After the NFL’s schedule release this week, the Philly Blitz team comes together to predict the Eagles 2020 season.
*Each game pick was made independent of the others*
Week 1: At Washington (Sept. 13 – 1 p.m.)
Pierre: Eagles start off their season with a win as their new-look offense and revamped secondary prove to be too much for Ron Rivera’s new team to overcome. (1-0)
Brad: Death, taxes, and playing the Redskins week 1 are the few guarantees of life. Their DL is going to be legit with the addition of Chase Young but our offensive line should hold up. Dwayne Haskins will have some nice weapons to work with like Terry McLaurin and Derrius Guice coming back from injury. Eagles still get it done and open the season 1-0.
Mo: Carson Wentz and DeSean Jackson pick up right where they left off in Week 1 last year, only this time they got more weapons around them and it won’t be as dramatic (1-0)
Derrick: Carson Wentz and his new track team along with Darius Slay and the new look defense prove to be too much to handle for a young Washington team and new head coach, Ron Rivera. (1-0)
Week 2: vs Rams (Sept. 20 – 1 p.m.)
Pierre: The Rams offensive line cannot handle this Eagles defensive line and the Eagles shut down Cam Akers and the Rams running backs, making Jared Goff beat them…he doesn’t. (2-0)
Brad: Sean McVay has been able to string together successful seasons but the Rams don’t have the talent they did in years past. Doug Pederson also has the Rams number as he beat them both times we’ve played them in recent years. Eagles move on to 2-0 and stay undefeated.
Mo: The Rams just can’t seem to beat the Eagles since the Pederson/Wentz era started. That trend continues in a low-scoring defensive battle. Jared Goff can’t handle the heat of the Eagles DL. (2-0)
Derrick: Doug Pederson > Sean McVay every day of the week and twice on Sundays. Pederson will lead the Birds to their 3rd straight head-to-head win over McVay and the Rams in the Eagles home opener. (2-0)
Week 3: vs Bengals (Sept. 27 – 1 p.m.)
Pierre: Cincinnati comes into Philadelphia led by number one overall pick, Joe Burrow. Although Burrow is no slouch, Jim Schwartz’s eyes will light up as he sees a rookie QB on the opposing sideline. Fletcher Cox, Javon Hargrave, and Malik Jackson will feast and lead the way to another win. (3-0)
Brad: This is one of the toughest games on the schedule for me to predict. Eagles have a tendency to lose a couple of games they shouldn’t. It’s a new day in Cincinnati as hot shot Joe Burrow is the sheriff in town now. I don’t think the Bengals will have improved enough though and the Eagles win a close one to move to 3-0.
Mo: Do you guys remember the NY Jets game last year and how going into it, we all thought it would be the beginning of the turnaround for the sluggish offense? We did win 31-6, but the offense was still sputtering. I think this Bengals game will be what we thought that game would be. I feel this will also be Jalen Reagor’s first breakout game of the season. (3-0)
Derrick: Joe Burrow will look to add to his Offensive Rookie of the Year case when he takes on the 2-0 Eagles. However, Carson Wentz and the Eagles offense will do just enough to squeak out a hard-fought win at home to remain undefeated. (3-0)
Week 4: At 49ers (Oct. 4 – 8:20 p.m.)
Pierre: The San Francisco 49ers come into this game with a revamped defense and Kyle Shanahan’s offense is possibly even more potent with the addition of Brandon Aiyuk. This game will be especially interesting considering the 49ers strength of running the ball and the Eagles defense being predicated on stopping the run. However, I see SF coming out on top. (3-1)
Brad: A battle of two NFC contenders as the Eagles travel to San Francisco to take on the 49ers. Now I could see the Eagles winning this game with a stellar performance from Carson but that 49ers defense is no slouch. If you combine that with their high powered offense, I think the Eagles are headed for a loss. Eagles head into Week 5 at 3-1…
Mo: I know this one might seem a bit out there but I think by this point of the young season, the Eagles will be red-hot & rolling. I also think Jimmy G is going to have a bad game with a few key turnovers to put the Eagles in easy scoring situations. Carson Wentz and the track-stars will take advantage of those turnovers and the Jimmy G-led Niners just can’t keep up. (4-0)
Derrick: In their biggest test of the young season, the Eagles will suffer their first loss to the reigning NFC champion 49ers. This game could be preview of a potential NFC championship game but head coach Kyle Shanahan will take care of home field and lead his team to victory this time. (3-1)
Week 5: At Steelers (Oct. 11 – 1 p.m.)
