September 09, 2024
Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports
Eagles wideout DeVonta Smith will likely be seeing a lot of playing time as a slot receiver this season.
The Eagles are 1-0 in spite of an up-and-down performance and horrific field conditions in Brazil this past Friday. Before they take on the Falcons next Monday on national television, here are five thoughts I currently have about the team as they gear up for Week 2...
Jahan Dotson arrived in Philadelphia in late August to be the Eagles' No. 3 receiver this season. He played both on the outside and inside during his first two pro seasons in Washington. That versatility freed up DeVonta Smith to play the majority of his passing down snaps in the slot during the Birds' Week 1 win over the Packers. He feasted no matter where he lined up, finishing with 84 receiving yards on seven catches.
Smith played 70.7 percent of his snaps on passing downs in the slot, per Pro Football Focus, by far the highest rate of any Eagles receiver this past week. That's compared to 32.5 percent for A.J. Brown and 19.2 percent for Dotson.
That's in stark contrast to how Smith was utilized in the first three seasons of his career:
The Eagles lined up in 11 personnel on 66.2 of their offensive snaps against Green Bay. It looks like Smith will be their most-used slot receiver going forward and he's certainly up to the task, but, hey, he can still get it done on the outside too, like he did on the most underrated play in Friday's win:
DeVonta Smith. Always reliable.
— NFL (@NFL) September 7, 2024
📺: #GBvsPHI on Peacock pic.twitter.com/iIw8UOZtIh
Jalen Hurts looked noticeably less fluid as a runner in 2023 compared to his electric performances with his legs in 2021 and 2022. This summer in camp, Hurts looked more spry as a runner, inspiring some optimism that he could return to form a bit as a dynamic runner, rather than "just" an effective one.
That wasn't quite the case on Friday. Hurts rushed 13 times for 33 yards in Week 1 (2.5 yards per rush). He labored some while maneuvering in the pocket and didn't showcase the ability to turn on the jets when scrambling. He wasn't as successful as he has been in the past as a decision-maker in the read option, particularly in the red zone where this offense should be unstoppable.
Even with all of that, Hurts was a powerful rusher when the Eagles needed it the most, gritting out first downs and trucking defenders in a late, clock-burning drive in the fourth quarter:
Jalen Hurts fights for the first down. #NFL pic.twitter.com/97eIWDRn6I
— Tanner Phifer (@TannerPhifer) September 7, 2024
That's impressive and that's Hurts' overall vibe as a guy who will step up when the team needs him the most, regardless of how the game has transpired up to that point.
Hurts doesn't need to be the player who was rushing for 5.6 yards per attempt like he was early in his career anymore. He also might just not be capable of it. Clutch runs like the ones he had late are still more than welcome for this offense. He's developed enough as a passer to be a great quarterback, especially with the cast of pass-catchers around him.
Half-joking, I posted this shortly before kickoff on Friday:
If Kellen Moore really wants to endear himself to Philadelphia, the first career Eagles touch for Saquon Barkley tonight should come on a wheel route.
— shamus (@shamus_clancy) September 6, 2024
Naturally, Saquon Barkley scored his first ever Eagles touchdown on a wheel route on a great pass from Hurts:
1ST EAGLES TOUCHDOWN FOR @SAQUON!!! pic.twitter.com/VkTZ2hMTQN
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) September 7, 2024
Broken clocks, etc.
Barkley's most iconic play during his Penn State days was a wheel route in the Big 10 Championship Game. It's a total mismatch when he's playing against a linebacker in space like that.
Offensive coordinator Kellen Moore should tuck that one in his back pocket until the postseason.
During an uneven night for the Eagles' defense, Avonte Maddox, in particular, struggled big time. Out of 120 cornerbacks in Week 1, Maddox was PFF's 113th ranked coverage CB. The eye test certainly backs that up. How will the Eagles' cornerback rotation shake out when Isaiah Rodgers returns from injury?
The assumption this summer was that Darius Slay would, of course, be the Eagles' CB1. Quinyon Mitchell would be the nickel cornerback and play outside in base with Rodgers working on the outside in nickel packages. Mitchell impressed enough as a first-round rookie that the team might want to just let him continue to play on the outside at a position of that importance.
Does that leave Maddox to continue playing a healthy dose of nickel corner this season?
He played 60 snaps in Brazil. He was targeted five times, allowing three catches for 30 yards and a TD, good for an opposing passer rating of 116.7, per PFF. That's an exploitable element of the Eagles' defense right now.
The Eagles have much-hyped interior defensive linemen, but second-year player Moro Ojomo is the unheralded one out of the group. A seventh-round pick out of Texas in 2023, Ojomo was on the field for 11 pass-rushing snaps on Friday, per PFF. Even with that limited amount of reps, he totaled two pressures and one QB hit. This one in the red zone was huge for the Birds' defense preventing a touchdown:
Huge play by Moro Ojomo vs the Packers
— Eliot Shorr-Parks (@EliotShorrParks) September 9, 2024
The drive after the Hurts INT in the end zone. 3rd down.
Ojomo wins his matchup, gets pressure on Love and forces the incompletion
The incompletion leads to a FG that allows the Eagles to keep the lead: pic.twitter.com/o7FhZgw6Q1
He's going to have a role this year. Milton Williams was out there for just four more pass-rush snaps and Jordan Davis played only seven more. Ojomo impressed as a rookie in camp last year and came back even better this summer. He plays with a motor. Let's see how the defensive line rotation continues to shake out under new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio.
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