Can these Philadelphia Eagles sustain Week 4’s success?

Is what we saw from the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 4 sustainable?

The Philadelphia Eagles were finally able to get a much-needed win in Week 4 as they secured their first over the San Francisco 49ers by a score of 25-20. Carson Wentz looked like himself again, somewhat. Doug Pederson was fearless again. Jordan Mailata was bulldozing defensive tackles, and unlikely heroes, Travis Fulgham and Alex Singleton, found their way into the end zone.

This game had its share of ups and downs (as most do with this organization), and though, at times, things looked bleak, Philly fought through and wound up flying back to the ‘City of Brotherly Love’ as winners. We’ve now seen improvement and much has been accomplished. There are signs of life, but a dark cloud still seems to be hovering over this team as one of the biggest questions is this. Is the success the Eagles saw on Sunday sustainable?

No one is taking anything away from a hard-fought and well-deserved victory, but it’s hard to ignore that the 49ers were just as banged up as the Eagles. Could that be a big reason for the victory? It’s also hard to ignore that Philly may not be healthier in Week 5, especially on offense.

Injuries may keep the Philadelphia Eagles from being a true contender.

Here is a list of Eagles that weren’t available to them for Sunday night’s showdown, not including the retired Jatavis Brown and Marquise Goodwin, who opted out due to COVID-19 concerns before the season even began.

Among the Eagles that are still unavailable (Eagles that we thought might play a role in the team’s success) are (inhale) Alshon Jeffery, Andre Dillard, Avonte Maddox, Brandon Brooks, Craig James, Daeshon Hall, Dallas Goedert, Desean Jackson, Isaac Seumalo, Jalen Reagor, Jason Peters, JJ Arcega-Whiteside, Joshua Perkins, Quez Watkins, Trevor Williams, Vinny Curry, and Will Parks. Oh, and now as of Monday, you can add TJ Edwards and Rudy Ford to the list as well (exhale).

Much of the Eagles’ fanbase has called for a changing of the current medical staff, something that this team has seemingly done annually. This team doesn’t need a medical staff or a change. They need their own hospital ward, and they need to stop acquiring so many older players. There needs to be a youth movement as the retreads need to go.

With all these players missing in action, the question must be asked. At what point do the injuries become too much for this team to overcome? Yes, the ‘Birds’ were banged up and battered last year (and seemingly every year since 2017), but they were still able to secure the NFC East’s crown.

No one expected this amount of carnage this early, but here we are. The Eagles are going into this week, with eight more players currently injured than the total number of players they had injured last year. Philly is at a point where they can build upon the success they had in Week 4, but if they’re thinking about long-term plans for this season, it starts with getting their players healthy.

Only two other NFL teams have more players injured than the Philadelphia Eagles, and in Week 5, the ‘Birds’ battle the league’s healthiest team, the Pittsburgh Steelers. The ‘Black and Gold’ had an impromptu bye week this past Sunday. Not only are they fully healthy coming into Week 5, but they’re also rested.

Philly will need to depend upon their rookies, practice squad heroes, and unknowns. They’ll need master chef Doug Pederson to cook up one heck of a game plan. Otherwise, the Steelers have everything necessary to hang another loss on the ‘Birds’ and make Week 4’s win a distant memory.