The Philadelphia Eagles are rolling into their Week 5 London matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars as big underdogs, and honestly, you can see why. Their offense is straight-up decimated right now with Saquon Barkley, DeVonta Smith, and Drew Kendall all out for the game. Plus, Lane Johnson retired and Cam Jurgens got traded, so the depth is just GONE. Even with Quinyon Mitchell and Zack Baun back on defense, the vibe is tough. But don’t count them out just yet, because one crazy stat from ESPN Research hints at a way the Eagles might just pull off the upset.
Their Deep Ball D Is The REAL Deal
Despite all the early-season struggles, there’s one thing the Eagles’ defense has been absolutely stellar at: shutting down the deep pass. Seriously, it’s wild. ESPN Research dropped the bomb that the “Eagles have allowed the second-lowest QBR on deep passes (20-plus air yards) this season.” Let that sink in. Opponents have only completed a shocking 27% of their deep throws against Philly, and get this: zero touchdowns and two interceptions. For a team that’s had its fair share of issues, being this good at something so critical is a massive upside.
Trevor Lawrence and Co. Are In For A Fight
So, why does that stat matter so much this week? Because the Jacksonville Jaguars are bringing an explosive passing attack to London, led by none other than Trevor Lawrence. He’s got some serious weapons in Brian Thomas Jr., Jakobi Meyers, and Parker Washington. If the Eagles can maintain their incredible ability to limit those big, downfield shots, it could be the key to keeping this game tight. Cooper DeJean, Riq Woolen, and Mitchell are going to have their hands full, no doubt, but they’ve shown they can get it done this season. If the Eagles’ run defense can also contain Bhayshul Tuten and the Jaguars’ running backs, then this pass defense strength becomes even more crucial.
Look, their offense is gonna need to figure it out, big time, if they want any shot against this very good Jaguars team. But if the defense keeps locking down the deep ball like they did against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 4, this struggling Eagles team could absolutely hang around into the fourth quarter. It’s Week 5, and anything can happen when you take away a team’s biggest weapon. You gotta look forward to seeing if Philly can rise to the challenge and make some noise across the pond!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
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