Five Keys With Packers-Eagles Two Months Away
GREEN BAY, Wis. – On Sept. 6, the Green Bay Packers will face the Philadelphia Eagles in Brazil to start the 2024 NFL season. The Packers have high expectations entering the season, but so do the Eagles after reaching the Super Bowl a year earlier.
With Packers training camp on the horizon, here are five keys to Week 1 success.
1. Tougher Run Defense?
The Packers’ loss at the Eagles in 2022 was one of the most embarrassing defeats in franchise history. Sure, Jordan Love replaced an injured Aaron Rodgers and showed a glimpse of things to come, but the real story of the game was how the Packers were run over like a dead skunk in the middle of the road.
With quarterback Jalen Hurts and running back Miles Sanders combining for 300, the Eagles rushed for 363 yards. It was the third-worst performance in franchise history and behind only the 375 yards allowed to the Bears over the last 67 years.
The Eagles have a powerhouse offensive line and added former Giants star Saquon Barkley in free agency. They will have a great running game once again.
Can Green Bay’s attack-first, “Navy SEALs” approach to defensive football hold up?
2. Corner Questions
While coach Matt LaFleur might disagree, the Packers have major questions at cornerback.
Assuming Jaire Alexander returns to form, the Packers are set at one cornerback position. But how about the other?
Can Eric Stokes stay healthy and return to his rookie-year form? A first-round pick in 2021, Stokes is on the hot seat after not breaking up a single pass the last two years.
Injuries limited him to 69 coverage snaps last season, a figure reached by 160 cornerbacks league-wide. Stokes ranked 146th in completion percentage allowed and 158th in passer rating allowed, according to Pro Football Focus. He allowed three touchdowns, which was more than any other Packers cornerback.
If Stokes struggles through the preseason, maybe Carrington Valentine will be ready for a breakout Year 2.
Whoever it is, someone needs to step up. Eagles receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith both went over 1,000 yards last year, with Brown ranking among the NFL leaders with 106 receptions for 1,456 yards.
3. Protecting Jordan Love
Last year, the Eagles finished only 24th in sack percentage. In 2022, they were first.
The Eagles have a new defensive coordinator, Vic Fangio. As the coordinator in Miami last year, the Dolphins set a franchise record with 56 sacks. One starting outside linebacker, Josh Sweat, ranked 14th in pressures last year, according to PFF. The other, Bryce Huff, trailed only the Cowboys’ Micah Parsons in PFF’s pass-rushing productivity, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing opportunity. Rookie defensive tackle Jalen Carter had six sacks.
The Packers will have a new right guard following Jon Runyan’s departure in free agency and maybe a new right tackle if Zach Tom isn’t ready following a torn pectoral.
4. Too Many Weapons?
If the Packers can protect Love – he was not sacked in last year’s playoffs – a big-time matchup will be Green Bay’s exceptionally deep group of pass-catching threats vs. the Eagles’ potentially strong secondary.
One cornerback spot will feature 33-year-old Darius Slay. The other could feature first-round pick Quinyon Mitchell. The nickel position could be manned by second-round pick Cooper DeJean.
“I want the challenge,” Mitchell said of Fangio during the mandatory minicamp. “I want him to challenge me and challenge Cooper just to see how much we can take on. I feel like it’s been good. I’ve been getting everything down pat, so I feel good about it.”
The Packers feel good about their potentially powerhouse passing game. Can any team consistently stop Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft?
“I don’t think we ever think of having a No. 1 or No. 2,” Watson said at minicamp. “We all just try to be the best versions of ourselves when we’re out there. I think that we put in the work every day for every single one of us to be able to do everything if our number is called. Our No. 1 goal is just to, regardless of who’s out there, we’re going to be able to get the job done and make plays.”
5. Keisean Nixon vs. Eagles
The new kickoff rules should benefit Nixon, the Packers’ two-time All-Pro returner.
The Eagles jumped from 31st to 10th in Rick Gosselin’s annual special teams rankings. However, the Eagles ranked 31st in kickoff coverage last year with a whopping 28.9 yards allowed per return.
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BILL HUBER
Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packer Central, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.