Power Rankings Roundup: The National Media finally bends the knee to the Philadelphia Eagles
Last night’s performance by the Philadelphia Eagles against the Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football was incredible and finally, it looks like the national media is starting to take notice of what’s brewing here in Philadelphia.
As we all know, Power Rankings are absolutely useless. However, in the case with the Philadelphia Eagles, the long list of doubters on both the national and local stage has been plentiful.
After Jalen Hurts completed 26-of-31 passes and totaled 390 yards with three touchdowns and a ridiculous 108.7 passer rating, the word is now out that the Philadelphia Eagles are the team to beat in the NFC. Here’s a full list about what the national media is saying after last night’s win.
Philadelphia Eagles Power Rankings
NFL.com
- Last week: 10
- This week: 3
“The Eagles have hit the ground running. Nick Sirianni’s team dominated on both sides of the ball in a 24-7 win over the Vikings at raucous Lincoln Financial Field. Jalen Hurts again looked the part of a star on the rise, throwing for 333 yards while accounting for three total touchdowns. The star of the other side of the ball was cornerback Darius Slay, who will continue to intercept passes in Kirk Cousins’ nightmares for the next several evenings. The Eagles are a team without an obvious weakness right now — and upcoming matchups against the Commanders and Jaguars seems like a recipe for more good times.”
USA Today
- Last week: 6
- This week: 3 (+3)
“QB Jalen Hurts’ dark horse MVP candidacy is already fading … as he’s becoming an increasingly lighter horse.”
ESPN
- Last week: 9
- This week: 8 (+1)
“The Eagles were gashed for 35 points in the season opener against Detroit, in part because defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon had his defensive backs playing soft in coverage at times and didn’t make Jared Goff uncomfortable in the pocket. On Monday night against the Vikings, he flipped the script. The corners gave Minnesota’s receivers little room to operate, making life difficult for quarterback Kirk Cousins, who threw multiple interceptions and faced a number of creative blitzes. Gannon must keep his foot on the gas.”
Sports Illustrated
- Last week: 10
- This week: 9 (+1)
“The thought was always that if Jalen Hurts didn’t peak a year ago, the sky would be the limit for this roster. Well, Monday night’s stomping of the Vikings leads us to believe the Eagles might be in for some late January football this year.”
The Athletic
- Last week: 6
- This week: 3 (+3)
“Let’s overreact. Jalen Hurts played what might have been the best game of his young career in prime time. One week after carving up the Lions with his legs against a blitz- and man-heavy game plan, he did the same to the Vikings thanks to precision passing and the well-timed designed run. A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert form one of the league’s best trio of offensive weapons, and the offensive line is arguably the best in football. And all of a sudden, the defense is part of the party, too. By EPA per drive, the Eagles’ defense had the fifth-best performance of the young season and the third-best of Jonathan Gannon’s young career as a defensive coordinator.
“With the second-easiest schedule in the league, according to preseason projected win totals, the Eagles have what looks like a realistic path to a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the NFC.”
Walter Football
- Last week: 6
- This week: 4 (+2)
“I’m obviously more confident in my Bills-Eagles Super Bowl prediction. Jalen Hurts has taken a huge step and should be considered the early front-runner for MVP.”
Sporting News
- Last week: 6
- This week: 4 (+2)
“The Eagles have enjoyed a dazzling offensive start, too, led by Jalen Hurts and A.J. Brown. They are the clear favorites to run away with the NFC East and shoring up a few more things on defense means they will be a factor in the bigger playoff picture of the conference title chase.”
Power Rankings are great, especially when your team is moving in the right direction. However, at the end of the day, they are definitely still useless.
Last night was one hell of a win and quite the party in South Philadelphia but it’s only the second week of the season. Let’s handle business in D.C. next week and keep things rolling. I want consistency.
Go Birds.
