Philadelphia Eagles: Jordan Howard could neutralize the Smith Bros.

If the Philadelphia Eagles are going to thwart the Green Bay Packers and their edge-rushing ‘Smith Bros.’, they’ll need to fully commit to Jordan Howard.

The Philadelphia Eagles are only as good as their running game.

While this may seem like an overly generalized statement, when you dig into the stats, it couldn’t be more true.

In 2017, the Eagles had the third-best rushing game in the league built around the three-headed monster of LeGarrette Blount, Corey Clement, and eventually Jay Ajayi, and the team road that dynamic trio all the way to their first-ever Super Bowl victory.

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Contrast that with the 2018 season, where the team’s lead rusher, current New York Jets‘ practice squad member Josh Adams only amassed 511-yards from scrimmage in 14 games of action. While the team was still successful, they were far less dominant and ultimately saw their surprising playoff berth extinguished by a far more balanced New Orleans Saints club.

Even in today’s pass-happy NFL, a strong running game is paramount to fielding a competent football team, as it can keep the sticks moving, the clock ticking, and the ball in the hands of the offense.

And as the Eagles travel west to the (probably) snowy Midwestern bastion known as Green Bay, maintaining a steadfast commitment to running the ball will be paramount to securing a shorthanded, underdog win against Matt LaFleur‘s Packers.

Why? Because the Packers’ brand new edge-rushing duo is absolutely terrifying.

After predominantly ignoring free agency over Mike McCarthy‘s tenure at the helm, the Packers invested heavily on the defensive side of the ball in 2019, adding ex-Washington Redskins rusher Preston Smith, and ex-Baltimore Ravens outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith to a front seven that also features ascending stars like Blake Martinez and Kenny Clark.

Dubbed (not so creatively) the ‘Smith Bros.’ for their one-two pro-wrestler-style punch and shared last name (obviously), the duo have amassed 7.5 sacks over the first three weeks of the season – while almost never leaving the field regardless of down or distance.

Granted, it’s not like the Eagles’ offensive line is unqualified to take on formidable edge rushers, as they’ve faced off against premium players like Ryan Kerrigan, Tak McKinley, and Trey Flowers so far this season with minimal damage, but between Carson Wentz‘s pension for holding the ball a little too long in the pocket and an ever-growing list of injuries, Doug Pederson needs to game plan to keep the ball moving and his quarterback upright.

Simply put, this needs to be the game where Jordan Howard establishes himself once and for all as the Birds’ lead back.

With a hard-nosed, downhill running style and a bully ball mentality, Howard has amassed 361 yards and three touchdowns on the ground in his six career games against the Packers. While his average yards-per-game isn’t amazing at 60, the Eagles would certainly take that level of production at this point, as their best rushing performance in 2019 belongs to Miles Sanders at 53 yards – in a game where he also fumbled three times.

By committing to running the ball early, late, and often, the Eagles could schematically avoid the pass rush and “pick their shots” on plays with an extra offensive lineman on the field. They could also keep the ball out of the hands of Aaron Rodgers, who has been an absolute beast so far in 2019 under an actually competent offensive play-caller.

While Sanders could also come into play as the team remains committed to unlocking is LeSean McCoy-esque elusiveness, his east-west style, when combined with a newfound pension for putting the ball on the ground could actually hurt the Eagles ability to methodically move the ball down the field, and wear down a defense that also features an up-and-coming secondary highlighted by shutdown cornerback Jaire Alexander, supersized number two Kevin King, and the dynamic duo of Adrian Amos and Darnell Savage at safety.

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If evening their record to 2-2 is the goal, and ultimately that goal should rise above all others, the Philadelphia Eagles need to put their faith in Jordan Howard to once again best his former NFC North rivals in this his fourth trip to Lambeau Field – I mean, that is why Howie Roseman traded a fifth-round pick for his services, right?

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