Eagles News: Jalen Hurts says there is “a thrill in not being satisfied”

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Eagles QB Jalen Hurts says, ‘There’s a thrill in not being satisfied’- AP
Jalen Hurts has no time to be satisfied. After a breakout season in which he nearly led the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl victory and earned him a record-setting contract, Hurts is working like a “madman” to be even better. “Everybody aspires to be the best and works to be the best, but ultimately you have to find some separation,” Hurts said on the AP Pro Football Podcast. “And that’s the thrill. There’s a thrill in not being satisfied and there’s a thrill in being on this journey, and I have embraced that. I love this game and I know my purpose within this game. I truly just want to be intentional. ... So every day I just try to be the best that I can be and that is not based off of external factors. Those things don’t matter. You just try and control what you can.”

Will the 2023 Eagles’ success fall on Nakobe Dean’s shoulders? - BGN
The Eagles were third overall in the NFL in 2022 in team defense, giving up 5,125 yards last season over 17 games, and were second in the league, yielding an average of 301.5 yards a game behind only the San Francisco 49ers (300.6 ave). Five starters off that defense are gone (defensive backs C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Epps, linebackers T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White, and defensive tackle Javon Hargrave). White and Edwards were lost to free agency, and along with them, the bulk of the linebacker room. The Eagles added free agent linebacker Nicholas Morrow from the Chicago Bears, coming off a career season in which he had 115 tackles and 11 tackles for losses. The 2023 Eagles look strong everywhere. The offense is established. It’s going to be the strength of the 2023 Eagles. Hargrave is a huge loss, right there with offensive right guard Isaac Seumalo, who signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The absence of Edwards and White will need to be filled. Will the Eagles’ success rely on second-year linebacker Nakobe Dean? If Dean doesn’t perform as projected, the Eagles will have to win shootouts in 2023.

2023 Philadelphia Eagles Team Preview - Underdog Network
Nobody knows about the RB rotation yet, but here’s my current theory. Rashaad Penny is in a version of the Miles Sanders role, while D’Andre Swift is fancy Kenneth Gainwell and Kenneth Gainwell remains Kenneth Gainwell. Penny’s 5.7 yards per carry is the best among all RBs since 2018, and he’s reportedly relatively healthy already. I personally think he’s clearly the best pure rusher on the team, which is why they signed him early in free agency. The issue is a lack of commitment to him. His $500k in guarantees are a poor sign, though the Eagles don’t put capital into this position ever. Swift was traded for a 2025 4th round pick (lol). Gainwell is a former 5th rounder. Boston Scott is on $1M in guarantees as core a special teamer. My boy Trey Sermon was literally free. In other words, nobody has commitment here because this is the smart-ass Eagles. We need to figure out the talent and skillset. ... Swift is explosive out in space but hasn’t been a between-tackles stud, nor been trusted at the goal line. His issue is his high-value touches come via the air (48 targets vs. 4 inside the 5-yard line runs), and the Eagles were 31st in RB targets. Whoever wins the goal line role is the one to draft (see below: Sanders, Miles). That could be the 5’9/211 Swift. It’s somewhat likely to be the 5’11/220 Penny. We’ll be tracking this rotation in training camp.

2023 NFL season: Predicting each NFC team’s non-QB MVP - NFL.com
The Eagles might have half a dozen reasonable options here, but A.J. Brown proved just how valuable he was last season after coming over in a trade from Tennessee. The price Philly paid looks well worth it after he put up career bests in nearly every major category a season ago. The depth at receiver remains a bit on the thin side, one of the few positions you can say that about in Philadelphia, and DeVonta Smith is at his best when Brown is drawing attention. So, for this offense to truly reach its full potential again, they’ll need another healthy, high-volume season from Brown.

2023 Fantasy Football Player Profile: D’Andre Swift has a tall order in Philadelphia - PFF
Swift could finish as a top-five fantasy running back or be the backup on both run and pass plays. Where he fits in might change from one week to another, too. There are multiple pros and cons for a running back playing in the Eagles’ offense. Any running back who is expected to take at least 50% of the carries in a week is probably worth starting. This situation will probably be fluid throughout the season, given the number of backs and their injury histories. Swift tops the list of potential Eagles backs because he’s the only one who has a shot at being a three-down player. You’re drafting a Philadelphia back for his ceiling, and Swift’s ceiling is the highest.

5 Eagles heading into 2023 poised for Pro Bowl jump - NBCSP
4. Jalen Carter. There aren’t a ton of good first-time Pro Bowl candidates on the defensive side of the football this year. Fletcher Cox, Haason Reddick, Brandon Graham and Josh Sweat Darius Slay and James Bradberry have already all been Pro Bowlers. Maybe Nakobe Dean has a shot, maybe one of the safeties ends up having a big season. But the best chance for a first-time Pro Bowler on the defensive side of the ball probably goes to one of the first-round Georgia defensive linemen. Nolan Smith is buried a bit at edge rusher and Jordan Davis, even if he plays well, isn’t going to pile up big numbers. That leaves Carter, who will come in and replace former Pro Bowler Javon Hargrave, who left for San Francisco in free agency. Of course, there are never any guarantees with rookies in the NFL. But Carter was considered by many draft pundits to be one of the best overall players in the 2023 class. If he plays like the guy we saw at Georgia, he could be extremely good early in his NFL career.

