Philadelphia Eagles: Three keys to a Week 16 win over Houston Texans

Stay Simple on Offense

Following last week’s strong 30-point performance in Los Angeles, Eagles’ head coach Doug Pederson said that himself and offensive coordinator Mike Groh made a strong effort to simplify the Eagles offense for Foles.

For this week, don’t change a thing. As the old saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

After having their second-best offensive output of the season last week, the Eagles should look to roll out a similar game plan this upcoming Sunday. The Eagles did a great job of controlling the game with balance on offense as they ran the ball 30 times, compared to 31 pass attempts.

The results of these simplifications were 381 total yards, zero sacks taken, and a win in the time of possession battle. That is how you take control of a game. If the Eagles can strike that same balance and simplicity going forward, then maybe we are in for another exciting run.

This is a Houston defense that ranks near the top of the league in giving up 20.1 points per game. The Eagles are going to need to avoid any costly mistakes like last week, and not overdo it on offense. They must run the ball to stay ahead of the chains and convert on third down.

Also, the Eagles need to contain both JJ Watt and Jadeveon Clowney on Sunday. The duo has combined for 22.5 sacks this year, and if they get going, then it will be a long day for Foles. Last week, the Eagles did a great job with Aaron Donald, and they must do the same with Watt and Clowney.