Pierre: This game will be a close defensive battle that the Eagles ultimately pull it out. (4-1)
Brad: The showdown of Pennsylvania takes place as the Eagles travel to Heinz Field. Pittsburgh has a legit defense and I expect this to be a fairly low scoring affair. However, I expect the team with the better offense and QB to prevail. Big Ben has looked very inconsistent as he’s gotten older so I expect to see more of the same this year from the 38 year old QB. Eagles head home with a 4-1 record…
Mo: Carson and Miles carry the load this week. Steelers don’t scare me and I think Big Ben continues to struggle to play quality football because he is ancient. This will be a low-scoring, grind it out game. Also, Javon Hargrave lets the Steelers know what they gave up. (5-0)
Derrick: This week brings “The Battle of Pennsylvania” when the cross-state rivals meet at Heinz Field. The Eagles will add to their one-game win streak vs. the Steelers and head back home with another tally in the win column. (4-1)
Week 6: vs Ravens (Oct. 18 – 1 p.m.)
Pierre: The Eagles have always struggled with mobile Quarterbacks under Jim Schwartz and this game will be no different when they face the league’s most elusive QB, Lamar Jackson. (4-2)
Brad: The Eagles always win a couple games they absolutely should not win… this is one of them in my opinion. Yes, the Eagles struggle with mobile QBs and the Ravens have tons of weapons on offense. Their defense might be even better than their offense and it makes them one of the true Super Bowl contenders. However, I have a gut feeling the Eagles bring their A-game as Doug and Carson put on a clinic as we head to Week 7 at 5-1.
Mo: I think this will be our first loss because Lamar Jackson will be too much to contain. Ravens really did some good work adding some weapons on offense with JK Dobbins, Devin Duvernay, and James Proche and defense with the LB trio of Jake Ryan, Patrick Queen, and Malik Harrison. I think this is gonna be an ugly loss for the Eagles. (5-1)
Derrick: The 2019 Most Valuable Player, Lamar Jackson, will have his first taste of the Linc and the raucous crowd. Let’s just say there’s a reason the Eagles have one of the best home records in the NFL. Jackson will put on an MVP performance but will be out-dueled by another MVP hopeful, Carson Wentz. (5-1)
Week 7: vs Giants (Oct. 22 – 8:20 p.m.)
Pierre: The Eagles beat the Giants twice last season with practice squad players at wide receiver and haven’t lost to them since 2016. Next. (5-2)
Brad: Our second divisional game of the year against the rebuilding Giants. They shouldn’t be taken lightly as we struggled against them last year and they’ll have some new pieces via the draft. I still think we stay undefeated at home and head to 6-1.
Mo: Do I even really have to explain this one? The Giants haven’t beaten the Eagles since 2016 and I expect that to continue here. Danny Dimes is more like Danny Pennies in this game. (6-1)
Derrick: With both teams coming off of a short week, the Eagles will have the slight benefit of not having to travel – even though the Giants are only a bus ride away. In their last 24 games, the Eagles are 20-4 and they will add another win to that on Thursday night. (6-1)
Week 8: vs Cowboys (Nov. 1 – 8:20 p.m.)
Pierre: The Cowboys four-headed monster of Zeke-Cooper-Gallup-Lamb will be tough to stop the first time around and Dallas wins in a close game. (5-3)
Brad: The long-awaited first Cowboys game… I think we lose this one in a close game as that offense proves to be a little too much. Not to worry though as we’re still sitting at 6-2 and head into our bye to rest up.
