Acclimation Or Changeup? Early Bird Eagles Need Something New In Tampa

PHILADELPHIA - The Eagles are leaving for Tampa a day earlier than usual to acclimate to the heat and humidity inland from the Gulf Coast of Florida, an environment set to reach near 90 degrees with the signature Bay Area stickiness for the Week 4 matchup between Philadelphia and the Buccaneers, two 3-0 teams.

The Eagles will have their normal weekly schedule until after practice on Friday, and then it will be wheels up for Tampa Bay that evening.

The team's Saturday walkthrough, usually held at the NovaCare Complex in South Philadelphia, will take place in Florida, giving the players an extra day to get used to the heat.

In reality, the different approach may be a changeup related to the Eagles' recent struggles at Raymond James Stadium, including Week 4 of last season when Philadelphia fell behind 24-0 midway through the second quarter en route to an ugly 33-16 setback.

The context for that is that the Eagles were without offensive stars A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Lane Johnson in that game.

Something New In Tampa

Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles looks on before a game at Raymond James Stadium. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

"Well, it is too late to do anything right now for [the heat] as far as prepping for it," defensive coordinator Vic Fangio admitted. "You don't practice in heat one day and say you're acclimated, or take a pill and say you're acclimated. The key will be, I mean, it's a mindset, number one. Number two, we need to not let them have 8-, 10-, 12-play drives on us."

Pressed if he believed leaving early would be a benefit, Fangio bandied back, "I don't know."

The poor performance against the Bucs last season was the catalyst for change, with the Eagles coming out of the ensuing bye week after the Tampa game by shifting to a more run-heavy approach, and leaning on the NFL's best offensive line and All-Pro running back Saquon Barkley.

The idea was a success with the Eagles winning 16 of their final 17 games, including Super Bowl LIX over Kansas City.

The loss to the Bucs last season was also the last time Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts came out on the losing end of a game he started and finished, since winning 17 consecutive games, including this season's 3-0 start.

Defensive-minded Bucs coach Todd Bowles has had the Eagles' number in recent seasons, and Nick Sirianni's 1-4 coaching record against the Buccaneers is his only losing ledger against a team the Eagles coach has faced more than once.

"Todd's an awesome coach," offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo said. "I worked for him for two years in New York. Unbelievable coach, and he's done it for a really, really long time."

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