The Eagles are in a different mood after learning from last year's collapse

BALTIMORE – For the third time in a row, the Philadelphia Eagles have established themselves in the NFL’s top division through the first 12 weeks of the season.

They made it to the Super Bowl in 2022. Last season’s catastrophic collapse – six losses in six seven games, including an exit in the wild-card round – wiped out a second straight 10-1 start. And here the Eagles are off to another promising start, at 10-2 and in first place in the NFC East after a 24-19 win over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.

How will it turn out this time?

“Last year is over. “We don’t care about last year,” Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said. “We learned from last year what we had to learn and what we had to do with it. This year it’s a different group of people. This is a different team that is working at full speed right now.”

Philadelphia overcame a 9-0 first quarter deficit and four straight punts to open the contest; The Eagles gained 22 yards in the first quarter and Jalen Hurts went 1-for-5 for 5 yards. Meanwhile, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens racked up 133 yards and seven first downs. From then on, the Eagles’ defense looked as if unit coordinator Vic Fangio had stepped up and given up three points during the team’s eight-game winning streak – poor performance from kicker Justin Tucker helped – until a touchdown in garbage time came.

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“We just stick to the plan and let the game unfold because everyone knows the first five, six minutes of the game are hot on both sides,” safety CJ Gardner-Johnson said.

He added: “One touchdown isn’t going to win the game. That also applies to our offense.”

The Eagles sacked Jackson three times and sacked running back Derrick Henry (19 carries, 82 yards), while rookie cornerback Cooper DeJean made a memorable fourth-quarter tackle emblematic of who was the more physical team. Sirianni said the coaching staff showed clips of the Eagles’ game against Henry and the Tennessee Titans in 2022 — when he had 11 carries for 30 yards — to motivate the defense.

“Although there are ups and downs, we remain pretty stoic, i.e. h. “We don’t get too high, we don’t get too low and we’re always trying to get better,” said linebacker Zack Baun, who is in his first season with the Eagles. “There are a lot of young guys in this defense that have great potential and we know they have that potential.”

The goal, Gardner-Johnson said, is not to send a message to the rest of the league. Playing good ball every week is. The Eagles pride themselves on their physicality and boundary points.

“This type of game is a playoff game,” he said of the game against the Ravens. “This is a team you could probably see in the Super Bowl, so kudos to our guys.”

Running back Saquon Barkley (23 carries, 107 yards) didn’t quite have the MVP-level performance he’s had lately, but his 25-yard touchdown dash sealed the game. Hurts completed 11 of 19 passes for 118 yards, but Sirianni was quick to point out his quarterback rating (114.4 over the last eight games) during the Eagles’ winning streak.

“I don’t believe in dynamics. It’s really a facade,” Hurts said. “It can start and end at any time. You just have to reevaluate everything and continue to strive to be the best team possible. It’s not about being better than another team or making them better in that area or whatever. It’s just about aggressively doing our best as a team.”

Even injured outside hitter DeVonta Smith helped in his own way when he wasn’t playing. Sirianni said Smith is usually the first to tell him in fourth-down situations to keep the offense on the field.

This was a decisive win in all three phases for Philadelphia. Punter Braden Mann assisted the Ravens three times inside their own 5-yard line and five of his six punts were fouled inside the 20-yard line.

“These are the things that excite you as a football coach and how important that is in the battle for field positions,” Sirianni said. “It doesn’t get a lot of attention, but I’m really excited and we talked about it after the game.”

A key difference this time is that it’s not the San Francisco 49ers who pose the biggest threat within the NFC, but rather the Detroit Lions. The other NFC North contenders, Minnesota and Green Bay, have also proven themselves through the first three months of the season – but Philadelphia and Detroit are in a class of their own in the NFC, while Buffalo and Kansas City are in a class of their own in the AFC .

“I think it shows our abilities and shows what we can do when we focus,” right tackle Lane Johnson said. “But people have to understand that things are not a given, especially in this league. Because look at last year. We are in a very good position but the last six or seven games have turned into a nightmare. So remember those times and learn from them.”

Johnson acknowledged that the locker room isn’t exactly the same – neither Jason Kelce nor Fletcher Cox, who both retired, nor Brandon Graham, who tore his triceps last week. The relapse shouldn’t happen if players stay focused and “keep wanting to get better,” Johnson said. “Do you want to fall down and think you’ve made it?” he asked rhetorically.

The four three-pointers by the offense were examples of imperfection, Johnson said. And he insisted that reflecting on last year was not intended to scare the boys.

“It’s not about creating fear,” he said. “But it’s really like saying, ‘Hey, a lot of these guys might not have been on the team last year.’ So it’s about raising awareness that you shouldn’t fall into the trap of becoming complacent. Here’s what the NFL is all about. We learned that last year. We knew it was going to be a tough job getting here today.”

A key during the winning streak has been the group’s ability to not only make in-game adjustments but also learn how to execute them, Johnson said.

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The Eagles are in a different mood after learning from last year’s collapse

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