NFL Insider Believes Eagles Could Be 'Team to Beat' in NFC This Season

NFL insider Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report thinks the Philadelphia Eagles could be the "team to beat" in the NFC this season. 

The Eagles traded A.J. Brown to the New England Patriots, freeing themselves from another season of the WR being a major distraction, and replaced Kevin Patullo with Sean Mannion, a former NFL QB who has already bonded with Jalen Hurts. 

"If trading in A.J. Brown and Kevin Patullo for Makai Lemon and Sean Mannion turns out to be the right approach, the Eagles will be the team to beat in the NFC," Gagnon wrote. 

The QB spot is the most important position in the NFL, so if Hurts plays well this season, the Eagles will be fine without Brown.

However, if Hurts struggles, Philadelphia will be in trouble. 

Hurts finished the 2025 season with 3,224 passing yards, 25 passing touchdowns, 421 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns. He completed 64.8% of his passes. Those aren't bad numbers at all. 

Philadelphia won the NFC East last season but lost to the San Francisco 49ers in the wild-card round of the playoffs at home. 

Hurts enters this season with 17,891 passing yards, 110 passing touchdowns, 3,554 rushing yards and 63 rushing touchdowns in his career. He's made the Pro Bowl three times and won Super Bowl LIX MVP. 

The Eagles signed Hurts to a five-year, $255 million extension in April 2023. However, there is little guaranteed money left on Hurts' deal after the 2026 season, so the QB is under pressure to play well this season. 

Mannion is Hurts' sixth play-caller since Hurts entered the NFL in 2020. Hurts and Patullo didn't have a good relationship, so, notably, Mannion and Hurts are on the same page thus far. 

"Jalen's been awesome," Mannion said. "I really think he can do anything we ask of him. He's accurate. He's a great athlete. He really attacks the fundamentals. That's what's been really fun to watch these last two weeks of Phase 2. He's always wanting more things to work on, wanting more things regarding fundamentals, timing, understanding the scheme. He's hungry for more. Those are the guys that are really fun to work with."

The Eagles open the 2026 season at home against the Washington Commanders. Let's see how Hurts and Mannion do in front of the home fans in their first game together.