Mo: Lamb has a Julio Jones (who tends to abuse Eagles DBs like it’s an incentive in his contract) type of game against CB2 Sidney Jones/Avonte Maddox. Zeke is able to run the ball effectively for most of this game. Dallas takes this one. (6-2)
Derrick: Sunday Night Football? At home vs. your biggest rival? On 10 days rest? Expect the Eagles to handle business right before the bye week. Carson Wentz shows why he’s the best quarterback in the division and Darius Slay continues his dominance of Cowboys wide receiver Amari Cooper. Sorry Mike McCarthy, this rivalry isn’t going to start off well for you. (7-1)
Week 9: Bye Week
Pierre: Hitting the bye at 5-3 is a pretty good way to end the first half of the season and the Eagles will undoubtedly be raring to go after losing to Dallas.
Brad: Hitting the bye at 6-2 is not bad at all and we have a chance to rest up before our schedule gets really tough.
Mo: Going into the bye at 6-2 and coming off a divisional loss. Eagles will be fired up for the second half of the season.
Derrick: Eerily similar to the 2017 season, the Eagles head into the bye week with only one loss. This team is very good and they are playing the way all of Philadelphia expected them to. (7-1)
Week 10: At Giants (Nov. 15 – 1 p.m.)
Pierre: Since Carson Wentz was drafted, the Giants have beaten the Eagles a grand total of 1 time and only 4 times since 2008. Simple. Eagles win big. (6-3)
Brad: Eagles head to New York after the bye to face the Giants again. Doug and Co. have had two weeks to prepare so I think they come out rolling. Eagles win pretty easily as they improve to 7-2.
Mo: Giants keep it close this time, but Carson makes enough plays to outmatch their defense. Also, who is covering Reagor for the Giants? Answer: Absolutely no one. (7-2)
Derrick: Yeah, the winning streak continues, nothing more to say. I have no confidence that a Giants team can beat the Eagles any time soon. (8-1)
Week 11: At Browns (Nov. 22 – 1 p.m.)
Pierre: The Cleveland Browns have a lot of weapons on offense but the Eagles now have guys in the secondary that can contain them. Also, this is Carson Wentz’s first game playing in Cleveland since they traded out of the number two spot because they “didn’t think he was a top 20 quarterback”. Although it is a different regime, Wentz still gets up for this game. (7-3)
Brad: The gang goes to Cleveland as they look to improve to 8-2 against Baker Mayfield and the Browns. Cleveland do have a dangerous crew on offense including OBJ, Jarvis Landry, Austin Hooper, and Nick Chubb. As I said earlier, the Eagles always lose a game they’re not supposed to lose and I think they will lose to Cleveland. The Browns will be one of the surprise teams in the NFL this year and the Eagles fall to 7-3.
Mo: Baker Mayfield struggles and Nick Chubb can’t run the ball enough. I don’t really see any other turnout for this game. (8-2)
Derrick: In 2016, the Browns passed on Carson Wentz because they said they didn’t believe he could be a top 20 quarterback. Yes, it was a completely different general manager but it’s still the Cleveland Browns. Wentz will show that fanbase everything they have missed over the last 4 years on the way to a huge blowout. Odell to the Eagles 2021? (9-1)
Week 12: vs Seahawks (Nov. 30 – 8:15 p.m.)
Pierre: The Eagles haven’t beaten the Seahawks since 2008. That changes this time around when Alshon Jeffery returns and has a big game, leading the Eagles to a Monday Night Football win. (8-3)
Brad: And here comes Carson’s white whale as the Seahawks come to town… Wentz has never beat the Seahawks in his career as he is 0-3 against them. I think that will change this year and we beat the Seahawks at home to improve to 8-3.
