If the Eagles are going to beat the Arizona Cardinals and remain the NFL’s only unbeaten team, chances are they’ll have to do it with a fast start.
That has been the Eagles’ M.O. through their first four games. They have outscored their opponents 92-35 in the first half this season. The discrepancy is even larger in the second quarter as they have outscored opponents 85-14.
The Eagles have only scored 23 points in the second half. Some of that is because the Eagles have had leads of at least 15 points in the second half of each game.
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“We talked a lot about our identity as a football team and what we’re continuing to build,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. “One thing we talk about is physicality, and that was kind of like our identity last year. We really felt like we’re mean, we’re tough, we’re nasty, we’re physical.”
That’s sort of the opposite of Sirianni’s flower-pot analogy from last season.
The Eagles will look to do that again against the Cardinals in Glendale, Arizona. The Eagles have lost all five of their games at State Farm Stadium since the building opened. Then again, the Cardinals have lost 7 straight home games dating back to last October. Something has to give.
Spreading it around
So far through the first quarter, three different receivers have at least two catches. A.J. Brown caught 3 passes for 32 yards on the first drive and DeVonta Smith had 2 catches for 42 yards on the third drive. In between, tight end Dallas Goedert has 5 catches for 37 yards.
The Eagles grabbed a 14-0 lead on Jalen Hurts’ 1-yard run early in the second quarter.
Hurts is 11-for-15 for 118 yards passing, and has 36 yards and 2 TDs rushing.
Another O-lineman injured
The Eagles were already shorthanded on the offensive line with left tackle Jordan Mailata, downgraded from doubtful to out on Sunday.
Then left guard Landon Dickerson left with a leg injury on the Eagles’ first drive. He was replaced by Sua Opeta, who last week replaced Isaac Seumalo at right guard. Seumalo started Sunday.
In addition, cornerback Avonte Maddox and kicker Jake Elliott were among those not on the game-day roster. Mailata has a shoulder injury and is being replaced by Jack Driscoll, who’s starting for the first time in the NFL at left tackle. Maddox is missing his second straight game with an ankle injury. Josiah Scott is starting for the second straight game at the Maddox’s nickel pot.
And Elliott is sitting out with an ankle injury after getting hit there on a field-goal attempt last Sunday. His replacement is Cameron Dicker, who was elevated from the practice squad Saturday. Dicker has never kicked in an NFL game.
In addition, LB Patrick Johnson (concussion) and RB Boston Scott (ribs) are also sitting out. Scott was listed as questionable on Friday’s injury report. RB Trey Sermon will replace Scott on the game-day roster.
The other players sitting out are QB Ian Book and DE Janarius Robinson.
3 things to watch
- Reunion tour continues: For the fourth straight week, the Eagles will face either a former player or coach in Cardinals tight end Zach Ertz. This comes after head coach Doug Pederson last week with the Jaguars, Carson Wentz with the Commanders and Jalen Reagor with the Vikings. Ertz is second in Eagles’ history in receptions, behind only Harold Carmichael. The Eagles traded Ertz last October, in part to allow Dallas Goedert to thrive, which he has. Ertz is off to a good start with 22 catches for 181 yards. Goedert has 16 catches for 240 yards.
- Dicker the kicker: The irony wasn’t lost on Cameron Dicker. Back in 2017, Jake Elliott was promoted from the practice squad early in the season after starter Caleb Sturgis was injured. In Elliott’s second game, he hit a 61-yard field goal as time expired to beat the Giants, a key win during the Eagles’ Super Bowl season. Dicker got his practice-squad “elevation” for the game Sunday because Elliott has an ankle injury. Dicker has never kicked in an NFL regular-season game before.
- Will defensive player streak hit 4? The Eagles are the first team in 22 years to have a player win the NFC’s Defensive Player of the Week award in three straight games. The Eagles’ winners are Darius Slay, Brandon Graham and Haason Reddick last week. It might take a similar award-winning game to stop Cardinals QB Kyler Murray. A big part of that is because the Eagles are tied for the NFL lead with 16 sacks, and in takeaways with 10.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
