The Philadelphia Eagles will look to regain their form in 2024, but must overcome these team weaknesses.
The Philadelphia Eagles weaknesses this year are few and far between. However, no team can be perfect, even the reigning Super Bowl champions. Coaches can mask issues with game plans, whether with their schemes, as leaders, or elsewhere. And that brings us back to the Eagles; with one of their biggest weaknesses not being a position group, but within the coaching staff.
Head Coach
A big part of the Eagles’ collapse in 2023 was due to the coaching staff, which saw both assistants fired. However, head coach Nick Sirianni retained his job. Many fans and media members had varying opinions about that, but in the end, owner Jeffrey Lurie showed his trust in a coach who brought the team to a Super Bowl. And, it’s hard to fault him for that decision. After all, Sirianni has shown a lot in his little time in Philadelphia.
With that said, plenty of questions can be asked about what went wrong to end last season’s magical start.
Did the coaching staff lose the team to end the season? Many believe that to be that case, and it seemed to show just by watching them. The play calling did them no favors on either side of the ball, however. Sirianni attempted to make a late season change on defense, which did not aid the attempted turnaround.
Now, Kellen Moore and Vic Fangio join the fold as experienced coordinators on both sides of the ball. The hirings should only make it easier for Sirianni to lead the squad as he did in 2022. That is what Sirianni is: a motivator. He will always be there for his players, and have their backs (or faces on a shirt).
However, Sirianni is listed here because the collapse showed cracks in his coaching. With that said, the hope is that he learned from that experience and is ready to lead the Eagles again in 2024. If he has taken the time and made the necessary adjustments to his game-planning and coaching duties, he will be a stronger coach than he was during the 2022 season.
Right Guard
As mentioned in our key players article, it is a massive year for Cam Jurgens, who will be replacing future Hall of Famer Jason Kelce. However, it is also a huge year for whoever lands the starting right guard job, whether that be Tyler Steen or Mekhi Becton.
Becton has shown flashes throughout his career, but has been unable to stay healthy. In his rookie year, Becton did grade out as PFF’s 33rd-best tackle in 2020. Four years in the NFL is a long time, though, and he has yet to improve from that marking.
Meanwhile, Steen entered the league last year, with his playing time being minimal due to the offensive line in Philadelphia. He did not grade out well with PFF but showed flashes of promise outside of the Dallas game, where he allowed five pressures.
Yet regarding the Eagles, the man to trust the most in the organization is coaching this position. Jeff Stoutland has developed Jason Kelce, Jordan Mailata, and countless others into the best versions of themselves on the field.
Eagles OL coach Jeff Stoutland says he’s been very impressed with Tyler Steen so far
Says Steen is quicker and stronger than he was last season pic.twitter.com/Wg74LLUO93
— Eliot Shorr-Parks (@EliotShorrParks) June 3, 2024
As it stands, Stoutland will have to make a tough decision with two unproven players at the position. Steen is the early favorite this offseason, but the coaching staff has liked what they have seen out of Becton. Right now, it’s believed that Steen wins the job, but there is still plenty of time till the first week of the season.
Linebacker
It is evident now that General Manager Howie Roseman does not value the linebacker position, a position that has haunted the Eagles for several seasons. Howie has spent sparse resources on the position and relied on signing productive, low-cost free agents. The last time he struck gold was with T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White, and the Eagles went to the Super Bowl. That approach burned him this past season, however. So, fans have seen the highs and lows of Roseman’s thinking. Howie adapts and changes like he did with the addition of Saquon Barkley (while previously under-valuing the RB position), but is not budging with the linebacker position.
We’ve discussed the position among the Eagles’ training camp battles this year, and Devin White is still holding the same lead over the group that he did then. White signed with the Eagles on a one-year, $4 million deal in free agency. He will play alongside Nakobe Dean, Zach Baun, Oren Burks, and rookie Jeremiah Trotter Jr.
The group has certainly improved from where it was in 2023, but it still has a long way to go. Dean evolving into an every-down starter would do wonders for this group regarding potential.
The worst possible outcome for this group would be to be in the same spot they were in last year, where they felt the need to go out and sign Shaquille Leonard in the middle of the season. That would either signal injury or the group not being where they need to be, invoking nightmares for the fan base. Cautiously optimistic is what was used to describe this group, and it will remain that way until we see them in action.
White and Dean both have boom-or-bust potential and will likely determine how high this Eagles’ defense finishes, proving to be a strength on the team, or one of their biggest weaknesses. Both hitting their ceiling would be nice, but the defense would look drastically different from last year if even one did.
