Eagles Face Stern Tests from QBs Ranked in the Top 15
The Philadelphia Eagles have faced their share of tomato cans masquerading as quarterbacks through the years.
You may be familiar with the murder’s row incapable of killing any team softly, though mostly not at all.
The New York Giants tried to beat them the last few years with the likes of Davis Webb, Mike Glennon, and Jake Fromm and the New Orleans Saints tried some concoction of Taysom Hill and Trevor Siemian a couple of years back.
Even the Dallas Cowboys once called Ben DiNucci a professional backup until the Eagles helped run him out of the league and into the XFL. Cooper Rush was a nice story when he came to town last year but wilted terribly in the pressurized heat of South Philly.
And who could forget Gilbert Grape…er…Garrett Gilbert?
So bad have some of the quarterbacks who the Eagles have beaten that it’s easy to forget they decked some good ones, too.
Last year, they bested the Green Bay Packers, who were still led by Aaron Rodgers, they dealt Kyler Murray a loss in Arizona before he tore his ACL, and they took out the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence early in the season.
Barring injury, the Eagles will face some of the top-ranked passers in the game in 2023.
Of course, they won’t have to beat Jalen Hurts because, well, you know why. The Eagles quarterbacl is ranked in most of the respectable rankings as a top 10 quarterback.
CBS Sports had him third on its recent list, though he could do no better than seventh in Pro Football Focus’ rankings.
The strength of quarterbacks gets better as the season goes along.
As it is, the Eagles’ first five games will be against passers outside the top 10, per CBS Sports.
It starts with the New England Patriots’ Mac Jones, who is ranked 29th.
After a Thursday night home-opening visit from the Minnesota Vikings and 11th-ranked Kirk Cousins, who the Eagles intercepted three times in a Week 2 win last year, Philly’s defense will face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Baker Mayfield (No. 30), the Washington Commanders’ Sam Howell (No. 32), and the Los Angeles Rams’ Matthew Stafford (No. 18).
Things really heat up during a four-week stretch midseason when they play the Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott (No. 9), the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes (No. 1), and the Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen (No. 4).
After a visit from the San Francisco 49ers and Brock Purdy (No. 12), assuming he is the quarterback on Dec. 3, it’s Prescott again.
That's followed by a trip to Seattle to face the Seahawks’ Geno Smith (No. 14), then two games against the New York Giants Daniel Jones (No. 15) sandwiched around the Cardinals and Murray (No. 20).
Add it up and that’s 10 of the Eagles’ 17 games against quarterbacks in CBS Sports’ preseason top-15 rankings.
Ed Kracz covers the Philadelphia Eagles for SI's EaglesToday.
Please follow him and our Eagles coverage on Twitter at @kracze.
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