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What to watch for in Falcons-Eagles Kickoff Game... From, NFL.com

Football is back ... finally! The defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles kick off the 2018 season Thursday night when the Atlanta Falcons roll into The Linc. Will Julio Jones and Co. be able to avenge their divisional round loss, or will Philly continue its charmed life without Carson Wentz under center? Jeremy Bergman breaks down five things to watch.

1. Which Nick Foles are we getting Thursday night?

The Eagles declined to trade their Super Bowl MVP for anything less than a first-round pick this offseason for exactly a scenario like this. After months of recovery from last year's season-ending knee injury, Carson Wentz still isn't ready for contact, in practice or in a game, and will not start the season opener. Doctors are recommending Philly play it safe with its franchise quarterback. A roster built to not only defend its Super Bowl title this season, but for years to come is without its most important piece, for who knows how long.

Enter Foles -- though he never really left in the first place.

The man who brought Philly its first Super Bowl title is assured a hero's welcome when the Eagles take the field Thursday night. But he'll receive no such pleasantries from the Falcons, who he knocked out in the divisional round last year and who are looking for revenge.

Foles started slow in that game, his first playoff start since 2014, but caught fire in the second half. All told, the QB completed 77 percent of his passes on the night and secured the victory by playing smart and safe. Of his 23 completions, only three traveled over 10 air yards (13 percent). Foles' play in the win over the Falcons was far less aggressive than that in the Super Bowl. Against the Patriots, Foles attempted five passes of 25-plus air yards, completing two for touchdowns, and six of his 28 completions traveled over 10 air yards (21 percent).

Given Foles' nationally televised struggles in the preseason and the injuries to his skill position players (more on that soon), it's fair to wonder which Foles we will see on Thursday night -- and going forward. The aggressive field-pusher who seized a Lombardi or the turnover-prone journeyman who took a safety against Cleveland in August?

2. Can the Falcons backs bounce back against the Eagles' front seven?

Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman are arguably the league's most feared tailback tandem; folks in New Orleans would care to disagree. But the last time we saw them, Freeman was wholly ineffective against the Eagles' league-leading rushing defense (10 rushes for seven yards). Nearly eight months to the day since their last meeting, will Atlanta suffer similar struggles on the ground against a Philly front that improved over the offseason? Perhaps not. The Falcons have caught a break by playing the Eagles so early in the season. Tim Jernigan is on NFI; Michael Bennett is dealing with a knee injury; and Nigel Bradham is banned for the first game of the season. That doesn't mean Derek Barnett, Fletcher Cox, Haloti Ngata, Brandon Graham and Chris Long won't be any less effective. But the potential absences on Philly's front line could open up holes for an Atlanta two-headed ground attack and lessen the load on Matt Ryan. Speaking of...

3. What does Year 2 of the Steve Sarkisian experience look like?

Matt Ryan got paid this summer, but will the investment pay off for Atlanta? Ryan inked a five-year, $150 million deal in the offseason to stay with the Falcons for the long haul, two years removed from his MVP (and almost Super Bowl MVP) campaign. But ever since Super Bowl LI, Atlanta's offense and Ryan's production have not been the same. In order: Kyle Shanahan left for the 49ers head coaching gig after the 28-3 debacle; former USC head coach Steve Sarkisian replaced him as Falcons OC; Atlanta's once-league-leading offense took notable statistical dips in 2017, especially in red-zone efficiency. Ryan's passer rating dropped over 25 points. The QB threw 18 fewer touchdowns and averaged 1.6 fewer yards per attempt. Most importantly, Ryan's connection to All-Pro receiver Julio Jones suffered; the usually hyperproductive Jones averaged one TD per every 49.3 targets in 2017. No play was more emblematic of the offense's struggles in 2017 than its final play of the season, a failed fourth-down fade to Jones in, yep, the divisional round loss in Philadelphia. Back at the scene of the crime, we'll learn Thursday evening for the first time what has changed in Year 2 of Sark in Atlanta. Will Calvin Ridley's addition open up opportunities for Jones and Mohamed Sanu? Will Sark play Freeman and Coleman at the same time more often? Was last year's regression to the mean a fluke or a sign of things to come?

4. Can the Eagles overcome skill-position injuries?

The Eagles will be short-handed (-winged?) on Thursday night, especially on the offensive side of the ball. As mentioned before, Wentz is out, but so are two of Philly's top targets from last season. Alshon Jeffery is set to miss at least Philly's season opener with a shoulder ailment that has bothered him all preseason and landed him on PUP for a month, and Mack Hollins is out with a groin injury. Then there are the Eagles with question marks. Workhorse-to-be Jay Ajayi is likely good to go, but was limited this week with a foot issue; Nelson Agholor hasn't played all preseason; and Markus Wheaton (!) was just signed to the active roster. All this points to big nights for Zach Ertz and rookie tight end Dallas Goedert, both of whom are off the injury report, and the former was Foles' most targeted receiver down the stretch last year (47 targets, 35 receptions since Week 15, 2017).

