Carson Wentz and the Eagles are about to show the NFL who they really are
By Josh Hill
The Philadelphia Eagles trucked the Denver Broncos on Sunday, and Carson Wentz made his case for MVP.
Imagine going back to the beginning of the season and taking out a ticket in Vegas. On that ticket, you have the Philadelphia Eagles as the best team in the NFL entering Week 10. As a kicker, Carson Wentz is penciled in as the MVP of the league.
What would have sounded asinine at the time, is now a reality. After dropping the hammer of the gods on Denver, Philadelphia has the best record in the league and perhaps the best quarterback as well.
It’s now very safe to say that the Eagles are the real deal. Philly’s only loss of the season came against the Chiefs. Beyond that, it’s been a season of total control for the Eagles and that’s showing no signs of slowing. They’ve already swept the Redskins and put away a good Panthers team on national television.
The only knock against the Eagles at this point is the strength of schedule. It could be argued that the only good team Philadelphia has played this year was the Chiefs, a game the Eagles lost. Two of Philly’s three quality wins came against the same team. The win over Denver counts as half credit since the Broncos are only half a team.
Philly will have a chance to prove what kind of team it is with the upcoming stretch in the schedule. On the other side of Philly’s bye week awaits matchups with the Cowboys, Seahawks, and Rams. Throw a potential trap game against the Bears in there and the schedule isn’t as soft as it was the first half of the year.
That’s no reason to doubt Philly. Starting the year 8-1 is no easy feat, and a lot of the credit for success falls at the feet of Carson Wentz. A year ago he wasn’t taken completely seriously as a franchise quarterback and now he’s in the running for MVP. Wentz threw four touchdowns against the Broncos stout defense on Sunday, needing less than 200 yards to do it. Through nine weeks, Wentz has thrown the most touchdowns and is third in passing yards. His 19-to-5 touchdown-to-interception ratio is night and day from where many thought he’d be in his second season as a pro.
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Doug Pederson has tapped into something special, and the Eagles are indeed flying. Aside from Wentz, the offense got better at the trade deadline by adding Jay Ajayi and the defense is one of the best in the league. Everything is coming together for Philly, a team now leading the ‘ahead of schedule’ charge.