Mo: Carson Wentz shows why he is the franchise QB. I think he has an MVP-caliber game and finally helps the Eagles get over the Seattle hump. (9-2)
Derrick: Remember earlier when I said this team was eerily similar to the 2017 eagles team? Guess who gave them their 2nd loss that year? That’s right, the Seattle Seahawks. They will march into Philadelphia and do the same thing to this 2020 Eagles team. (9-2)
Week 13: At Packers (Dec. 6 – 4:25 p.m.)
Pierre: The Packers didn’t do much to help Aaron Rodgers outside of signing Devin Funchess. Last year when the Eagles played them, Devante Adams wrecked the Eagles for 180 yards. This changes as Darius Slay is now in the secondary and Sidney Jones/Avonte Maddox will no longer have to cover opposing team’s number one receivers. The Eagles win on a Jake Elliott field goal in a down to the wire game at Lambeau. (9-3)
Brad: The Eagles head to Lambeau for the second straight year as they take on Aaron Rodgers and the Packers. Green Bay still has a good defense but their offense lacks weapons outside of Devante Adams and they didn’t address WR via the draft. Rodgers is still the man though and performs some late-game magic but it’s ultimately not enough as the Packers fall to the Eagles. (9-3)
Mo: Aaron Rodgers is still pissed off about the selection of Jordan Love and decides to take it out on the visiting Eagles. Devante Adams has a big game. Eagles keep it close until the end when the Packers pull away and seal it. (9-3)
Derrick: When the schedule came out, this stretch scared me the most. The second game in a 3 game stretch vs. playoff teams, at Lambeau, in December, is a stretch most teams in the NFL would fear. The Eagles will go on their first losing streak of the season as they suffer a bad loss to an NFC North favorite. (9-3)
Week 14: vs Saints (Dec. 13 – 4:25 p.m.)
Pierre: This game will be the game of the year for the Eagles. So many storylines. Malcolm Jenkins returning, Carson Wentz’s chance for redemption against the team he had his worst career game against, and Eagles playing the Saints for the first time since the 2018 divisional round. The Eagles pull out a close win as Carson Wentz does just enough to out-duel Drew Brees. (10-3)
Brad: Eagles vs. Saints at the Linc with storylines galore… This is going to be one of the toughest games of the year for the Birds. Malcolm is going to have some extra motivation and the Saints pull out a W in Philly. Eagles head to Arizona at 9-4 as they take on Kyler Murray and the Cardinals.
Mo: Carson Wentz has another big game and puts the team on his back. Revenge for the embarrassment of the 48-7 loss in 2018. One of the main criticisms against Carson is that he doesn’t beat teams over .500 very often. He’ll have something to say about that against the Saints. Also, I think we see Jalen Hurts make a few key plays in this game. (10-3)
Derrick: I can already see the social media war between #EaglesTwitter and #SaintsTwitter. With Alvin Kamara talking about blowing out the Eagles if they had beaten the Vikings in 2017 and the Saints playing ‘Dreams and Nightmares’ in the locker room after eliminating the Eagles in 2018, the Birds will be ready for this battle. The Eagles defense will put up a dominant performance and end the losing streak. (10-3)
Week 15: At Cardinals (Dec. 20 – 4:05 p.m.)
Pierre: The Eagles come into Arizona off an emotional win over the New Orleans Saints. This isn’t the same Cardinals team of old. Now, they are led by dynamic second-year QB Kyler Murray and the best wide receiver in the NFL, DeAndre Hopkins on offense. On defense, they added rookie Isaiah Simmons to go with their young defense led by Chandler Jones. As previously stated, the Eagles struggle with elusive QBs and Kyler Murray may be the second most elusive QB in the league. (10-4)
Brad: This is one of the other games on our schedule that will be so tough to predict. Cardinals offense is much improved after the addition of Hopkins and Murray having another year under his belt. I think the Eagles pull out a close one as Carson Wentz and the gang wins a shootout in the desert to move to 9-5.
