PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Eagles made it to the playoffs as a wild card team last season and since then, they’ve gotten a lot better.
After trading for star former Titans receiver A.J. Brown, the Eagles offense, which already has one of the league’s best offensive lines, has dramatically improved. The defense also got some boosts, especially with rookie selections Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean out of Georgia.
With the Dallas Cowboys seemingly taking a small step back with the loss of Amari Cooper, the Eagles could contend for the NFC East. The goal for them? Making the playoffs and winning at least a playoff game this year.
But can quarterback Jalen Hurts handle this pressure? Locked On Eagles host Gino Cammilleri joined Peter Bukowski on the Locked On Sports Today podcast to give his thoughts.
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“I would say reasonable expectations are that Jalen Hurts can lead you to a playoff berth and at least win you one," Cammilleri said. "You look at the outlook of the NFC as a whole, I would say this time last year it was a lot more competitive than it is now…The Eagles, if you look on paper, have improved while all these other teams even in the division have taken a step back.”
Bukowski said if the Eagles underachieve, he feels it will be due to Jalen Hurts’ performance. Can Hurts elevate himself and his teammates next season?
“I use this analogy, it’s like in Formula One, these companies like Mercedes and Red Bull set up these cars with multimillion dollar engines, fine tuning them and sometimes the guy driving the car isn’t the correct individual to be behind the wheel," Cammilleri said. "The Eagles have brought in AJ Brown, they have one of the best offensive lines. With Devonta Smith and Dallas Goedert and the plethora of other weapons as well as an improved defense, the guy driving the car, if he keeps it on the track and in the right line, I think Jalen Hurts can take them far.”
Cammilleri says despite the pressure, he believes Hurts is going to step up to the test.
“All of the pieces they have say they can get it done everywhere else," he said. "
"Now can the guy driving the car keep them out of the wall and keep them in contention. Jalen Hurts will have no excuses after this year. He’s not a guy who’s going to shy away from that pressure. We’ve seen what he went through in his time at Alabama and Oklahoma. He is going to step up to the test. We saw in that preseason game, a couple questions we’ve had like can he stay in the pocket, can he fix his mechanics, can he get into his rhythm as a passer. If he continues on his trajectory, let’s hope we’re not having a QB controversy this time next year.”
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