It's hard to believe, but we are already onto the Week 2 edition of "Monday Night Football."
The Philadelphia Eagles play host to the Atlanta Falcons to wrap up the second week of the season, and the two teams are coming off wildly disparate results in their respective season openers. The Eagles hung on for a 34-29 win over the Green Bay Packers in Sao Paolo, Brazil, in the first-ever Friday night opening-week game, while the Falcons dropped a dispiriting game to the Pittsburgh Steelers by a final of 18-10.
Will the Eagles improve to 2-0? Will the Falcons bounce back? We'll find out soon enough. Before we break down the matchup, heres a look at how you can watch the game.
Where to watch
Date: Monday, Sep. 16 | Time: 8:15 p.m. ET
Location: Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia)
Channel: ESPN | Stream: fubo
Follow: CBS Sports App
Odds: Eagles -5.5; O/U 46 (via SportsLine consensus odds)
When the Falcons have the ball
High hopes for Atlanta's offense with Kirk Cousins at the helm were quickly dashed last week as the Falcons limped to just 226 total yards and 10 points in their season-opening loss to the Steelers. More concerningly, they could not run the style of offense many assumed they'd use, as Cousins seemingly couldn't operate from under center: he lined up in shotgun or pistol on 48 of 50 snaps, according to TruMedia. He also looked incredibly labored whenever forced to move off his spot. As ESPN's Ben Solak noted, Cousins moved an average of only 3.1 yards per dropback, the lowest mark of his career by more than a full yard.
Considering that Cousins is 36 years old and coming off a torn Achilles, it wouldn't exactly be surprising if he struggled to execute from under center, but a total inability to do so is not viable for much longer. Cousins has been at his best throughout his career when working the under-center play action passing game; and if the Falcons are unable to access that part of their offense, there are major concerns moving forward. That's especially true against an Eagles pass rush that looked at least slightly rejuvenated in Week 1, generating pressure on Jordan Love at an above-average rate. Cousins was also under pressure on over 40% of his own dropbacks, according to TruMedia, which is potentially a recipe for disaster.
It seems highly likely that the Falcons will at least attempt to lean on their Bijan Robinson-led running game in this one, and they could be better set up for success on the ground than through the air anyway. Josh Jacobs got going running the ball against the Eagles in the second half of their opener, and the 3.24 yards before contact per carry that Philly allowed in the game were the most in the league by nearly a half-yard, per TruMedia. If the interior of Atlanta's offensive line can move the line of scrimmage, Robinson has a chance to get rolling downhill and make things easier for Cousins and the passing game.
When Cousins looks downfield, his most favorable matchups are likely to come over the middle, which is where the offense is designed to go anyway. Philadelphia's linebackers struggle in coverage, and Kyle Pitts should have an athletic advantage against both them and safeties Reed Blankenship and C.J. Gardner-Johnson. Drake London, meanwhile, could see a whole lot of Darius Slay and Quinyon Mitchell on the outside. Darnell Mooney is a field-stretcher unlikely to see much volume in the passing game, and Ray-Ray McCloud has always been more of a threat in the return game than as a slot receiver.
Vic Fangio's defense is likely to encourage running plays and underneath throws, which could lead to the offense running through Robinson and Pitts.
When the Eagles have the ball
Philadelphia's offense will look considerably different on Monday night than it has for the past few years, as Jalen Hurts' No. 1 target -- A.J. Brown -- will be sidelined after suffering a hamstring injury in last week's practices. Brown lit up the Packers for five catches, 119 yards and a touchdown in Week 1, and has averaged 5.7 grabs for 87.8 yards since arriving via trade.
The Eagles do still have DeVonta Smith on their side, and his Week 1 usage was encouraging. Under new offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, Smith moved around the formation more often than he ever did in previous years, lining up in the slot on 54.1% of his snaps, via TruMedia. That's compared with slot rates of just 10.6%, 21.5% and 24.3% in his first three NFL seasons. Smith hauled in seven of his eight targets on the evening, notching 84 yards for his efforts. It will be more difficult to free him for catches on Monday than it was against the Packers because Brown won't be out there; but he should be able to avoid shadow coverage from Falcons corner A.J. Terrell, who rarely travels into the slot.
The Falcons last season were extremely vulnerable to tight ends, getting hit up for 100 catches for 1,042 yards (fourth-most in the league on both fronts) on throws to the position. This is a different defense with Raheem Morris at the helm, but his Rams unit also gave up 987 yards (sixth-most) and eight touchdowns (second-most) to tight ends last year. That could point toward increased involvement for Dallas Goedert, who is likely going to have to step up in Brown's absence anyway. Jahan Dotson and sixth-round pick Johnny Wilson will also presumably taken on larger roles; but Dotson only recently got to Philly and hasn't been much of a target earner, and Wilson is a sixth-round pick playing his second career game after logging just 10 snaps last week.
The Eagles, like the Falcons, may look to funnel things through their versatile running back. It was a banner debut for Saquon Barkley last week, with 24 carries for 109 yards and two touchdowns, along with two catches for 23 yards and another score. He's unlikely to see as many targets in Philly as he did in New York because Hurts often operates as his own checkdown due to his ability to make things happen with his legs, but Atlanta did give up 137 yards on the ground last week against Pittsburgh -- albeit on 41 carries for an average of just 3.3 a pop. The Eagles should be able to generate a better push up front than did the Steelers, though, so Barkley should be afforded more than the mere 0.71 yards before contact per carry the Falcons coughed up a week ago.
Philly would do well to rediscover the Hurts element of their run game, as his designed runs have not been nearly as fruitful since the midway point of last season as they were prior to that point. Justin Fields' three designed runs yielded 19 yards against the Falcons last week, and only the Raiders have allowed more designed-rushing yards to quarterbacks so far this season.
Prediction
Until we see the Falcons prove they can run a real offense with Cousins under center -- and actually under center -- it is difficult to put too much faith in them. That's especially true in a road game in a hostile environment, especially on Monday night, where Cousins is 3-10 in his career. Even with Brown sidelined, the Eagles offense has advantages it can press against Atlanta's defense, and the same cannot necessarily be said for the Falcons anywhere except perhaps the run game; but the predictability of that attack could work against it on Monday night.
Projected score: Eagles 24-16
Before locking in any Falcons vs. Eagles picks, make sure to check out the NFL predictions and betting advice from the SportsLine Projection Model. The model, which simulates every NFL game 10,000 times, is up well over $7,000 for $100 players on top-rated NFL picks since its inception. The model entered Week 2 of the 2024 NFL season on an incredible 184-130 run on top-rated NFL picks that dates to the 2017 season. It is also on a 38-22 roll on top-rated NFL picks since Week 7 of 2022.
