3 burning questions for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023
The Philadelphia Eagles enter the season as one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl in 2023. Let’s look at some burning questions this team still has. Just because the Eagles look equipped to run it back from 2022, doesn’t mean they don’t have a few questions left to answer.
They lost both of their coordinators to head coaching jobs, and there have been a plethora of examples in history of teams who made the Super Bowl one year, only to crash and burn the next year. The Eagles do have a rather easy path to make it back to the big game, as the NFC simply isn’t super competitive.
Will the newly-extended Jalen Hurts and Nick Sirianni be able to do enough to help propel their squad back to the big game in 2023?
3 burning questions for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023
Will the Eagles beat the Super Bowl hangover?
Perhaps no team fell more into the Super Bowl hangover than the Los Angeles Rams in 2022. They were Super Bowl champions in 2021, taking down the Cincinnati Bengals, but between injuries and a bit of roster movement, they looked like a completely different team.
The Denver Broncos still haven’t made the playoffs since winning the Super Bowl back in 2015. The Super Bowl curse is real and the Philadelphia Eagles could be another team to fall victim to it. They are returning virtually of their starters from last year, so perhaps the curse won’t hit them.
Will losing both coordinators have an impact?
The Philadelphia Eagles lost both Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon to head coaching jobs this year. Seeing one team lose both of their coordinators like this feels a bit unprecedented. Will that have a huge impact on the performance of the team? Many Eagles fans didn’t seem to be too high on Gannon, and I kind of understand where they come from.
However, Shane Steichen’s work with Jalen Hurts is objectively excellent, and losing him might prove to be a bit costly. It’s not like Hurts was that prolific of a passer in 2022. He was efficient, but not deadly through the air. I would not be surprised to see the offense take a small step back, but I do think both sides of the ball have enough veteran players to ensure the loss of both coordinator doesn’t impact them that much.
This Eagles’ team does feel different than other Super Bowl participants.
Did Jalen Hurts reach his ceiling in 2022?
Can we see Jalen Hurts get better, or was his 2022 season his true ceiling? Last year, Hurts threw for 3,701 yards in 15 games for 22 touchdowns, six interceptions, a 101.5 rating, and also added 760 yards and 13 touchdowns. All in all, he was responsible for nearly 4,500 yards of offense, 35 touchdowns and just six picks.
Is that his ceiling, though? Hurts did and does have an amazing supporting cast around him, so there’s reason to think he can be even better, but there was a reason why he was only a second round pick. That obviously isn’t a bad thing but he was nowhere near considered the be the prospect that other QBs were during the 2020 NFL Draft season.
He’s also a bit small for the position, so I just think there could be some factors with Hurts that might prevent him from getting better. His 2022 performance would likely be enough to help bring a Super Bowl back to the team, so I don’t think this is a dire situation.