Philadelphia Eagles Fantasy Outlook: Jalen Hurts, AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith Show
As the season grows near it's time to start looking at each and every team in the league to find all the fantasy value you miss when looking at the league as a whole. We will be taking a look at all the key teams and players around the league. Now we kick off things in the NFC East with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Jalen Hurts has Limitless Upside
Throughout his college and now pro career, we have seen Hurts continue to improve as a passer year after year. There is no doubt that he is a guy who puts the work in to get better every offseason. Combine his work ethic with an elite supporting cast and unbelievable athleticism and you have a guy who can challenge Patrick Mahomes for the fantasy QB1 title. His ability to run and pass may be unmatched in the NFL today. He has crept up my rankings and is now my projected QB2. His price tag of a late second or early third-round pick is well worth it.
D'Andre Swift is the Guy to Draft in Philly
If a fantasy owner starts talking about Rashaad Penny and that one great month he had during his five years in the league it's hard to take them as anything other than a hopeless optimist. The guy can't stay on the field and is now 27 years old with an ever-expanding list of serious injuries on his resume. Draft him at your own risk, but we suggest you don't and let him be someone else's headache. If we are investing in an Eagles' rusher it's going to be D'Andre Swift. Granted, he hasn't exactly been the picture of health himself, nonetheless, he also hasn't suffered severe injuries like Penny and is three years younger. We also just believe he is a better player regardless. The Detroit Lions never gave him the shot he deserved to be a lead back. That opportunity could be there in Philly once Penny's season is over by Week 3. Running behind the best line in football won't hurt either.
Wide Receivers - A Dynamic Duo
The combination of AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith is the third-best duo in football behind only the Dolphins and Bengals. Brown is a sure-fire WR1 who should be drafted as high as the WR4 and no lower than the WR8. The question is how high is too high for Smith who is a WR2 on his own team. Based on his current ADP he is being drafted as the WR13. This isn't a bad pick, however, it is a bit high for us. We like him as more of a mid-range WR2 behind a few guys he's just ahead of. The next three players being drafted right behind him are Chris Olave, DK Metcalf, and Deebo Samuel. We could draft him as high as the WR14 behind Olave or as low as the WR22 just behind DeAndre Hopkins.
TE Goedert Provides Excellent Value in Drafts
Goedert is an excellent tight end and we believe being undervalued in drafts. His ADP has him being drafted as the TE7. We have him more in the TE4 or TE5 range. He should go before TJ Hockenson and well before Darren Waller. Our only debate is if we want Kyle Pitts or Goedert as our TE4. As of now, Goedert is being drafted 68th overall. That is a steal and you should snag him whenever he is sitting there for you. He's the last tight end being drafted in that second tier of TEs.
Philadelphia Eagles Breakout Player
We are going with Swift here. This is the year he becomes the back that fantasy owners have been waiting for him to be since he was drafted. The opportunity in Detroit wasn't there for him, but he could be in line for a monster year in Philly. No one should be surprised if he finishes as an RB1 this season. The talent and the situation are there for him to have a monster year.
Philadelphia Eagles Fantasy Sleeper
Honestly, we don't see a sleeper emerging from this team without an injury. They are built solid with very defined roles and studs in their starting positions. The only thing we could say is, if Hurts were to go down this is a system that Marcus Mariota could potentially excel in and be serviceable as a QB2. We know that's not overly exciting, but we aren't just going to throw something out there for the sake of throwing it out there and mislead our readers into drafting Kenneth Gainwell or Olamide Zaccheaus for extra clicks.
