Copyright The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Eagles know all too well that ugly wins are wins nonetheless. Coming off the bye week, the Eagles defense was practically impenetrable while the offense sputtered in their 10-7 win Monday over the Green Bay Packers. There’s plenty to nitpick, but there’s also something to be said about pulling off a road win at Lambeau Field, no matter how it occurs. » READ MORE: Eagles ride defense, just enough offense to win in Green Bay While the Packers have floundered, the Detroit Lions, who visit the Eagles on Sunday night, are flying. They’re coming off a resounding 44-22 win at Washington, mustering an offensive performance so dominant it forced Commanders head coach Dan Quinn to take over defensive coordinator duties from Joe Whitt indefinitely. Can the Eagles continue their hot streak on a short week against the 6-3 Lions? Here’s what we know (and what we don’t) about the Eagles entering Week 11: Offensive temperature check It turns out that two great games from the Eagles offense did not indicate that all of their issues were fixed forever. In the two weeks before the bye, the Eagles made some strides in incorporating some variety into the offense, specifically under-center play-action passes and handoffs to Saquon Barkley. The Eagles tried to go back to incorporating those wrinkles against the Packers to varying degrees of success. The former was a flop and the latter was slightly more successful. Barkley had some successful runs on handoffs from under center in the jumbo package with Fred Johnson as the extra offensive lineman. That included Barkley’s 15-yard run in the first quarter on the Eagles’ opening drive in which he exploited a hole created by the left side of the offensive line (Jordan Mailata and Landon Dickerson) and burst into the secondary. But the Packers weren’t biting on the illusion of the run that play-action drop backs attempt to create, especially from under center. On four under-center play-action drop backs, Jalen Hurts completed just one pass for 8 yards. » READ MORE: Eagles grades: Stout defense and shaky offense vs. Packers Ten points were still enough for the Eagles to beat the Packers. Barkley and DeVonta Smith did Barkley and Smith things in the fourth quarter on the Eagles’ lone touchdown drive to help them establish enough of a lead to win. But 10 points likely won’t be enough to beat the Lions, who boast an offense that ranks second in the league in points. Can the Eagles offense get back to the drawing board quickly? Calling the shots Detroit’s offense just got a little refresh ahead of its matchup against the Eagles. Dan Campbell, the team’s head coach, took over play-calling duties from offensive coordinator John Morton in Sunday’s win over the Commanders. Campbell plans to assume those duties again this week. The early returns were promising for a Lions offense that has sputtered at times this season, most recently in their 27-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 9. Detroit scored on each of its nine possessions against the Commanders, save for the final drive of the game. The Lions achieved season highs in total yards (546), rushing yards (226), and first downs (30) on Sunday. According to Next Gen Stats, the Week 10 win over the Commanders marked the franchise’s seventh contest with more than 40 points and 500 total yards since Campbell became head coach in 2021. No other team in the league has more than four such performances in the last five seasons. » READ MORE: Could Jaelan Phillips be key to Eagles return to defensive dominance? One of the most notable differences in the Lions offense with Campbell as the play caller was its increased use of play action. Detroit had a 51.4% play-action rate, according to Next Gen Stats, which was its highest rate of the season and the most of any team in Week 10 before Monday night. The Eagles have generally had some challenges defending play-action passes this season, conceding plus-.36 expected points added per play allowed on such passes, according to Next Gen Stats (second-highest in the league). Expected points added per play allowed measures the average points a defense gives up on a play. Gibbs ’em hell The Eagles defense, which has been sharp against the run lately, is going from one talented running back to another. After limiting the Packers’ Josh Jacobs to just 3.5 yards per carry, Vic Fangio’s group will go up against another one of the league’s best running backs in Jahmyr Gibbs on Sunday night. Gibbs has been difficult to keep out of the end zone. The 23-year-old is tied for third in the league in rushing touchdowns this season (eight) and is third in all-purpose touchdowns (10). With 41 career touchdowns in just three seasons, Gibbs has become the fifth player in league history to score more than 40 before turning 24 years old, according to Next Gen Stats. » READ MORE: Where the Eagles landed in latest NFL power rankings Two of those rushing touchdowns came in Sunday’s win over the Commanders. On the ground, Gibbs had 15 carries for 142 yards and the two scores. He also notched a receiving touchdown. Both rushing touchdowns came on explosive gains — one for 43 yards and another for 13. Sound tackling will be key for the Eagles defense if it wants to keep Gibbs at bay. The Lions running back forced seven missed tackles on his carries Sunday, according to Next Gen Stats, which was his second-highest total in a game this season. He added a season-best 85 yards after missed tackles. The Eagles ought to have an added boost of confidence in the running game — and generally speaking, really — after the performance by their defensive front on Monday night. The run defense was buoyed by newcomer Jaelan Phillips, whom Pro Football Focus credited with a team-high four run “stops” (defined as tackles that constitute a failure for the offense). Nothing to Goff at The Lions continue to get the best out of Jared Goff. The 31-year-old quarterback had one of his best passing games of the season on Sunday, finishing the day with 25 completions on 33 attempts for 320 yards and three touchdowns. He managed that output despite being pressured on 42.4% of his drop backs, according to Next Gen Stats. He completed nine of 14 attempts while pressured for 107 yards and did not take a sack. In turn, Goff became just the third player this season to avoid a sack on 14 or more pressures. » READ MORE: ‘It’s a hostile environment’: Lions coach Dan Campbell says Eagles fans spit on him when he was a player One of the reasons Goff was able to neutralize the Commanders’ pass rush — other than the fact that their edge rusher corps has been limited by injury — was because of how quickly he got the ball out. He threw quick passes (sub-2½ seconds) on 48.5% of his pass attempts, according to Next Gen Stats, and completed 14 of 16 for 191 yards and all three of his touchdowns. The Eagles pass rush is coming along with the addition of Phillips, the return of Nolan Smith, and the ascent of Jalyx Hunt. If Goff wants to follow the same quick-game formula on Sunday, the Eagles secondary must be disciplined on the back end and minimize yards after the catch.
