Week 2 may have been the Super Bowl rematch, but the Eagles’ upcoming matchup against the 2-0 Los Angeles Rams is arguably the more highly anticipated one.
The Rams have won a lot of football games since mid-November. As ESPN pointed out, they are 9-0 in that span against nine opponents not named the Eagles (excluding a meaningless Week 18 game).
They fell to the Eagles in both of their matchups last year — in Week 12 and in the divisional round of the playoffs. Jalen Carter and his red-zone sack of Matthew Stafford in the final moments of the divisional-round game sealed an Eagles win that eventually led them to the Super Bowl.
Can the 2025 Eagles continue that trend? Here’s what we know (and what we don’t) about the Eagles through two games and why it matters ahead of the Rams matchup:
Boring football is winning football?
In Jalen Hurts’ world, fireworks are for the Fourth of July, not football, probably.
After Sunday’s win over the Chiefs, Hurts remarked that the “game isn’t necessarily won off of fireworks, it’s won off scoring more points than the other team.” No statement better encapsulates the Eagles offense over the last two contests, especially in the passing game.
For a second straight week, the stats in the passing game weren’t gaudy, as Hurts completed just 101 yards on 15 completions. But Hurts is 2-0 this season despite throwing for fewer than 160 passing yards and zero touchdowns in each of his first two contests (152 yards in Week 1).
According to Next Gen Stats, Hurts is the first quarterback in 15 seasons to start a season 2-0 without throwing a touchdown pass.
The Eagles still won the game. They played complementary enough football. One week after shutting out the Dallas Cowboys in the second half, the defense limited Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense, down its top two receivers, to just seven points for the final 30 minutes. On special teams, Jake Elliott made two field goals of 50-plus yards, which was more than he had all season in 2024.
» READ MORE: Nick Sirianni defends Tush Push, knows Eagles need more big plays
Then there’s the offense. The explosive plays are still lacking, particularly in the passing game, which is confounding given the presence of A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. Against the Chiefs, Hurts completed just one of four pass attempts that traveled 10-plus air yards, according to Next Gen Stats, with Smith recording the lone catch for 28 yards. It’s the first time in Hurts’ career that he’s had two games in a season in which he completed just one of those passes.
But the Eagles are winning the turnover battle. They’re one of four teams that has yet to give away the football while forcing at least one turnover. It isn’t a coincidence that all four of those teams — including the Buffalo Bills, the Green Bay Packers, and the Indianapolis Colts — are undefeated through two weeks.
The offense also dominates in short-yardage situations, in large part thanks to the Tush Push and much to the chagrin of the play’s detractors. The Eagles lead the league in first downs (five) on third-and-1 rushing plays.
Kevin Patullo’s offense is doing enough to win for now. But status quo might not be enough to win this week, and the Eagles still need to figure out how to generate more explosive plays if they want to achieve sustained success. The Rams defense could provide the biggest test yet, as they’re averaging minus-.18 expected points added per play allowed, which is tied for second in the league, according to Next Gen Stats. The statistic measures the average points a defense gives up on a play.
The Eagles are catching a break, though, as top Rams cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon just went on injured reserve with a broken collarbone.
Blitz improvement
The last time the Eagles faced the Rams in the divisional round, the offense struggled mightily against the blitz. According to Pro Football Focus, the Rams blitzed Hurts on 43.3% of his drop backs. Hurts was sacked five times on blitzes.
He completed just six passes against the blitz for 37 yards. That game was a bit of an anomaly for the bulk of the playoffs, as Hurts and the Eagles offense fared much better against the blitz in the games that followed, particularly against the Washington Commanders.
Hurts and his protection — especially his running backs, which were a problem in Week 1 — performed well against the blitz Sunday against the Chiefs. According to Next Gen Stats, the Chiefs blitzed Hurts on 16 of his 25 drop backs (64.0%), which is the highest single-game blitz rate by Kansas City since Steve Spagnuolo became the team’s defensive coordinator in 2019.
But Hurts was mostly unbothered. He got the ball out quickly, averaging 2.11 seconds to throw against the blitz, which is his quickest in a game in his career.
While Hurts took a sack on a blitz, he also made a big-time throw against a zero blitz when he connected with Smith on the lone deep shot for 28 yards.
“When you see a team bring one more than you can handle in certain situations, that’s what’s going to be important is you get the ball out of your hands, and Jalen did a really good job of that,” coach Nick Sirianni said Monday.
