NFL Power Rankings Roundup: How the Eagles stack up heading into Week 3

It’s time for our weekly roundup of how various media outlets view the Philadelphia Eagles in their NFL power rankings. After all, it’s always interesting to see how the Birds stack up from an outside perspective.

Mile High Report

4 - My brother the Iggles fan blew up my phone as Atlanta eked out their win Sunday night. Here’s what he said: “Refs @#%@ the eagles out of a game, between the 2 point and that B.S. call, #@$%ing garbage, %@#$.” Here’s what I sent back, verbatim: “Welcome to the club.” (LW: 2)

Yahoo! Sports

6 - Sunday night was a game that you had to watch to appreciate how well Carson Wentz played. Statistically it wasn’t his best, but his toughness was on full display. Still, the Eagles’ injury situation is getting troubling. (LW: 5)

Pro Football Talk

6 - Good news — Carson Wentz is still healthy. Bad news — among his teammates, he’s in the minority. (LW: 3)

NJ.com

6 - Defensive injuries are beginning to become a concern for the Eagles. (LW: 5)

Chicago Tribune

6 - Philadelphia left Atlanta limping Sunday night, nursing a series of injuries after the loss, issues that will have to be addressed before the Lions visit this week. Wide receivers Alshon Jeffery (calf) and DeSean Jackson (groin) left the game and likely will miss time. Tight end Dallas Goedert (calf) also was banged up, and the worst injury likely was suffered by defensive tackle Tim Jernigan (foot). He could miss more than a month. While none of the moves may necessitate an IR move, the Eagles likely will have to do some roster juggling.

Bleeding Green Nation

7 - It’s tough to precisely gauge what the Eagles’ Week 2 loss tells us about the quality of this team moving forward. Losing three key offensive starters — Alshon Jeffery, DeSean Jackson, Dallas Goedert — during PREGAME WARMUPS is such an anomalous aberration. Despite this incredibly bad luck, Carson Wentz had the Eagles in position to win on the road in Atlanta. If only Nelson Agholor hadn’t dropped the potential game-winning touchdown. (LW: 4)

MMQB

7 - Doug Pederson needs to do some savvy roster juggling given the slew of injuries coming out of the Atlanta loss, with a Thursday-nighter coming after this Sunday. (LW: 3)

ESPN

8 - Pleasant surprise: RB Darren Sproles. The 36-year-old Sproles, who was supposed to retire after the 2017 season, is averaging a team-high 5.2 yards per carry and was the leading rusher for Philly in a Week 1 win over Washington. He is also serving as the team’s punt returner. The 15-year vet has made fools out of doubters his whole career, but it seems unlikely that his role in the offense will remain this pronounced over the course of 16 games. (LW: 5)

NFL.com

8 - Nelson Agholor had the game in his hands ... he just couldn’t hold onto it. Carson Wentz’s perfectly placed dart down the far sideline with two minutes to play hit his receiver in stride, but Agholor dropped what would have been a sure touchdown. (For what it’s worth, Agholor confirmed he lost it in the lights in the postgame, but still took accountability.) When Zach Ertz was stopped one foot short of a first down deep in Falcons territory, it was the final painful chapter in a frustrating loss to the Falcons. It’s a shame, too, because this was one of the more enjoyable Wentz games ever. The quarterback struggled mightily in the first half and lost two of his top playmakers, Alshon Jeffery and DeSean Jackson, to injury, but he nearly brought the Eagles all the way back with a series of money throws in high-leverage spots. It was a reminder that, even in defeat, Philadelphia is in good hands. Now the Eagles have to get healthy after a punishing Sunday. (LW: 5)

The Athletic

8 - Are we panicking about the Eagles after their Sunday Night Football loss to Atlanta? Well, the Eagles fell out of the top 5, but our panel is not ready to drop them too far yet. But we’re going to keep a close watch on Philly’s injury situation, as depth is already becoming an issue at key positions, with multiple receivers and tight ends leaving Sunday’s game and quarterback Carson Wentz absorbing a couple of brutal hits that seemed to affect him for the rest of the game. (LW: 4)

Pro Football Focus

8 - With a close loss in Atlanta, the Eagles have lost the spot as the best NFC East team in the standings and in our PFF ELO ratings. Their receiving corps hasn’t performed as strong as advertised, as DeSean Jackson is their only player to eclipse 1.5 yards per route run after two games. After playing only one snap against the Redskins, rookie J.J. Arcega-Whiteside was welcomed to the NFL the hard way, catching only one ball for four yards on 54 routes run. (LW: 5)

