginning of the year that an average defense (or a defense that hits its stride late in the season) would be an enormous success.

Now, Philadelphia boasts a top-10 unit and could very well be playing to be a top-5 unit in football. They are that good.

They made Jayden Daniels look like a rookie. Outside of Washington’s second drive and a garbage time score, the Eagles weren’t letting the Commanders get anything going offensively.

The stout Eagles’ blitz only produced three sacks, but each of those sacks were basically drive enders. The Reed Blankenship interception sealed the game (the third game-ending pick Blankenship has had this season.)

As a collective, Fangio’s Eagles only allowed 264 yards of total offense. They have been humming. The Georgia Dawgs are playing at a high level.

At long last, their linebacker play is finally great. Their secondary has been lockdown. They have young players at every level playing great football. It makes me wonder, what will they look like when they have a couple years under their belts?

The future appears extremely bright. I look forward to watching the defense play more than the offense, something I never thought possible after last year.

It’s going be really fun to see how they perform down the stretch. They have the Rams on Sunday night, then Baltimore the week after, the Steelers, and a rematch against the Commanders.

Four very tough matchups, but four teams they absolutely can match up with. We should put a limit on what this defense can achieve this year. After all, they keep showing they are up to any task put in front of them.

I am actually very excited for this upcoming stretch for the Birds.

The most annoying thing about the 2022 season was the doubters calling out the lack of tough opponents that team had. It was true to an extent, but what went underscored was that the Eagles were blowing a bunch of those teams out.

This year, it was getting to the same point, yet unlike 2022, the Eagles have faced both quality teams and quarterbacks.

They have beaten Jordan Love, Joe Burrow, and Jayden Dainels. They have a chance to add Matt Stafford, Lamar Jackson, Russell Wilson, and Daniels again.

It starts Sunday night at SoFi Stadium in LA. The Rams are good. They are banged up and hold a 5-5 record, but they are a very well-run organization.

Les Snead and Sean McVay have drafted and developed some impressive young talent, all while selling every first-round selection from 2017-2023.

Matt Stafford isn’t as good as he was during their Super Bowl year. Despite that, he remains a top-5 NFC signal caller and a top-10 quarterback in the league.

McVay is still one of the top coaches in the game; for my money, he’s top-5 and closer to 1 than 5.

The Rams need to start stacking wins in order to win the NFC West, so they’ll be performing at the highest level for the rest of the year to make the postseason.

I can’t wait to see Puka and Kupp go against Quiynon and DeJean. I fully expect the Eagles’ defensive line to overpower a battered Rams O-line.

I think this will be a close game, but I think #26 gets a back-breaking TD to push the Eagles to another win over McVay.

Go Birds!

(Top Photo Credit: Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)