Are the Philadelphia Eagles a sure-fire playoff team in 2024? Call it recency bias, but most NFL analysts seem to be fading the Eagles in preseason projections.
Take Will Brinson of CBSSports.com, for example. Brinson recently published his 2024 NFL season win-loss record predictions for every team, and he picked the Eagles to go a middling 9-8. Here was Brinson’s reasoning:
My projection is going against the Vegas implied success of the Eagles, and it’s in large part because of what I expect to be a slow-ish start for Philly. I still see it as a likely playoff team, but it draws the Packers and three quarters of the NFC South to start before a Week 5 bye. They have a new offensive coordinator in Kellen Moore, and even if he’s an upgrade, there’s some concerns after seeing the Chargers last year, plus the natural acclimation time. The loss of Jason Kelce and Fletcher Cox — the literal backbone of both the offense and defense, respectively — is kind of being glossed over this offseason. Howie Roseman did an outstanding job replacing the two ahead of time by drafting Cam Jurgens and Jordan Davis, but there’s a chance this team starts a little slow as they adjust to all the changes.
Seth Walder, who writes for ESPN Analytics, had a similar take with a more palatable overall outcome for Eagles fans. In his 2024 NFL season simulation, Walder has the Eagles on the playoff bubble after a 6-6 start, before surging down the stretch to win the NFC East division title with an 11-6 record.
But the Eagles’ sim-season takes a surprising turn in the playoffs. Entering as the No. 2 seed in the NFC, the Eagles are upset by the seventh-seeded Chicago Bears, 23-17, in the wild-card round. A home playoff loss to Chicago and a rookie quarterback? That would constitute an all-around failure for head coach Nick Sirianni and Co.
The Eagles did get some love from Pro Football Network, and ex-NFL player Ross Tucker loves their chances in 2024. It might take some time to come together, but all signs point to the Eagles being a problem in the NFC this season.
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