Bleacher Report

8 - The Philadelphia Eagles have problems on the back end of the defense. In Week 1, Philly allowed 380 passing yards and three touchdowns to Case Keenum in a win over the Washington Redskins. Sunday night, it was 320 yards and three more scores to Matt Ryan—and this time, the Eagles came up on the short end of the final score. Add in injuries that hit the offense hard, and in Sobleski’s opinion, there was little choice but to drop the Eagles several spots in this week’s rankings. ”A near-miraculous comeback by the Eagles simply means the team still lost. The Falcons wide receivers exposed Philadelphia’s secondary, and the Eagles’ talented defensive front didn’t dominate a rebuilt Falcons front five. On top of that, questions about Carson Wentz’s durability once again came to the forefront. Philly has yet to put it all together, and its drop in the rankings reflect its current status.”

PennLive

8 - The Eagles dropped a tough loss in heartbreaking fashion to a potential NFC South contender. That’s tough. But the more significant part might be injuries: Dallas Goedert, Alshon Jeffery, DeSean Jackson, Tim Jernigan and Corey Clement all left the game with injuries. The Eagles have two games in 10 days coming up. (LW: 4)

Detroit Free Press

8 - They likely will be without three of their best offensive weapons Sunday vs. the Lions. (LW: 3)

Reddit

8 - The injury bug bit the Eagles hard in a heartbreaking loss to the Falcons on SNF. With half of the Eagles’ receiving corps listed as “questionable” and Carson Wentz’s consistent inconsistency, the Eagles must get more from the running game if they are to have a chance when hosting the Lions on Sunday. (LW: 5)

Business Insider

8 - The Eagles displayed a valiant effort in Week 2’s near-comeback win vs. the Falcons, but health is a real issue for this team. Carson Wentz is beaten up, Alshon Jeffery and DeSean Jackson missed Week 2, and Timothy Jernigan broke his foot, leaving another hole on the defensive line after Malik Jackson was lost for the season.

Rick Gosselin

9 - NFL quarterbacks have their eyes on Pennsylvania. In particular, the defenses that play in that state. The Eagles and Steelers have both allowed 300-yard passers in each of their first two games. Case Keenum of Washington and Matt Ryan of the Eagles have lit up the Eagles and Tom Brady and Russell Wilson singed the Steelers. (LW: 4)

Blogging The Boys

9 - Losing generally sees you dip, and injuries are going to be a big part of Philly’s future. Also... Carson Wentz threw an interception to someone that was sitting on the ground. (LW: 6)

Sporting News

10 - The Eagles are not playing good complementary football. They’re going away from the run, creating shorter possessions and keeping their shaky pass defense on the field longer to get exploited. The whole notion of just having Carson Wentz bail them out in the end isn’t a long-term formula for consistent success, especially with their new receiver injuries.

Denver Post

10 - A team can absolutely face a must win in Week 3 and that’s where the Eagles are because Dallas has Miami at home and it’s not good to be two games behind so early in the season.

CBS Sports

14 - They suffered a ton of injuries against the Falcons, so health is the biggest issue now. They can’t fall too far behind the Cowboys. (LW: 7)

Washington Post

15 - The injuries piled up Sunday night in Atlanta, and QB Carson Wentz mostly struggled with WRs DeSean Jackson and Alshon Jeffery on the sideline. The Eagles, for whatever reason, have yet to look like a Super Bowl-worthy team this season. They need a better performance this Sunday at home against the Lions. (LW: 5)

ANALYSIS

The rankings range from as high as 4 to as low as 16. The most common ranking is 8. The average ranking is 8.2, which is down exactly three spots from last week’s average of 5.2.

As I said in my own ranking, the Eagles’ Week 2 game wasn’t the best barometer for gauging just how good they are. They’re not going to be losing three key offensive starters early in the game every week. The Eagles deserve some credit for fighting and almost escaping Atlanta with a win.

At the same time, there are plenty of fair reasons to be concerned about the Eagles. The injuries to DeSean Jackson, Alshn Jeffery, Dallas Goedert, and Timmy Jernigan are especially troubling. The pass rush needs to be better. The offense is still starting way too slow. And so on.

The Eagles really need to beat the Lions on Sunday. They can’t afford to drop to 1-2 with a Thursday night game in Green Bay coming up next week.