Section 215
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Philadelphia Eagles vs. Kansas City Chiefs week two game preview

By Len Patterson

LANDOVER, MD - SEPTEMBER 10: Zach Brown
LANDOVER, MD - SEPTEMBER 10: Zach Brown /
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How sweet it is, after an important in-division win against the Redskins last week, the 1-0 Eagles will travel to Missouri to face off against the team that just beat the Super Bowl champions.

Philadelphia Eagles at the Kansas City Chiefs

When: Sunday, September 17th @ 1 pm

The Eagles fly into Kansas City, (see what I did there <–) this weekend to battle against one of the most impressive teams after 1 week. Andy Reid has had 9 days to prepare for this Eagles team that is also coming in at 1-0. Arrowhead Stadium will be rocking come 1 pm on Sunday and it will be a tough task for Wentz and company to keep composed and try to steal a victory on the road.

Ronald Darby will be out this game and Corey Graham looks to be questionable with a bad hamstring, it will be a tough task for the Eagles secondary come Sunday in what looks to be a great, close game.

Get-in price looks about right for a marquee match-up, with the cheapest seats around 85$. 

What to watch on Offense

I have said it all pre-season, whats going on with the running game? News broke this week that Donnel Pumphrey will be lost for the season, so we are down to Blount, Smallwood, Clement, and Sproles. After one week, Blount finished with 14 carries, Smallwood 4, and Sproles 2. It looks like Blount is going to be the bell-cow back as expected and I think that is the best case scenario for this team.

The Eagles best chance moving forward will be to rely on the running game and keeping the pressure off Wentz if the Eagles can get Blount going and motivated things will only get easier for the offense.

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Watch for Alshon Jeffery to get involved more, after a game where Alshon only caught 3 balls for 38 yards, Wentz and Reich should make an effort to get Jeffery the ball early, and often. The recipe for a victory come Sunday will have to be a steady dose of Blount and feed Alshon the ball.

Who to watch on Offense

Eric Berry spent the majority of last Thursday’s game following and covering Rob Gronkowski and was extremely successful at it. Unfortunately for the Chiefs, Eric Berry tore his ACL and is out for the season, leaving Ron Parker and Daniel Sorensen having the duty of covering Zach Ertz. Ertz might be the most underappreciated tight ends in the NFL right now, after leading the Eagles in receptions and receiving yards last year, Ertz got off to another hot start. Again, leading the team in catches and yards in week 1, I think Ertz will be an X-factor in Sunday’s match-up.

What to watch on Defense

Where did that Chiefs offense come from last week? Alex Smith, Kareem Hunt, Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce look to be playing at an elite level right now. The Eagles must play sound defense on Sunday, with Alex Smith not prone to turning the ball over, the Eagles must rally to the football and limit the big plays. In a not-so-Chiefs way, last week, Tyreek Hill and Kareem Hunt both had 75 yard plus touchdowns receiving. Schwartz will need the front 4 to get to Smith, stuff the run, limit the big play and force the Chiefs into 3rd-and-long.

Who to watch on Defense

Jalen Mills might not be a household name yet, but he now has a lot of pressure on his shoulders with Darby on the shelf for 4-6 weeks. Mills played awesome last week, leading the Eagles in tackles with 8 and also having an interception. Mills is now the Eagles #1 corner and will have the task of covering Tyreek Hill most of the game. Mills doesn’t need to be perfect, but the Eagles secondary needs to be good, not great, to win games. This week it will start with Mills, he must limit the big plays and play tight coverage to succeed moving forward.

Fantasy Spin

Thank you for all the readers that checked out my Week 1 fantasy rankings. If you haven’t checked out mt week 2 rankings yet, click on the link! 

Laying Odds

Eagles +5.5 (-105)    0/U 47.5

Last week I went 1-1, putting me at 7-3 for the season, just missing the over as the total landed at 47. This week I am going to take the Chiefs -5.5 and under the 47.5 total.

I hate to say it, but I think Andy Reid having the extended time to prepare for this game will come out on top. After a convincing win at Foxborough last Thursday, where Alex Smith looked like Dan Marino and Kareem Hunt looked like Marshall Faulk, I see the Chiefs winning and going 2-0 at home on Sunday.

Next: Philadelphia Eagles must contain Kansas City Chiefs’ new weapons

This is the type of team the Eagles are striving to model themselves after, mistake-free football, a good ground game and a tough defense, unfortunately, I think the Eagles will have to wait one more year to be on the same level as KC. In a hard-fought, low-scoring game, give me the Chiefs -5.5 and the under of 47.5.

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