The Birds come off the bye to take on the Browns trying to improve to 3-2. Both teams have had their struggles so far this season in critical places. The Eagles defense has been pretty subpar up to this point for several reasons. The Browns on the other hand have looked putrid offensively with quarterback Deshaun Watson being a shell of his former self. Which team’s weakness will bend more in this midseason matchup?
Eagles Defense Vs Browns Offense – Who Has The Edge?
Eagles Defensive Woes
This site has already covered in detail what the team needs to do offensively to seal the win. However, the defense is a whole other concern of its own. According to team rankings, the Eagles are pretty bottom tier in many major defensive states.
They are a bottom-10 defense in points per game, giving up over 24 points per game to opponents. Where they are really killer though is in the yards department. Their passive zone defense gives up approximately 365.8 yards per game, good for the 27th-best in the league. Through their first four games, the unit gave up over 400 yards of offense twice. The first time this happened came during the team’s thrilling week 1 win in Brazil over the Packers. The second time was their most recent effort against the Buccanneers.
The team also gives up about six yards per play which is good for 30th in the league and they are 31st in opposition turnover margin. If the Eagles defense can’t start to create more pressure up front leading to mistake throws from quarterbacks and turnovers, they may be in for a rough game and the rest of the season.
The Browns Offense Hasn’t Been Much Better
Fortunately for a struggling Eagles unit, the Browns are in just about as much of an offensive pickle. They are dead last in three offensive categories, being 3rd down conversion rate, yards per game, and yards per play. They’re also a bottom-three team in points per game and points per play.
What’s heavily contributed to this has been the regression of Deshaun Watson. Simply put, he hasn’t been the same player he was in Houston since being shipped to Cleveland. In his four seasons with the Texans, Watson came in third for Offensive Rookie of the Year and made three Pro Bowls. He always completed at least 60% of his passes reaching as high as 70% in 2020. He was a very effective passer eclipsing 4,000 yards multiple times and throwing for a career-high 33 touchdowns in 2020.
Since being shipped to Cleveland though, Watson hasn’t even been able to throw for double-digit touchdowns in a single season. His passer rating has never reached 100 since being traded to Cleveland, which was a mark that Watson hit three out of his four seasons in Houston. His quarterback rating has also dipped dramatically with the Browns, currently listed with a career-low 21 QBR this season.
Eagles Defense Or Browns Offense?
This really is a battle of the unstoppable force meeting an immovable object in the worst way possible. Both units have been struggling mightily and one clearly has to give. The only reason I have a slight glimmer of faith in the Birds’ defense is because of the effort they showed against the Saints. They exposed the Saints’ offense by routinely putting pressure on Derek Carr forcing him to make mistake throws and stifle the team. The Philly defense was able to hold them to just 12 points and it showed Vic Fangio is capable of making adjustments for week-to-week matchups. The Eagles should apply a similar style against a struggling Watson. We’ll have to wait and see which struggling unit shows a glimmer of hope on Sunday.
Main Photo: [Nathan Ray Seebeck] – USA Today Sports
