Steelers Scouting Report: Philadelphia Eagles, Week 15
Steel City Underground scouts the Pittsburgh Steelers’ opponents each week of the 2024 NFL regular season ahead of the games to inform fans of the latest news, roster moves, important players, and latest social media chatter.
The Pittsburgh Steelers (10-3) will be on the road Sunday, December 15, at Lincoln Financial Field to face the Philadelphia Eagles (11-2) in the latest battle for Pennsylvania in Week 15 of the 2024 NFL regular season. The Eagles have already secured a spot in the NFL playoffs by taking control of their division, and the Steelers would punch their ticket without the aid of any other team if they exited Philly as victors. We look at key factors and players in this matchup, scouting out the potential outcome.
It starts with Hurts
As the Eagles quarterback, Jaylen Hurts, a two-time Pro Bowl player, has attempted less passes this season than his previous two, but has improved his accuracy. As a dual-threat QB, he presents a challenge to opposing defenses with his ability to get mobile; he has run for 544 yards and 13 touchdowns.
The Steelers defense has faced Lamar Jackson and Jayden Daniels this season – both quarterbacks that have great mobility – and found a way to limit both of them from piling up rushing yards against them. They held Jackson to just four carries for 46 yards and Daniels to three runs for 4 yards.
Both of those games were close, score-wise, and Pittsburgh would do well to not get themselves into another messy situation this late in the season.
In the midst of rumors that Hurts and receiver A.J. Brown are at odds, despite both players refuting those claims, the Eagles passing game has not been a stellar part of their offense of late. Against the Carolina Panthers, Hurts was guilty of missing reads and holding on to the ball too long, throwing for a season-low 108 yards.
“Obviously this past game, from a production standpoint, the passing game, obviously, is something that we’d love to grow on,” offensive coordinator Kellen Moore said this week, “and I think we got excellent opportunities to grow it in that capacity.”
Hurts began the season with a high turnover margin, but reeled that in ever since the Eagles’ bye week, but the last game Hurts threw for over 250 yards was against the Cleveland Browns in October. He is leading an offense that has become known for slow starts.
Great win, but It’s time to have an Uncomfortable Conversation about the Eagles passing game.
If we can’t be honest about this, we can’t be honest about anything. pic.twitter.com/wM34X6112o
— Emmanuel Acho (@EmmanuelAcho) December 8, 2024
The question, then, is what Hurts will do if Pittsburgh – a defense that has held top rushers around the league to lower numbers against them – is able to corral Saquon Barkley. Can Hurts pass his way to a win if the Eagles become one-dimensional on offense? Can he carry that load against a Steelers defense that will be turning T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith loose off the edge and a defensive backfield that includes Minkah Fitzpatrick, Joey Porter, Jr. and a supporting cast that have a +15 turnover margin?
“They’ve got a great player over there in T.J. Watt and then Minkah – all-around safety, all-around defensive back. The culture they have, you feel it. Their coach (Mike Tomlin) is amazing with what he does and how he leads. It’ll be a battle,” Hurts said earlier in the week in regards to the matchup. “We have to be ready.
Eagles D is dominant
They say defense wins championships, and it certainly has for many NFL teams. Philly is currently fielding a defense at the top of the league, and that has kept the team in games, even when their offense hasn’t flown as Eagles fly.
The Eagles defense is young. The average age is just under 26. They are fielding the No. 1 defense in yards per reception, No. 3 in receiving yards, and No. 5 in receiving touchdowns. Vic Fangio has them clicking.
Whether Zack Baun and Nakobe Dean are wrecking things from the linebacker position or Quinyon Michell and Cooper DeJean are roaming the defensive backfield making plays with Darius Slay and Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, the Eagles aren’t blinking any more than the Steelers are at this point in the season. Jalen Carter owns the defensive tackle spot and is predicted to be awarded first-team All Pro at the end of the season.
The Steelers offense has been tested this season, but the Eagles will present a big challenge to Russell Wilson and company this weekend.
Trench warfare
Football is won by gaining inches, and the Week 15 game will feature battles in the trenches unlike many this season for the Steelers and Eagles.
Pittsburgh’s defense has allowed just five teams to rush for more than 100 yards in a single game this season. The Eagles are pitching Barkley, who has rushed for over 100 yards in nine games, against that brick wall and hoping he’ll find a crack in the masonry.
“They create pressure and they do it in a lot of ways,” Eagles guard Landon Dickerson said this week. “They’re just really good. They like to come after you from the start of the game until the end, so it’s a great challenge. Looking forward to it.”
“They’ve got some big dudes over there,” Steelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward admitted in an interview this week. “They have a cohesiveness, whether it’s (Jordan) Mailata, Lane Johnson, Landon Dickerson, (Cam) Jurgens, (Mekhi) Becton. They play well together, and they create some big lanes. You look at the run game and you say Saquon got some big holes.”
If you are looking for a hard-fought, white knuckle, head to head game, the Keystone State game on Sunday should provide just what you’re needing. The team that wins the trenches, earning more inches than their opponent, should be the team that comes out on top in this affair.
