Like all NFL teams, the 2020 Philadelphia Eagles face unique challenges this season due to COVID-19. We at DFO reached out once again to guest kommentator the Coronavirus for his thoughts on the Eagles and the upcoming season. 

Roni, welcome back! Our readers really enjoyed your interview with Ahmad Rashad and I’m sure they’ll be thrilled to hear your thoughts on the Eagles.

Thanks, that was fun for me too, and it’s nice to be back. You know, the Eagles have been among the most injured teams in the NFL the last few years, so I’m especially glad to be visiting their camp this summer. 

The Eagles have continuity this season, with the head coach, quarterback, and play callers on both sides of the ball returning. It’s been said that due to you, continuity is a key to this season. 

I’d have to agree. But I would caution anyone against assuming that continuity will last all season. I’ve already made Doug Pederson’s acquaintance, and with important players like Miles Sanders, Javon Hargrave, Andre Dillard, and Derek Barnett currently depleting their immune systems by fighting injuries, I might get to meet a lot more of the Eagles this year. 

That’s a great point, Roni. Do you think that NFL teams can last a 17-game season plus expanded playoffs without running afoul of you?

Well, I have to say that considering my influence on the baseball season so far, I might have something to say about football before all is said and done. I do admire the NFL’s commitment to the bit, though. They’re just proceeding as if I’m powerless against The Shield™, and most teams are even planning to have some fans in the stands. It’s often said that pride goeth before the fall. Well, I might not be that fast, but pride may goeth before the winter at the very least.

Roni, one of the key questions coming up for the Eagles is how to handle the tight end position. Zach Ertz is among the very best in the league, but he’ll command a huge contract next year after the signings of Travis Kelce and George Kittle. Dallas Goedert doesn’t get as much playing time, but on a per snap basis he is also a top-10 TE, a much better blocker, and is on a rookie contract. Should the Eagles re-sign Ertz, keep Goedert, or both? Eagles fans and, uh, my fantasy football team are eager to know!

It’s a real conundrum. I’d say that considering Dallas Goedert’s tendency to visit hick bars and get in fights with Florida Man during a pandemic, and Zach Ertz’s tendency to stand near Goedert, it can’t hurt to have two tight ends now, can it? 

It sure can’t, Roni, it sure can’t. Now, no Eagles preview would be complete without talking about QB Carson Wentz and his new weapons, chief among them first round WR Jalen Reagor. What do you expect to see from them this season? 

Well, Jalen Reagor is by all accounts having a great camp, and he’s a young, healthy man. According to cable news programs, only people over 90 years old that have diabetes, consumption, and an iron lung need fear me, so he should be fine. Carson Wentz, though, he’s an interesting one. He’s failed to finish each of the last three seasons due to some kind of freak malady. ACL, broken vertebrae, unpenalized spearing from Jadeveon Clowney, you name it. You didn’t hear it from me, but Coronavirus would slot in nicely with that bunch, don’t you think?

It’s time for final thoughts. Let’s hear how each of our three prognosticators see the Eagles doing in 2020!

Litre_Cola: If the season goes through I expect the Eagles to win the East, mostly just due to my pure hatred of the Cowboys. The Washington Football team is still a dumpster fire, and I really do not rate the Gints as I believe that they will run that poor bastard Barkley into the ground because I do not believe Daniel Jones is the answer. If Dakota Jesus gets hurt again then it no longer is bad luck, it’s that he is injury prone. They have improved the defense although the loss of Malcolm Jenkins hurts a bit. Not only was he a rock back there, he was a leader in the room and a diligent social activist. Adding Slay on the corner is a definite upgrade from whatever we rolled there last year. The major question is whether Miles Sanders can carry the load and if Desean and Alshon have anything left in the tank. 

Prediction: 9 – 7 and win the NFC East.

Why Eagles Why: It’s tough to predict anything this season, really. The Eagles’ season (for as long as it lasts) will hinge what the Cowboys look like as much as anything they do themselves. Everyone seems to be thinking this is the year the Cowboys finally break out and fulfill their potential, but it’s the same 8-8 team plus a rookie receiver and a worse defense. They’ll have to prove it. I see improvement for the Eagles in the secondary and the defensive line, regression from the offensive line, and everything else kind of the same. I’ll say they edge the Cowboys for the division and win a Wild Card game with Jalen Hurts before slinking back to quarantine.

10-6, win NFC East

Coronavirus: I think the Eagles are pretty good, maybe a little better than last year if you take into account regression to the mean for injuries (you shouldn’t, *wink*). I like them to win the NFC East, but at the risk of tooting my own horn, I think a full season is unlikely. I see the Eagles starting 3-0 (WAS, LAR, CIN) before a tough stretch (SF, PIT, BAL). Luckily for them, I only see the NFL season lasting a few games before some idiot brings girls to the team hotel or hits the club for “Lick My Face Night”. 

3-0, “win” NFC East, ranked #6 in the BCS