The Philadelphia Eagles need three key players to bounce back in 2024 to regain dominance. The Eagles entered the 2023 season with high expectations, following a Superbowl run the previous season. Despite roster turnover, especially on the defensive side, and changes with both on-the-field coordinators, the goal remained the same, win the championship that eluded them the previous year.
The Philadelphia Eagles are Looking for These Three Players to Bounce Back in 2024
While the Eagles finished with an 11-6 record in 2023 and a playoff birth, things didn’t turn out the way the team and most fans were hoping. To put it simply the team bottomed out in the final two months of the regular season, losing five of their final six games. On top of this, they were immediately ousted from the playoffs by the Tampa Bay Buccanneers by a score of 32-9 in the wild-card game.
Even with the disastrous finish, the team goes into the 2024 season with optimism. They’ve revamped both sides of the ball with newly hired coordinators Kellen Moore and Vic Fangio, along with an array of exciting free-agent acquisitions like Saquon Barkley and Bryce Huff. However, if the team is looking to get back to being the dominant force they were when they went to the Superbowl two seasons ago, they need these three key players on the roster to bounce back after having down years in 2023.
Jalen Hurts
Quarterback is the most important position in the NFL and one the Eagles appeared to get right after Hurts had an MVP-caliber campaign in 2022 leading the team all the way to the Superbowl. 2023 was more of a mixed bag for Hurts. While he improved in some categories statistically, like throwing for nearly 4,000 yards and one more passing touchdown with 23, several other key passing statistics dropped significantly this past season. Mainly, Hurts was less accurate and made more mistakes in the passing game. His turnovers doubled from 2022 going from throwing only seven interceptions in his MVP Campaign to 15 this past season. He also threw for fewer yards per game, going from 246.7 to 226.9 in 2023. His accuracy numbers also suffered as well. Hurts’ QBR dropped eight points in 2023 going from 68.3 to 60.1. His passer rating also dropped from 101.5 to 89.1.
Hurts looks to get back on track in 2024 with a large amount of his offensive weapons returning along with having a new stalwart in the backfield in Barkley. Hurts also seems to be getting on nicely with his new offensive coordinator as they regularly discuss the playbook.
Jalen Carter
The Eagles took the defensive tackle out of Georgia with the ninth overall pick in the 2023 draft and he made an immediate impact with the team. Through his first five games, Carter looked like a lock for Defensive Rookie of the Year. He notched 3.5 sacks, four tackles for loss, and two forced fumbles. However, Carter slowed down significantly over the remainder of the year, adding only 2.5 more sacks and four more tackles-for-loss in his final 11 games. If the Eagles are going into the 2024 season with Superbowl aspirations, they are going to need a much more significant contribution from the prospect they drafted as a top-10 pick.
Similarly, Carter will have several new advantages going into the 2024 season. The defensive unit as a whole will be guided under the new vision of Fangio. Perhaps a change of philosophy and a more sturdy veteran presence will lead to improvement for Carter in comparison to being coached by the previously green candidate Sean Desai. Carter will also have more of an impact on the team by default with the retirement of long-time team anchor Fletcher Cox. More snaps and playing time could mean a more significant contribution for Carter. He may also have less pressure to deal with due to free agency signings on the line like the aforementioned Huff. Less attention on Carter individually could lead to Carter getting back to being the game-wrecker he was earlier last season.
C.J. Gardner Johnson
This one is a bit of a creative pick, being that he was in Detroit last year. However, Gardner-Johnson still fits the mold of someone looking to have a bounce-back year in 2024 and has an interesting history with the Eagles. The team traded for Gardner-Johnson late in the summer of 2022 and he went on to have the best season of his career with the team. He tallied a career-high in interceptions with six as well as a career-high in tackles with 67. On top of this, he added five tackles for loss and a sack becoming an anchor in the Eagles’ secondary on their way to a Superbowl.
Despite the success, the Eagles chose not to pay Gardner-Johnson and he signed a one-year prove-it deal with the Detroit Lions in 2023. However, after getting off to a quick start again in 2023 with Detroit, notching an interception and 17 tackles, Gardner-Johnson’s season got cut short after just two games due to a torn pectoral muscle.
Now that Gardner-Johnson is back with the Eagles the path to a bounce-back season is simple, just stay healthy. When able to stay on the field he has consistently been an impact player and now that he finally has a long-term contract there is no reason he shouldn’t return to form.
Will these three Philadelphia Eagles players get back on track in 2024? They’re going to have to if the team wants to look more like the dominant version of themselves that they were in 2022.
Main Photo: [Eric Hartline] – USA Today Sports