Mo: This feels like an upset waiting to happen. Kyler Murray is just too electric. DeAndre Hopkins and that WR crew will prove to be too much to handle for the Eagles CBs not named Darius Slay. (10-4)
Derrick: After 3 straight playoff-like battles with the Seahawks, Packers, and Saints, the Eagles walk into the University of Phoenix Stadium unmotivated and suffer an embarrassing loss to the up-and-coming Arizona Cardinals. That is now 3 losses in 4 weeks. (10-4)
Week 16: At Cowboys (Dec. 27 – 4:25 p.m.)
Pierre: The Eagles know this is a game they have to win and they come into Dallas and get the job done. Carson Wentz out-duels Dak Prescott in a high scoring game. (11-4)
Brad: NFC East is on the line late in the season once again as the Eagles travel to Jerry’s World in search of another NFC East crown. Eagles win a close high scoring game as they win the division for the second year in a row. 10-5 heading into the final week of the season.
Mo: The Cowboys don’t win big games. I mean, just look at 2019. Carson cements himself as the 2020 NFL MVP here. (11-4)
Derrick: The Eagles suffer another loss at the hands of the division rival Cowboys. This is certainly not what Doug Pederson wants to see from his team heading into the playoffs. (10-5)
Week 17: vs Washington (Jan. 4 – 1 p.m.)
Pierre: The Eagles began the season with a win over Washington and will end the season with a win over Washington and win the NFC East as well. (12-4)
Brad: With the NFC East locked up and home-field out of reach, the Eagles rest the starters for the playoffs. Jalen Hurts starts his first NFL game and shows off his potential but we fall to the Redskins in a close one. Eagles end the season 11-5 and head into the playoffs.
Mo: The Eagles take care of a Washington team with almost nothing to play for. Carson rests with #2 seed locked up. The defense has a huge game. (12-4)
Derrick: Despite having the division won, Doug Pederson chooses to play the starters in a game that serves as a “warm-up” for the first round. The Eagles are your 2020 NFC East Champions, the first repeat champion since the Eagles did it in 2003 and 2004. (11-5)
Conclusions
Pierre: I think the Eagles ceiling is 13-3 with a floor of 11-5. Of course, this prediction comes with a lot of unknowns but as of right now, this is my prediction. Carson Wentz will be the engine that drives this team and Jim Schwartz will be number two in the pecking order. If those two are on top of their game, they will lead the way for this team on the road to capturing the organization’s second Lombardi trophy.
Brad: The Eagles roster has a ceiling of 13-3 and I think that falls on Carson Wentz’s performance as well as the injury situation. If injuries rear their ugly head again, I could see a 9-7 or 10-6 season being very possible. I think that’s why it’s so tough to predict records right now because you don’t know how rookies will perform and how the injuries will shake out. Also, other teams in the NFL could also get a spell of injuries that changes a key matchup down the stretch. There are so many unknown variables right now but it’s still fun to see what the Eagles record could look like based on what we know right now.
Mo: I think the Eagles even have the potential to go 13-3 with a floor of 10-6. I think the 2020 Eagles are going to re-capture that 2017 underdog attitude (even at 12-4) because nobody wants to believe that they made the right draft picks and improved as much as they actually have. The Cowboys are somehow ranked at #7 at the time of this article while the Eagles are ranked 10 entire spots behind them at #17. But we all know what happens in the end when it comes to high expectations in Dallas. This Eagles team is stacked with so much potential and an MVP-caliber QB. Assuming we keep the team relatively healthy for the first time in 4 seasons, this team can (and will) make a deep run at their second Lombardi.
Derrick: With a record of 11-5, I believe that some fans will see that record and wonder what if. What if the Eagles took the Cardinals seriously? What if the Eagles took advantage of a depleted WR group and stacked the box vs. the Packers? What if the Eagles finally got over the hump vs. the Seahawks? The floor, in my opinion, is 10-6, but looking at how the elite teams are spread around, the Eagles could win 13+ games as long as they remain healthy. There is so much talent on this team and I hope the fans finally get a chance to see the roster at its full potential.
The Philly Blitz 