The Eagles (4-0) are on the road to face Zach Ertz and the Cardinals (2-2) at State Farm Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Here are some key matchups to watch:
Kyler Murray vs. Eagles’ defense
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Through four games, Murray has been pretty good. He’s completed 65.3% of his passes for 991 yards with 5 touchdowns and 2 interceptions and has 91 rushing yards and 2 rushing touchdowns. In a way, the Eagles luck out in this game because his No. 1 receiver DeAndre Hopkins is still out because of a suspension. Honestly, the offense looks a tad lost without him. But Murray is still dangerous.
One of the biggest reasons Murray is dangerous is his ability to extend plays and make defenses pay on off-schedule scramble drills.
“All the coaching details that go into that with off-schedule plays,” Eagles DC Jonathan Gannon said, “we've got to be on it and understand that those are going to come up in the game and what he likes to do when he tries to make off-schedule plays, and he can make them. He has a very unique skillset. He's very dangerous. He's got arm talent. He runs around. He's not like a stick-and-cut guy, he's one of these guys (moves arm in serpentine motion). He's not afraid to give ground and lose 20 yards from the line of scrimmage and runs around and finds open people. It's hard to cover for a long time that long.
“So, we've got to have a good plan and we've got to execute it and we've got to stay disciplined. Our eyes got to be right. We've got to rush as a unit. We've got to cover as a unit. It's going to take all 11 out there to slow this guy down.”
Zach Ertz vs. Eagles’ middle
The Eagles’ legendary tight end is off to a pretty good start in 2022. He has 22 catches for 181 yards and 2 touchdowns, good for a 934/769/9 season. He might not still be the Pro Bowler the Eagles saw from 2017-19 but over the last 15 games with the Cardinals, Ertz has proven he’s still legitimately good. In his 15 games with Arizona, Ertz has 78/755/5. Ertz is still good and he’ll be extra motivated in this game.
The Eagles have been pretty good against tight ends so far this season, giving up 16 catches for 149 yards and 1 touchdown. The best tight end they’ve faced so far was in Week 1, when they held T.J. Hockenson to 4 for 38. Hockenson caught all four of those passes against C.J. Gardner-Johnson in his Eagles debut. Expect CJGJ to have a big role in defending Ertz on Sunday.
Marquise Brown vs. Eagles’ corners
The Cardinals were already down Hopkins and now A.J. Green is hurt. So it’s likely their top receivers in this game will be Hollywood Brown and Rondale Moore. Brown is off to a very good start this season with 30 catches for 339 yards and 2 touchdowns.
The Eagles will have a decision to make in this game. Darius Slay, who missed most of the last game with a forearm injury, is the guy who travels with top receivers. But is Brown worthy of that treatment? That’s a decision Jonathan Gannon will have to make. For the most part, Brown gets the bulk of his snaps on the left side of the field. Typically, James Bradberry plays on the right side of the Eagles’ defense unless Slay is traveling. So unless Slay travels in this game, it’ll be up to Bradberry to play Brown. Slay is great but Bradberry is no slouch. He’s been playing at a very high level.
Eagles guards vs. J.J. Watt, Zach Allen
The Cardinals are dead-last in the NFL in sacks this season. They have just four as a team. (The Eagles lead the league with 16.) But it’s notable that three of those four sacks have come from interior defensive linemen J.J. Watt (2) and Zach Allen (1), who are both off to good starts this season. Watt has more sacks but Allen has been very disruptive with 6 QB hits already.
While Landon Dickerson has been playing at an extremely high level, Isaac Seumalo was forced out of the last game with an ankle injury and was replaced by Sua Opeta. So keep an eye on this matchup on Sunday.
The Cards’ edge rushers are OK. They use Markus Golden and Dennis Gardeck out there. Both of them are speed guys, so a little switch-up after seeing a couple power edge rushers last week.
Jalen Hurts vs. Cardinals’ pass defense
We already established that the Cards have the fewest sacks in the NFL and their pass defense isn’t very good either. They have the 23rd-ranked pass defense in the NFL, giving up 255.8 yards per game through four weeks. The Cardinals’ starting cornerbacks are Byron Murphy and Marco Wilson. PFF ranks Murphy as the No. 49 CB in the league and Wilson as the No. 101 of 105 qualified players.
The Eagles are pretty much going to feel good about their receiver matchups going into every weekend, but there’s a chance for A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith to feast on Sunday. And Hurts will get to play in a dome after battling the elements in Philly in Week 4.
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