The Eagles are 8-1 for the second consecutive year, but there are still some issues to address as they enter the second half of the season. These are five questions the Eagles have to tackle:
1. **Will the run game correct itself?** The Eagles rank seventh in the NFL in rushing yards per carry, but the run game has averaged just 3.4 yards per carry since Week 4. This is due to a number of factors, including Hurts’ knee injury and Jurgens’ injury at right guard.
2. **How’s Hurts’ knee going to hold up?** Hurts has been playing excellent football since the loss to the New York Jets in Week 6. However, his knee injury has lingered since Week 5. If the knee is better after a week off, the dual-threat ability of Hurts will help the Eagles’ run game and improve an offense that’s already ranked second in the NFL in points per game.
3. **Who will be the starting RG?** Jurgens was the starting right guard for the first four weeks of the season before going down with a foot injury. In the four games Jurgens started, the Eagles were second in the NFL in rushing yards per game and third in yards per carry. The four games Jurgens missed? The Eagles are 19th in the NFL in rushing yards per game and 28th in yards per carry.
4. **How will the slot CB situation shake up?** The Eagles have been through a myriad of players in the slot thanks to injuries at the position. The plan going forward is for Roby to return after the bye and man duties in the slot, while Ricks can go back to the outside and Brown will play the slot in box-nickel formations.
5. **What is path toward winning NFC East, home-field advantage?** The Eagles face a daunting stretch coming off the bye with the Kansas City Chiefs (road), Buffalo Bills (home), San Francisco 49ers (home), Cowboys (road), and Seattle Seahawks (road). Going 3-2 in that stretch gets Philadelphia at 11-3 with three games to play. Philadelphia’s final three games are New York Giants (home), Arizona Cardinals (home) and Giants (road). Assuming the Eagles win all those games, they’ll finish 14-3. This all depends on the wins the Eagles get in that five-game stretch. Philadelphia can essentially lock up the division and home-field advantage with wins over San Francisco and Dallas in that five-game stretch, earning the head-to-head and conference tiebreakers in the process.
**Analysis:**
These are all important questions for the Eagles to answer in the second half of the season. If they can find solutions to these issues, they will be in a good position to make another deep playoff run.