5. Can Atlanta's young front seven breach Philadelphia's offensive line?

Over the last few seasons, Atlanta has undergone a youth movement in the front seven. Out went Dontari Poe, Adrian Clayborn and Courtney Upshaw on the defensive line this offseason, replaced in their starting roles by Vic Beasley, Takk McKinley and Grady Jarrett, their average age hovering just over 24 years old. The Falcons' oldest starting linebacker is 25-year-old De'Vondre Cambell. The oldest man on the front seven is the newest -- Terrell McClain, a geezer at 30. In Atlanta's divisional round loss to Philly, Foles was sacked just once and it was in the first quarter. The Falcons' young edge rushers will need to hit Foles quicker and more often, but will be tested against arguably the league's most complementary and fundamentally sound offensive line. (NFL.com)

 

That's what I'm thinking too....that's why I drafted him in the last round of my work fantasy league

 

Why would Dallas want a 10M per year 30yr old safety who is breaking down physically? Sounds like a poor plan to me.

 

And he's never been to jail so what could he possibly have to discuss with his would-be teammates in Dallas?

 

Nike has a new commercial that will debut during tonight's Eagles-Falcons game. It features Colin Kaepernick talking about Serena Williams.

I've already seen it. It's actually very well done, but the reaction it gets is going to be interesting.

 

Good thing most rednecks don't own a tennis racquet or they'd be burning them somewhere.

 

This wasn't necessary.

 

If someone had a Nike tennis racket it would probably be worth millions.

 

No, but it's funny.

 

Tennis shoes then?

 

I mentioned in the season preview (shameless plug: https://live4sportnetwork.com/atlanta-falcons-2018-preview-with-torgo/ ) that having an experienced QB coach will help this year. Sarkisian will be calling the plays from the sideline. QB coach Greg Knapp will be the "eye in the sky" upstairs in the box, reading the defenses and helping Sark with the in-game adjustments. That will free up Sark to focus on calling the plays.


The other question from the Atlanta side is whether the Falcons really are ready to take on a top level opponent. The guys who will be on the field played very few snaps in preseason. Will Matt Ryan have the timing down with Julio, Sanu and Ridley? It's an impressive trio of receivers, but they had a grand total of 16 targets in preseason - and nearly half of those were thrown by backup QB Matt Schaub to the rookie Ridley. Julio didn't play in preseason at all. Neither did Devonta Freeman. MLB Deion Jones played 3 snaps. Two other defensive starters sat out the third game. Nearly all the starters on both sides of the ball played just one series in the opener (which turned out to be 3-and-out for both units), and the coaching staff kept virtually the entire roster out of the final game.

So the ability of the line to play in tandem (critical for Atlanta's outside zone scheme), Ryan's timing with his receivers, the communications in the zone defense, and the game readiness of Julio, Freeman, Deion Jones, Rico Allen and several others are all in question.

If the Falcons actually do look good in this game, it will be Exhibit A for cutting back preseason to three or even two games.

But it's far more likely that the lack of preparation will show up. They may end up rethinking how they approach the preseason.

 

I didn't see yours yet. I'll have a look at it when I get a chance. I saw the Steelers and Ravens ones and obviously mymy o up yesterday

 

Excellent points. The Falcons certainly took a bold and different approach to the Preseason... none of the starters hardly touched the ball. This could be a huge blessing and everyone will copy-cat or a major mistake.

Im leaning towards a good blessing to give the starters time of the field during preseason. I think they will be prepared because of practice more than going through the motions of meaningless football.

They just might surprise the Eagles in the fact that they (starters) will be fresh and chomping at the bit. Anyway, its going to be interesting to watch unfold and is one of the more interesting storylines of the game. Seems like they scored zero points on offense this preseason.

If the Falcons can score quickly it would be a huge boost for their confidence, but if the Eagles D shuts them down the first couple series it could mean a looooong night for the Falcons.

Cant wait to see tonights; 'Battle of the Birds' !

 

it will be a raucous crowd at the Linc for sure. I think they are unveiling the SB Banner too. Rumor on FB among my Philly buddies is there are people in the parking lots NOW. That makes for a ton of drunken fools come 8:30pm ! If Pederson was smart, he wouldn't try and go crazy with the offense. keep it simple and easy.

 

Easy for you to say.

 

Easy to say but speech to text had a stroke.

 

Breaking a leg on a collision with a teammate is "breaking down"...?

Dallas' d-line and LBs look as strong as they have in years (decades?), and CBs look promising. Safety looks to be an area that could use upgrading. If not for a broken leg, we're talking about a safety making 7 consecutive pro bowls.

 

It finally posted this morning. Close call with the game coming tonight.

I've read all of them up to this point. Great stuff by everyone.

 

Don't know if there's a Bears season preview forthcoming. If not, I'll give the abridged version:

Hoping Nagy and Trubisky are the real deal. Yay, Khalil Mack! Go Defense! No injuries! Boo, Packers. Boo, Vikings. Boo, Lions.

- Bears, 2018.

 

See, there's a lot to be said for the Cliff's Notes version.