Eagles EXCLUSIVE: Ex NFL Exec Praises Nick Sirianni’s ‘Mind Games’ - SI
It was a typical query for any NFL head coach at the end of offseason work. “Any spring standouts?” Philadelphia Eagles coach Nick Sirianni took the opportunity to prop up one of his few players who had a bit of a down season in 2022-23, projected WR3 Quez Watkins. “I have no problem singling one guy out that I think has just done a phenomenal job this off-season is Quez Watkins,” Sirianni said. “I love his attitude.” The eye rolls followed from those who didn’t necessarily understand the end game of what Sirianni was trying to accomplish or the repercussions for the recklessness desired. “You gotta play the mind games because a lot of this game is between the ears and confidence is a huge factor,” former San Francisco and Washington executive Vinny Cerrato told SI.com’s Eagles Today. “A guy can play so much faster and everything else if he’s got a clean mind and the biggest thing is if you’re confident in yourself you just see a different guy.”

The weakest link for the Cowboys is familiar, injuries on the offensive line - Blogging The Boys
The weak link this year in Dallas seems clear. The offensive line is fragile. Right now, the starters look great. Tyron Smith, Tyler Smith, Tyler Biadasz, Zack Martin, and Terence Steele are a formidable group. That is the same lineup that was planned for last season. It just never happened. Starting with a training camp injury to Tyron Smith, the staff had to repeatedly reshuffle pieces to make things work. One of the key ones was Connor McGovern, He started 15 games at LG. The team has moved on from him, losing what would have been crucial depth. Behind the starters, there are nothing but question marks and maybes. Most of the rest of the offensive line members are very inexperienced. That lack of experience means any injury to the starters is very much a threat to the success of the team. The offense starts with their performance. Running the ball depends on their ability to block. Prescott has to rely on them for protection when he passes. If one of the backups has to fill in, the opposing defense is sure to attack them. This will not only affect the execution on the field, it might constrain McCarthy’s play-calling as well, forcing him to lean on plays that help mask the weakness.

A’Shawn Robinson expected to help New York Giants’ run defense - Big Blue View
Robinson has shown that he can still be a strong run defender at this point in his career. His 68.7 PFF run grade in 2022, while far from the best mark of his career, still ranked 20th out of 82 interior defensive linemen. That being said, Robinson has had the luxury of playing with other dominant run defenders on the defensive line throughout his career. His best-graded season in the run game came with Damon Harrison beside him on the line; Harrison had a 93.7 run defense grade along with Robinson’s 91.3. With the Rams, Aaron Donald was his linemate, eating up double- and triple-teams to give teammates an easier lane to the ball carrier. Still, the Giants have their own beast in the middle in Dexter Lawrence, whose 81.9 PFF run defense grade led all starting interior defensive linemen in 2022. This would suggest that even if Robinson’s success came in part due to the player next to him, he should still be able to succeed as a run defender in 2023.

Will Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs sign new RB contracts? - ESPN+
Of the two, I’d rate Barkley the more likely to get a long-term deal done. Team owner John Mara has been clear about his desire for Barkley to be a Giant for his entire career, and the front office knows ownership would like a deal to get done. My very hesitant prediction is that the two sides come together on a contract that looks something like our outlined Option 1 before the deadline passes. The Giants probably will give a little bit on guarantees to a point where Barkley and his agent can claim a “win” on something specific, such as structure or cash flow.

The Offseason Skeptic Examines Defensive Ends - Hogs Haven
This offseason, I have made it my mission to spare fans the heartbreak and disappointment that inevitably comes from setting unrealistically high expectations for the upcoming football season. In the first installment, I took a stab at the hype developing around second-year tight end, Cole Turner. Turner is a relatively small fish in the incoming tide of hopefulness that washes our shores every year at this time. In this instalment, I will examine the upwelling of hope surrounding one the two marlins of offseason hope, fourth-year defensive end Chase Young. No other returning Commander has generated such high expectations for a breakout season in 2023, aside from QB Sam Howell whom I will get to shortly.

This CFL game ended in the weirdest way because a football player didn’t know the rules - SB Nation
It’s a tie game, just over a minute is left on the clock and you’re receiving a kickoff in the end zone: What do you do? Anyone who has watched football for years will tell you this is a simple decision. You take the touchback, have the ball moved out, and hope the offense gets in field goal range to win. There’s just one problem: When it comes to the CFL there are no touchbacks — and this was lost in translation.

Plot twist: Sixers bringing back Montrezl Harrell on one year deal - Liberty Ballers
We got a curveball late on Thursday night. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Philadelphia 76ers are bringing back big man Montrezl Harrell on a one year deal. [BLG Note: The Sixers couldn’t possibly be more unserious. This is like the Eagles bringing Jamon Brown back for another season.]

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