The Philadelphia Eagles won their first Super Bowl in franchise history last season, and there's little reason to believe the team can't repeat.
Nick Foles was the hero of Super Bowl 52, making it easy to forget that Carson Wentz was arguably the MVP front-runner before tearing his ACL in early December. While it remains unclear if he'll be ready for the start of the 2018 season, Wentz is an upgrade over Foles, even if the latter will never have to pay for a meal or beer in the city of Philadelphia again after his heroic Super Bowl performance.
General manager Howie Roseman was lauded for aggressively retooling the Eagles roster before last season, and it looks like he's done so again this year. There has been turnover, with players like Patrick Robinson, Vinny Curry, Torrey Smith, LeGarrette Blount and Trey Burton, among others, no longer on the team.
But Roseman has been busy, trading for defensive end Michael Bennett, re-signing key linebacker Nigel Bradham and adding defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, linebackers Paul Worrilow and Corey Nelson and wide receiver Mike Wallace in free agency.
Add in the fact that players like Wentz, 2017 second-round pick and cornerback Sidney Jones, middle linebacker Jordan Hicks and offensive tackle Jason Peters all missed significant time to injury last year, and the 2018 Eagles may actually be better than the 13-3 team from last year that won the Super Bowl.
These are heady times in Philadelphia, and even with teams like the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota Vikings improving this offseason, the Eagles are still prime candidates to win the NFC again in 2018.
Here is a look at the complete schedule for the Eagles in the 2018 regular season, per NFL.com.
Eagles' 2018 Schedule
Week 5: vs. Minnesota Vikings on Oct. 7 at 4:25 pm. ET on Fox
Week 6: at New York Giants on Oct. 11 at 8:20 p.m. ET on Fox/NFL Network
Week 8: at Jacksonville Jaguars on Oct. 28 at 9:30 a.m. ET in Wembley Stadium, London, on NFL Network
Week 9: BYE WEEK
Week 12: vs. New York Giants on Nov. 25 at 1 p.m. ET on Fox
Week 14: at Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 9 at 4:25 p.m. ET on Fox
Week 15: at Los Angeles Rams on Dec. 16 at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC
Week 17: at Washington Redskins on Dec. 30 at 1 p.m. ET on FOX
Philly's schedule won't be easy. While the Eagles are tied in 19th for the hardest 2018 schedule based on 2017 records, per John Breech of CBSSports.com, that doesn't account for the fact that many of the teams on their slate should be improved in 2018.
In the NFC East, for instance, the Dallas Cowboys won't be missing Ezekiel Elliott for a quarter of the season, and the New York Giants likely won't see the majority of the depth chart at wide receiver lost for the season to injury.
The Eagles have to play the loaded NFC South, which had three playoff teams in 2017 and a fourth in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that isn't exactly devoid of talent. Winning the division means matchups against the aforementioned Rams and Vikings, with the former loading up on defense this past season (welcome to Los Angeles, Marcus Peters, Aqib Talib and Ndamukong Suh) and the Vikings adding Kirk Cousins.
And matchups against the AFC South won't exactly be a walk in the park, either. The Jacksonville Jaguars are one of the most talented young teams in football. The Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts will get back Deshaun Watson and Andrew Luck, respectively. The Tennessee Titans are fresh off a postseason appearance.
Add it all up, and that's seven games against playoff teams from 2017. If the Eagles return to the postseason in 2018, they'll be battle-tested for sure.
Pivotal Matchups
As always, the matchups against the NFC East should be knock-down, drag-out affairs. Three of the Eagles' six games last year against NFC East opponents were decided by six points or fewer, and a fourth would have been were it not for Fletcher Cox's defensive touchdown with just over a minute remaining in a 30-17 season-opening win over Washington.
The Eagles should be heavy favorites to win the NFC East again, but that doesn't matter. NFC East games are almost always tight, and all three teams have talent. Yes, Washington will be adjusting to life with Alex Smith, the Giants were a disaster in 2017 and Dak Prescott appeared to take a step back last season.
On the other hand, both the Giants and Cowboys were playoff teams in 2016, and much of the talent from those teams is still in place. A full season of Elliott will be huge for Dallas. A full season of Odell Beckham Jr. and Brandon Marshall will be huge for the Giants (as will the signing of left tackle Nate Solder and the trade for linebacker Alec Ogletree). A full season of Jordan Reed would be huge for Washington if it ever happens.
The NFC East is not the class of the NFL as divisions go. That title probably belongs to the NFC South based on last season. But the Eagles will find no gimmes in their six divisional games, either, as the Cowboys should threaten for a playoff berth and the Giants are a sneaky pick to be 2018's most improved squad.
