Three keys to Eagles meeting lofty expectations; why Ravens’ historic preseason

2) Is Nick Sirianni an elite head coach?

The second-year coach deserves his flowers for revamping the team’s offensive approach on the fly a season ago. Sirianni found a way to mix in some collegiate concepts to help his young quarterback and skill players flourish down the stretch.

Although game-to-game and midseason adjustments are part of the job, the tweaks made by the former offensive coordinator speak to his adaptability, creativity and vision as an architect. In addition, Sirianni’s willingness to make a sudden change demonstrates his courage and confidence as a leader.

Heading into his sophomore season, the coach will have a new set of challenges as he tries to help the team navigate a season loaded with expectations. Sirianni must walk a fine line between building up his team’s confidence and eliminating some of the bad habits that frequently result in losses. From a reduction in turnovers to the elimination of pre-snap penalties that kill drives, he must encourage his group to pay close attention to the details that will increase their odds of winning.

Considering how many games are lost through self-inflicted miscues and blunders, Sirianni’s ability to keep his team focused could be the difference between a good or great season in Philadelphia.

3) Will Jonathan Gannon’s defense round into form in Year 2?

For the Eagles to win the NFC East, the defense will need to play like a top unit from beginning to end. Gannon interviewed for multiple head-coaching vacancies this offseason, but he needs to show the football world that he can build a dominant defense with a collection of five-star talents.

Reddick, Davis, Fletcher Cox, Javon Hargrave, Josh Sweat and Brandon Graham are part of a formidable unit at the line of scrimmage, but Gannon must decide if he will utilize a read-and-react approach or an attack the gaps plan to create more disruption in the backfield. After taking a conservative approach a season ago, the Eagles’ defensive architect must build a plan that plays to the strengths of his players. Whether the defense blitzes more or sits back in traditional zones with four-man rushes, Gannon must get better performance and production from a unit that failed to slow down top quarterbacks in 2021. Tom Brady, Derek Carr, Justin Herbert, Patrick Mahomes and Dak Prescott posted an 82.1 percent completion rate, a 21:3 TD-to-INT ratio and nearly nine yards per attempt in seven games versus Philadelphia last season (including the playoffs).

With the team adding more speed, quickness and explosiveness to the second level with Dean and Kyzir White coming on board, the Eagles have the personnel to play a variety of ways based on matchups. But they must be disruptive to keep opponents from driving the length of the field on a flurry of quick passes or deep throws over the top.

While pairing James Bradberry with Darius Slay at cornerback should enable to defense to fare better against top aerial attacks, the combination of pressure and coverage from Gannon’s direction will ultimately play a massive role in determining how far the Eagles go in the upcoming season.