Anthony DiBona
“I can feel it coming in the air tonight, oh Lord
And I’ve been waiting for this moment for all my life, Oh Lord
Can you feel it coming in the air tonight, oh Lord, oh Lord”
– “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins
We all know that song and the nervous feeling we get when the NFL season is about to begin. The first game of the regular season for the Philadelphia Eagles is almost here and yes, you’ll be able to feel it in the air on Monday night. Eagles head coach Chip Kelly will finally be able to put all of his shiny new toys on display against the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome on national television.
This entire offseason has been a roller coaster ride for the Eagles and their fans. At first, nobody knew what in the world Kelly was thinking but now it appears as though all of the pieces are falling into place. Everyone is excited to see the Birds finally take the field on Monday night so let’s get right into your game preview for the Eagles vs. Falcons game!
Three Storylines to Watch For
1) Sam Bradford needs to stay upright
While the Falcons struggled to rush the passer this past season, they’ve added some new weapons this offseason. With a new defensive minded head coach in Dan Quinn, they’ll certainly be trying to rattle Sam Bradford throughout the night. Atlanta’s first round pick, outside linebacker Vic Beasley Jr. is a dangerous pass rusher that the Eagles will certainly have to focus on stopping. Jason Peters and Lane Johnson should be able to keep Bradford clean for the majority of Monday night. But pressure through the interior of the offensive line will be a major concern with players such as Ra’Shede Hageman attacking the middle for the Falcons.
2) What’s the plan at slot cornerback?
Considering the Falcons won’t likely have much success running the ball, look for them to use three wide receivers for most of the night. Everyone knows that Julio Jones and Roddy White form one of the best wide receiver duos in the NFL, but let’s not forget about their teammates. The Falcons have several options at slot wide receiver that could give the Eagles fits since they’re unsettled at slot cornerback.
Two of the Falcons offseason additions at wide receiver actually really scare me. Signing Leonard Hankerson as a free agent and drafting Justin Hardy in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft were two sneaky additions that could pay off big time. Hankerson is a size/speed freak while Hardy is a crisp route runner that killed his competition in college from the slot. Depending on who lines up in the slot, it will be interesting to see how the Eagles match-up with them.
3) Who will emerge as the Eagles go-to players?
Everyone knows that Sam Bradford will be running the show for Kelly’s uptempo offense. But who will emerge as the go-to players in this year’s offense? DeMarco Murray and Jordan Matthews seem like the obvious choices at running back and wide receiver but it may not be that easy. Bradford has shown he likes to spread the ball around, as would Kelly in his offense.
Philadelphia’s offense certainly has no shortage of weapons on offense. They have three running backs that would likely start or be key offensive players on every other NFL team and a young stable of wide receivers with varying skill-sets. During training camp, Bradford seemed to click with second-year wide receiver Josh Huff but the duo failed to really show anything on the field during game action. Maybe that will change on Monday night.
Key Matchup to Watch For
Byron Maxwell vs. Julio Jones
There may not be a more important matchup on Monday night than this one. The Eagles went out and signed cornerback Byron Maxwell for a game just like this one. Julio Jones is widely recognized as one of the NFL’s best wide receivers and it’ll be up to Maxwell to shut him down. We all know too well how a single star wide receiver can destroy a team’s defense, just look at what Dez Bryant did to the Eagles last season.
Eagles defensive coordinator Bill Davis has hinted earlier in the offseason that the team would use Maxwell to “shadow” another team’s best wide receiver. That could certainly be the case on Monday night as Jones could line-up all over the field and it would be tough to try and have someone else cover Jones besides Maxwell. Hopefully Davis decides to give “B-Max” an opportunity to prove his worth by attempting to shut down one of the NFL’s best wide receivers to open the season.
Better’s Odds
According to Bovada, the Eagles are the favorites over the Falcons heading into Monday night. Although it’s just a slight edge at just -3, which is usually standard for a home team but the Eagles get that edge on the road this week. The over/under is set at 55 1/2 points, which is actually the highest mark of any Week 1 games.
My Prediction
It looks like we might have ourselves a good ‘ol fashion shootout on Monday Night Football to open the regular season. Although the Eagles may struggle to stop Julio Jones, I believe the Eagles will shutdown the Falcons on the ground and limit the rest of their receivers. Ultimately the Eagles leave the dirty south with a 34-30 victory and it’ll come down to a clutch defensive stop on fourth and long. Sam Bradford will be the game’s MVP as he tears apart the Falcons’ secondary for 375 passing yards and 3 touchdowns while also completing 70% of his passes.
That’s all for my Eagles vs. Falcons preview, be sure to check back here at PhillyInfluencer.com for all of the latest news regarding your beloved Birds and everything else happening in Philadelphia!