Davy Jones Locker: Buccaneers vs Eagles Q&A with Bleeding Green Nation

This weekend features a matchup of two 3-0 teams as the Buccaneers play host to the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. The Bucs and Eagles have both played some close games but have found ways to win them. To break down this game even more, we sat down with Brandon Lee Gowton of Bleeding Green Nation to give us a closer look into this matchup.

1. The Eagles were beaten by the Bucs last year and fell to 2-2, then they only lost one more time during that season and are 19-1 including the playoffs since that game. What changed for Philly during the season to turn it around so drastically?

“The combination of that sobering loss to the Bucs and the Week 5 bye to follow survived as a good reset point.

Multiple reasons why:

1. The Eagles got healthier. Against Tampa, they were missing A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Lane Johnson. Those players all returned to action after Week 4. They also lost
2. The Eagles made a big change on defense. Avonte Maddox was a liability at nickel cornerback. Benching him in favor of Cooper DeJean turned out to be a major upgrade.
3. The Eagles formed an identity that involved leaning heavily upon Saquon Barkley. From Week 1 to Week 4, Jalen Hurts averaged 33 passing attempts per game. He had seven turnovers as the Eagles went 2-2. In his next 15 games started and finished, he averaged 21.1 passing attempts per game and turned the ball over just four times.

It’s funny to look back at the postgame analysis of that Week 4 loss now after watching the Eagles go on an epic run to win Super Bowl. “

2. The last two times these teams met, A.J. Brown did not play in either game. With him being good to go for this one, how does his presence impact what the Eagles can do to an opposing defense?

“Yeah, that’s a major deal. The Eagles haven’t lost a game that both Jalen Hurts and A.J. Brown started and finished since Week 17 of the 2023 season.

Oddly enough, the Eagles seemed to forget that Brown was on their team for the first 2.5 games of this season. He had just six receptions for 36 yards during that stretch. After the Eagles remembered that they were allowed to throw to Brown, he had six receptions for 109 yards and one touchdown in the second half of their win over the Los Angeles Rams. After the game, both Hurts and Brown alluded to needing to be more aggressive and not merely playing “not to lose.”

So, I’m guessing we’ll see Hurts force-feeding Brown again in this one, as the Eagles should. It shouldn’t matter if he’s perfectly covered because he’s capable of making contested catches and then breaking through tackles after he has the ball. If the Bucs dedicate extra attention to Brown, that figures to open up opportunities for DeVonta Smith and Dallas...