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Some saw the Philadelphia Eagles as the frontrunners to win the NFC East going into this season, and many had them pegged as Super Bowl contenders. But through three games, they have looked anything but the sort.
The Eagles have gotten off to a 1-2 start and have already fallen two games behind the Dallas Cowboys for first place, and the one win they did earn came on a miraculous comeback against the Washington Redskins.
Philadelphia seems to have a litany of problems at the moment, and things won't get any easier as the Birds get set to take on the 3-0 Green Bay Packers on Thursday night.
Here are three burning questions for the Eagles entering Week 4.
3. Will Alshon Jeffery Return?
It's blatantly obvious that the Eagles need their top two receivers back.
Both DeSean Jackson and Alshon Jeffery left their loss against the Atlanta Falcons with injuries in Week 2, and they both missed Week 3 as a result.
Jackson is expected to be out once again on Thursday, but Jeffery seems to be making progress, with Doug Pederson saying he is optimistic that Jeffery will be able to play against the Packers.
Make no mistake: as deep as Philadelphia's offense is, it needs Jeffery back against what has become a fierce Green Bay defense.
I honestly don't see how the Eagles can beat the Packers without at least one of Jeffery or Jackson, especially on the road.
2. Will the Defense Show Signs of Life?
The biggest concern for the Eagles going into 2019 (other than Carson Wentz's health) was their defense, and those concerns have bubbled to the surface three weeks into the season.
Philly ranks just 16th in yards allowed and 24th in scoring defense thus far, an indication that its defense has not improved much from last year when it allowed a hefty 366.2 yards per game.
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The Eagles signed Malik Jackson to try and beef up the defensive line, but he has already hit the injured reserve list, and other injury-prone players such as Tim Jernigan and Ronald Darby are also on the shelf.
This defense just does not have enough talent to absorb this many injuries, and with Aaron Rodgers on the horizon, Philadelphia could find itself in a world of hurt.
1. Is Everything Alright in the Locker Room?
By now, I'm sure you've seen the clip of Wentz getting sacked with almost his entire offensive line standing around watching in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions this past Sunday.
It was one of the stranger things I've ever seen, and it is somewhat disturbing.
When watching it, I couldn't help but hearken back to the Philly Voice article in January which stated that Wentz was not “universally loved” in the Eagles' locker room.
Several Philadelphia players immediately debunked that notion, but this incident on Sunday has me wondering if there is, in fact, something to it, because that was just weird.
It's not like one or two linemen stopped blocking; all of them did it in unison, almost as if they heard a whistle.
Of course, this could be absolutely nothing, but it could also be everything.
