Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles will be in a bird fight against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 of the 2021 NFL season. Which team will fly higher and snatch a victory right out of the gate? Check out our preview of this game below.
The keys to the Eagles’ offense are in the hands of Jalen Hurts. This time, he’s got no real competition under center and will start for Philly right out of the gate. A dual-threat quarterback, there should be a significant change in the way the Eagles move the chains than when they had Carson Wentz. Hurts gave the Eagles’ attack a shot in the arm in the games he started in 2020 and this time, he’s going to do it again with a better receiving corps — bannered of course, by his former teammate at Alabama and the most recent winner of the Heisman Trophy, wide receiver DeVonta Smith. With Jalen Reagor, Greg Ward, Dallas Goedert as the other targets downfield for Hurts, the Eagles shoulds be able to find gaps on Atlanta’s defense that was against the pass in 2020.
The over is 3-1 in the Eagles’ last four games overall.
The Falcons’ Super Bowl window with Matt Ryan under center is getting slimmer. But at least, they have a stable situation under center. Ryan should have fun throwing the ball downfield this season. Even with the departure of Julio Jones, the Falcons remain talented in the passing attack. Calvin Ridley should have a huge season while Russell Gage and Olamide Zaccheaus have good breakout potential. Speaking of potential, rookie tight end Kyle Pitts is expected to play a huge role for Atlanta’s offense that was fifth in passing yards per game (272.7) last year. Ryan can have a good day slicing through Philly’s shaky defense that has yet to prove it has actually improved over the offseason. The defense looks deeper this time around too for Atlanta.
The Falcons are 3-1 against the spread in their last four home games.
