Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

BG Returns

Posted October 21st, 2025 | 4 Comments »

We’ve heard about this for a few days, but it is finally real. Brandon Graham will be returning to the Eagles. The optimist in me is excited because he’s such a fun player to follow and is a position of need. The pessimist is worried due to his age and the fact he hasn’t played or practiced in eight months.

Let’s start by giving credit to some local people.

And now from the man himself.

There isn’t a lot of downside to this decision. If BG can help this team, it will add to his legacy. If he doesn’t do much, it will be a forgettable chapter in a great career. The Eagles need pass rush help so adding a player who knows the system, is healthy/fresh and has the versatility to play both inside and outside makes a lot of sense. They hoped Za’Darius Smith would be that guy, but that didn’t work out.

I would caution you to keep your expectations realistic. In 11 games last year he had 3.5 sacks and 7 QB hits. We all remember how good BG looked in that Rams game, but he wasn’t having a Pro Bowl year. He was a good role player. If BG can come in and be a good role player this season, the move will be a success.

There is an added bonus in having him as a leader on one of the youngest defenses in the league. He’s not going to suddenly turn Kelee Ringo into Eric Allen, but it sure can’t hurt to have him around the young guys. Just don’t let BG comment on Hurts and the offense. He put his foot in his mouth last year and hopefully won’t repeat that.

We’ll find out the timetable for his return to the field. I’m guessing he’ll need a bit of time to get ready. The Eagles play Sunday and then have a bye. It would be great if he was ready for the first game out of the bye.

*****

We didn’t get injury updates on Monday. It would have been good to find out something on Cam Jurgens. The lack of news makes me wonder if he’ll be out a couple of weeks. I haven’t had a chance to study the All-22 from the Vikings game yet so I’m not sure how Brett Toth played. I saw some mistakes, but the offense also had good success in the second half.

Adoree Jackson left the game with an injury. It will be good to find out his status. He’s been erratic this year, but has at least had some good moments. It would be good for Vic Fangio to have the option to start who we wants between him and Ringo.

*****

Detroit beat Tampa last night 24-9. Baker Mayfield might be the frontrunner for MVP right now, with Jared Goff also in the running. Neither QB played well in that game. Tampa lost WR Mike Evans for the season and is now 5-2. The Lions are also 5-2. Their secondary was full of replacements and they actually played well. Kudos to them for that.

The Eagles have the second best record in the NFC. They do have wins over the Rams, Bucs and Vikings. The Packers have the best record at 4-1-1. The Eagles play them after the bye. It is probably a bit early to compare records for playoff seedings, but the Eagles are in pretty good shape with their solid NFC wins. If they can beat the Lions and Packers, they have a good shot at the #1 seed, assuming they don’t mix in some dumb losses.

Seattle beat the Texans in the other MNF game. Sam Darnold looked pretty good, but still had some bad moments. CJ Stroud is just a mess right now, with horrible OL play a big reason for that.

It is funny that two years ago Stroud played well and was a hyped QB. Last year Jayden Daniels was the guy. We’ve seen huge ups and downs from Mayfield and Darnold. Goff puts up great numbers, but hasn’t gotten the Lions to the SB. Joe Burrow can’t stay healthy. Lamar Jackson is hurt and is only 1-3 this season. It makes you appreciate Jalen Hurts.

He put up great numbers against Minnesota, but will have some games where he isn’t as flashy. He just keeps chugging along, playing good, consistent football. He’ll have some great games, but rarely has a true stinker. The Eagles are lucky to have Hurts.

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Good Half, Bad Half

Posted October 20th, 2025 | Comments Off on Good Half, Bad Half

Someone needs to explain to Nick Sirianni and his team that NFL games are four quarters. Beyond that, teams are allowed to play well for all four of those quarters if they want to. Amazingly the Eagles are 5-2 without playing a complete game yet this season. That is both impressive and frustrating.

In the first half the offense scored one TD. They had three 3 & outs. That’s not ideal. The second half was a different story. The offense didn’t punt. They had a pair of TD drives. Another drive ended with a missed FG and the final drive ran out the clock to seal the game. The Eagles defense scored seven points in the first half and allowed only six. That was impressive. The defense didn’t get a stop in the second half, allowing a TD and three FGs. That kept the game closer than it should have been.

I remember thinking to myself at halftime that if that was the good half, the Eagles are going to lose. If that was the bad half, they should win. I didn’t think about the possibility that the offense and defense wouldn’t be synced up. This team doesn’t want things to be boring.

Winning is good and no one would dispute that. But the erratic play is an issue. There are always going to be lulls in games. No team is perfect all game long. You just want to see more consistency from this team within games.

The Eagles still have a tough schedule ahead of them. They have games against the Packers, Lions and Bills. Those aren’t teams that you are likely to beat if you take off half the game. If the Eagles want to have postseason success they absolutely must play more consistently.

I think this team can do that. The defense is one of the youngest in the league. Every game is a chance for them to learn and grow. Jalyx Hunt made a game-changing play in Minnesota with his pick-six. Hunt dropped an INT the week before. Drew Mukuba was better in coverage on Sunday than he’s been in some other games. The defense should improve.

There is also personnel help. They got Nakobe Dean back yesterday. He gives them depth and versatility. Vic Fangio played him and Zack Baun as ILBs and slid Jihaad Campbell out to edge in some looks. Nolan Smith will be back after the bye. The defense really needs his presence as a pass rusher and run defender.

The offense has different issues. That is a veteran group that should be playing at a high level. The OL is struggling with run blocking right now and the Eagles are 28th in rushing yards this season. It might be time to focus on the passing game. The Eagles are 28th in passing attempts. Jalen Hurts played his best game of the season against the Vikings. Turn the offense over to him and start throwing it more.

Kevin Patullo did mix things up schematically. The Eagles went under center and mixed in play-action. That led to DeVonta’s long TD. OT Fred Johnson was used as a TE in some sets. It felt like things were a bit more creative. There is still more work to be done.

Last year the offense ran through Saquon Barkley and the run game. The Eagles have tried to repeat that formula and it just isn’t working. Hopefully Sunday’s performance will get the coaches to realize Hurts and the star receivers are the key to this season.

It will be interesting to see if the Eagles can build off the win in Minnesota. AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith had to be sky high after making so many big plays. Hurts had to feel good about his performance.

The bye week is coming up after the Giants game. The coaches can do a deep dive at that time and try to find even more tweaks to get this team where it needs to be. The good news in all of this is that the Eagles continue to win as they figure things out.

*****

It is mind-blowing that the Eagles are 5-2 and have been out-gained in every game so far. How is that possible?

The Eagles are first in the league in red zone offense.

They are third in the league in red zone defense.

I don’t think that is a sustainable formula for an entire season, but it certainly has worked to this point.

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