Everyone has been so fixated on the Jalen Hurts-Sean Mannion aspect of the Philadelphia Eagles offense in 2026, but what about the playmakers?
ESPN NFL writer Bill Barnwell took a look at each of the league's playmakers and ranked them. The Eagles were ranked first in 2025 and second in 2024, but this time around, they took a big hit, dropping to ninth. A major reason is that A.J. Brown was traded away, and Philly has to replace him with multiple players.
"The Eagles' coming cap concerns on defense have forced them to try to replace Brown's production in the aggregate, and while GM Howie Roseman did a reasonable job in landing Makai Lemon, Hollywood Brown and Dontayvion Wicks at wide receiver this offseason, there's a significant drop-off between even the 2025 version of Brown and what the Eagles project to get from his replacements in 2026."
A.J. Brown impacts Eagles' ranking, but more reasons add to the drop
There are no concerns with DeVonta Smith being the new number-one receiver on the Eagles, but whether Lemon, Hollywood Brown, and Wicks can replace A.J. Brown is the big question. Lemon should eventually get to that point, but Wicks feels more like the guy to get it done since he will be on the outside in Brown's place.
Barnwell raised other concerns with the Eagles' playmakers, and he would next shift the focus to running back Saquon Barkley. The drop in Barkley's production from over 2,000 yards in 2024 to just over 1,100 yards in 2025 is a big reason to believe he's not the same player he's been.
"He had to do way more work before first contact: He averaged more than 4 yards before he was initially touched by a defender in 2024, but that fell to 2.3 yards in 2025, which was almost exactly the league average for starting backs. I don't doubt Barkley's talent, but his true big-play production rate is somewhere between what we saw in 2024 and 2025."
One aspect that Barnwell didn't bring up is that Barkley has more support in the backfield with Tank Bigsby. Philly's backup last year averaged 5.9 yards per carry with the Eagles, leaving the possibility that Bigsby could be a breakout star in 2026 in this offense.
Lastly, Barnwell focused on the tight ends. He believes that Dallas Goedert will be disappointed with Mannion's offense, as he might not get the production he had last year.
"Even if the Eagles aren't as reliant on the tush push in 2026, it would be a surprise if Goedert saw as many designed touches near the goal line again this season. Second-round rookie Eli Stowers could figure in at tight end by the end of the season too."
Stowers was a disappointment at OTAs, as he made no headlines to get Eagles reporters excited about. Goedert still will be the main focus at tight end, but if he doesn't get 11 touchdowns in 2026, that might actually be a good thing for the offense.
Read more: Eagles may have several players entering a make-or-break summer
Maybe this Eagles offense won't be as good without A.J. Brown there, but there is still plenty to be excited about in 2026, and it should be way more productive than last year.
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