Do The Eagles Have The Best Offense In The NFL?

Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Eagles this time last year were faced with uncertainty. There was a new coaching staff, new players, and a big question mark at the quarterback position. The Eagles immediate future looked bleak. Against all odds, Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly fined tuned the offense, found the teams franchise quarterback in Nick Foles, won the division, and led the team to the playoffs. With Chip’s scheme and offensive weapons, the Eagles offense turned into one of the NFL’s best. With all that being said, the team still had holes to fill. So this free agency period has been used to plug these holes and the way it looks now, the Philadelphia Eagles have the best offense in the league.

Last season the team didn’t know who would be the starting quarterback. Michael Vick, the teams former starter won the job from Nick Foles, but was sidelined due to a hamstring injury early on in the season. Enter the former backup, and boom, the team takes off and Foles finished with one of the highest quarterback ratings in league history. Now Foles has turned into one of the leagues best quarterbacks and is still playing on a rookie contract. He is a great leader and has all the tools you want in a franchise quarterback, and will be under center for the Eagles for years to come. Foles still has things he can work on, but he can only get better, which is scary for the rest of the league.

The Eagles have the best running back group in the NFL, hands down. Featuring the leagues best back and 2013-2014 NFL rushing champion, LeSean McCoy. And former New Orleans Saints running back, Darren Sproles, whom the team recently traded a 5th round pick for. With McCoy and Sproles on the field at the same time, it”s nearly impossible for defenses to play Cover 1 like most teams used against the Eagles last season. Sporles makes most of his money catching the ball and is a matchup nightmare for safeties and linebackers. Sheil Kapadia from Phillymag.com explains in detail of Sproles’s attributes. This takes away the ability to stack the box and Shady McCoy can run wild against base defenses. Plus the depth doesn’t stop there, the team still has Bryce Brown, a star in the making, and Chris Polk, a solid role player, to round out the running back core. Defenses now have to game plan against almost all of Philly’s running backs.

With Philadelphia’s running backs being the best group in the NFL, you can argue that the wide receiver and tight end groups are the best in the league as well. The Philadelphia Eagles shocked all of their fans by re-signing both Riley Cooper, and Jeremy Maclin, who have both been a pivotal pieces in the Eagles success. Pair that duo with the team’s pro bowl wide-out DeSean Jackson, and you have a lethal group of players who can each reach 1000 yards receiving easily. The tight end group has the always productive Brent Celek, and a rising star and second year player Zach Ertz, and the “Swiss Army Knife” James Casey. This group can beat linebackers and safeties in the passing game while still being fantastic run blockers. All of the tight ends have versatility and can line up almost anywhere on the field.

The offensive line is the heart of the Eagles offense and is considered the most athletic line in all of football. Are they the best? We’ll have to wait to make that statement, but the team definitely has some of the best players at their positions. Left Tackle Jason Peters is a six time pro bowler and five time all pro. At 32 years of age, Peters still has plenty in the tank and was rewarded with a contract extension that will keep Nick Foles standing up till 2018. Eagles left guard Evan Mathis is the best line men in the game per Football Focus, he’s getting up there in age, but much like Peters, Mathis has more football left in him. Center Jason Kelce, also ranked as one of the best centers in the league, was also given a contract extension that runs through 2021. Right guard Todd Herremans and right tackle Lane Johnson struggled at times early on in the season, but turned it around and helped pave the way for LeSean McCoy and the rest of the offense. The offensive line is a top group in the league and fits perfectly in Chip Kelly’s scheme.

So with every position on the Philadelphia Eagles offense being arguably the best in football, and with the resigning of key players and the trade for Darren Sproles, the team has the weapons to be the best offense in the league. The Denver Broncos may have something to say about that, but an aging Peyton Manning and key pieces leaving the Broncos, the team cannot match what the Eagles have right now. Anything can happen between now and the start of the season and players can under-perform to certain expectations, but the way things stand as of now, the Eagles are primed for a huge season offensively. The offense needs to prove they’re elite, and I have every feeling they will. With these pieces in place, football fans ask the question “Do the Eagles have the best offense in the NFL?”. The answer will more than likely be yes.