If the Rams decide to dial up the pressure once more in this matchup, Hurts and the offense should be better prepared this time around.
Johnson is still a fortress
Two games into his 13th NFL season, Lane Johnson is proving he hasn’t lost a step.
He didn’t allow a single pressure on 25 pass blocking snaps against the Chiefs, according to Next Gen Stats. This season, Johnson has allowed just two pressures (including one sack) on 58 pass-blocking snaps (3.4%), although it’s worth noting that those pressures occurred 4.15 seconds after the snap on average.
Johnson’s continued success is important going into the Rams game. He’s likely to see plenty of Byron Young, the 27-year-old starting outside linebacker who primarily lines up on the left side of the defensive line (not to be confused with Eagles defensive tackle Byron Young).
» READ MORE: Nick Sirianni believes Jalen Carter will ‘learn from his mistakes,’ opts not to bench him against Chiefs
Young is off to a tremendous start to his third NFL season. In two games, he has notched three sacks, four quarterback hits, and a forced fumble (on a strip-sack). Two of those sacks came Sunday in the Rams’ 33-19 win over the Tennessee Titans. His fourth quarter strip-sack of rookie quarterback Cam Ward thwarted any chances of a Titans comeback.
On 54 pass-rush snaps through two games, Young has a 24.5% pass-rush win rate, which ranks No. 5 in the league among defensive players with at least 39 pass rush snaps, according to PFF. While Jared Verse, who won Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2024, is a heck of an edge rusher on the opposite end of the Rams defensive front, Young is the one to circle this week.
Toughest passing challenge awaits
While Mahomes posed a challenge to the Eagles defense given his ability to use his legs and extend plays, he was clearly limited by a lack of dependable receivers on Sunday.
Without Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy, Mahomes relied on the up-and-down Travis Kelce, who committed a pair of drops, one of which resulted in an interception for rookie safety Drew Mukuba.
The Eagles defense will face more formidable pass-catchers and another capable quarterback in Week 3. This offseason, the Rams added 32-year-old receiver Davante Adams, who showed flashes of his younger self in his second game of the season. Adams caught six of 13 targets for 106 yards and a touchdown.
Adams also showed how dangerous he can be with the ball in his hands. He racked up 13 yards after the catch on a 20-yard completion from Stafford over the middle of the field, good for a 33-yard gain.
» READ MORE: First look at the Eagles’ next opponent: What to know about the Rams for Week 3
Stafford still has Puka Nacua at his disposal, too. While Adams was his most popular target on Sunday, Nacua was still productive, finishing the game with eight receptions for 91 yards. He also took one handoff 45 yards for a touchdown on a gutsy fourth-and-1 play call from Sean McVay in the first quarter.
One of the cornerstones of the Rams offense is the use of play action, which was on display against the Titans. Stafford completed 12 of 17 play-action passes for 166 yards and a touchdown, including seven passes for 10-plus air yards, according to Next Gen Stats. The Eagles need to be disciplined and avoid biting on any eye candy in the backfield to have success on Sunday.
Davis 2.0
New year, new Jordan Davis. The fourth-year Eagles defensive tackle is off to a strong start this season after transforming his body over the summer and dropping 26 pounds.
Davis has shouldered a substantial workload through two games, totaling 85 defensive snaps (70.2%). Last season, Davis didn’t hit the 85-snap mark until Week 3.
He’s been more dominant as a pass rusher while still maintaining his effectiveness as a run defender. Next Gen Stats credited Davis with four stops against the run on Sunday. He also nearly earned a sack when he beat Chiefs center Creed Humphrey on a bull rush, but Davis’ play was negated by offsetting penalties.
“It’s definitely night and day,” Davis said after the game. “I feel more comfortable just being out there. I’m able to run around. Get out there. I cramped up chasing after Pat, but that’s a cramp. I’d rather be cramping up than be overweight and a little sluggish. It’s just a little necessary lifestyle change to get me to this point. I think just even these two games gave me even more motivation to keep going and keep being consistent, ’cause it’s not all built in one day.”
That consistency could be a big help to the Eagles’ defensive front this week, especially when it comes to limiting Rams standout running back Kyren Williams, who has not surpassed 66 rushing yards in a game this season.
The Eagles will also need all the help they can get pressuring Stafford, who has been the best quarterback in the league this season when kept clean. Among quarterbacks with at least two starts, Stafford leads the league with an 85% completion percentage when he isn’t pressured, according to PFF. That completion percentage drops to 45.5% when he’s under pressure.