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After entering the week with a ton of question marks, a few new injuries, and a small but vocal segment of the fanbase calling for Nick Sirianni's job, the Philadelphia Eagles flew down to New Orleans, marched into the Superdome, and promptly secured their second win of the season against a Saints team that led the NFL in points scored through Week 2.
Was the win pretty? Nope, it's hard to say any 15-12 win is, but the Eagles did just enough to put points on the board, did even more to make Derek Carr uncomfortable, and ultimately left town with a 2-1 record, mainly off the back of big performances by Saqon Barkley and Dallas Goedert.
Can the Eagles do it again in Week 4 against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that was only able to put up seven points against the Denver Broncos? Or will the ghosts of Week 2 come back to haunt Philadelphia, as Vic Fangio's defense has had just as many ups as downs through the first three games of the season? Based on everything the Eagles have going for them, even a loaded injury report shouldn't be enough to keep Sirianni's team out of the winner's circle, as they simply have too much talent to drop a big game to the Buccaneers.
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1. Jahan Dotson breaks out in spot-up WR1 duty
As you may or may not have heard, there's a chance the Eagles are without not one, not two, but all three of their top wide receivers heading into Week 4, with AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith both doubtful for the game and Britain Covey on IR with a broken bone in his shoulder.
Disappointing? You bet, but hey, in the NFL, injuries happen; while most teams can operate cleanly with their top players on the field, the truly great ones find a way to remain effective when they lose key Pro Bowl-caliber talent, as the Green Bay Packers have proven with Malik Willis under center.
Will having an effective passing offense be tough down as many as three top wide receivers? You bet, but over the past few days, the Eagles coaching staff has been hyping the heck out of Jahan Dotson in the lead-up to Week 4, and while that might not mean anything… it might also mean everything.
Drafted to be a high-end WR2 to complement Terry McLaurin in Washington, Dotson can do a little bit of everything; he's fast enough to execute deep routes, shifty enough to weave in and out of traffic, and versatile enough to play inside or out, as the Eagles have shown over the past few weeks with his deployment.
Sure, he's only picked up 14 yards on three catches, but he's also only been targeted five times and hasn't exactly been a featured part of Kellen Moore's game plan. If Moore, Sirianni, and Hurts can all come together and designate Dotson as a key part of their passing offense, right up there with Goedert and Barkley, it could spell success not just in Week 4 but for the offense moving forward, as for the Eagles offense to be good, they really need to have three wide receivers who can all contribute in any given game. Why? Otherwise, opposing defensive coordinators will have a better ability to make things one-dimensional, which is the easiest way to lose games in 2024.
2. Saquon Barkley turns in another masterful showing
Through the first three games of the 2024 NFL season, the Buccaneers have been consistent against the run… consistently bad, that is.
That's right, despite having a fairly volatile passing defense, allowing just 161 yards in Week 1 to the Washington Commanders, 324 passing yards to the Detroit Lions in Week 2, and then 216 passing yards to the Denver Broncos in Week 3, the Bucs have allowed 413 rushing yards so far this season – 138 in Week 1, 139 in Week 2, and 136 in Week 3 – which is the eight most in the NFL over that timeframe.
Barkley, by contrast, has been on a roll so far this season on the ground, picking up at least 95 yards in each game while turning in one of his best-ever games in Week 3, where he picked up 147 yards on only 17 rushes in addition to two rushing touchdowns. While the Eagles may look to rotate in more players than just Barkley in Week 4 in order to ease his workload, especially considering Kenneth Gainwell has only averaged two touches per game, and Will Shipley, despite his preseason pedigree, has only earned four offensive snaps this season without a single stat to show for it. Moore has tried his hand at having multiple running backs on the field at the same time a few times so far this season, and while it hasn't exactly produced much in terms of statistical production, that doesn't mean it can't moving forward.
Could Week 4 be the game where Shipley finally arrives? Only time will tell, but no matter who is deployed on what down or from what allignment, it's safe to assume that Barkley's number will be called early and often in Week 4 and will make a below-average Buccaneers rushing defense pay, as he's simply one of the best running back in the NFL and that success has translated game in and game out seemingly regardless of the scheme or talent lined up on the opposite side of the ball.
3. The Eagles finish September with a 3-1 record
After dropping a brutal game to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2, morale within the Eagles fanbase was pretty low, especially considering they were set to face off against one of the highest-scoring offenses in the NFL in Week 3.
Fast forward a few days into the future, and the Eagles defense was able to shut Derek Allin's offense down, rip off some big play both on the ground and through the air, and secure a winning record one more at 2-1. While every game is unique, and any team can lose in any given week, the Buccaneers barely secured the win in Week 2 against Detroit and looked downright nasty against the Broncos in Week 3. If the Eagles can simply keep Mayfield off of rhythm and control the time of possession, they should be able to land their third win of the season and ultimately leave September as one of the feel-good stories of the NFC East.
