The Eagles are an incredible 2-1. The Rams are a disappointing 1-2. Someone will leave Sunday feeling less bad about themselves.
Football is not a meritocracy
Before the season started, I asked if new Sean Mannion led the offense would have complimentary players. We got our first look at an answer on Monday with a clear result: no, not at all.
Against the Titans, Darius Cooper had a great catch and run for 23 yards on 1st and 17, eventually scoring the game winning TD. He was outstanding on special teams. The head coach likes him. His reward? 4 snaps on offense against the Bears, fewer than Elijah Moore. Meanwhile, Makai Lemon played 35, a season high 70%. Tank Bigsby is the only skill position player to have played fewer snaps than Cooper. Will Shipley, EJ Jenkins, and Johnny Mundt all played double digit snaps on both special teams and offense. Cooper did it against the Titans.
Now that DeVonta Smith is set to miss a few games, Cooper should get the opportunity on offense that he deserves. There is no reason not to.
The red flag of the yellow flags
In my preview of the Rams, I noted that they had the best penalty differential in 2025, which is unlikely to repeat itself in 2026. The Eagles, incidentally, have the worst. Through three games, the Rams certainly haven’t repeated their success: they have the worst penalty differential, with -13 total penalties and -105 penalty yards. The Eagles are 18th.
Half of the Rams’ penalties came last week against the Broncos, but in each of their first two games their opponent had double that amount, so it wasn’t just a one-week thing. There is no guarantee that this trend will continue, if they have for a game in which they have a positive difference, but it is one reason for some why they are 1-2 to start their supposed dream season.
Lies, lies, and statistics
Nick Sirianni has never lost to Sean McVay, 4-0 against him. Since Sirianni became head coach, he has been more successful than McVay:
Wins: Eagles 2nd, Rams 10th
Scores: Eagles 6th, Rams 9th
Yards: Eagles 7th, Rams 9th
Super Bowl appearances: Eagles 2, Rams 1
Super Bowl wins: Eagles 1, Rams 1
College Football Watch List
12:00 – Alabama at Mississippi State
The 2027 QB draft class is so predictable that people are already in the 2028 class, which is also highly predictable. Mississippi State QB Kamario Taylor is already high on the radar next year. Bulldogs RB Fluff Bothwell (not his real name) is a dual threat RB making a name for himself. Alabama QB Keelon Russell is also on next year’s radar (neither he nor Taylor are draft eligible this year). For this person’s salvation Bray Hubbard is fun, a big hitter who can make plays, 8 INT and 4 FF.
3:30 – Ohio State at Iowa and Florida at Missouri
You won’t believe this but Iowa has several OL, TE, and safety prospects. Shocker, I know. All three are Eagles needs! RG Kade Pieper is one of the top interior lineman prospects, and LT Trevor Lauck one of the top OT prospects. At 6’5″ Lauck is smaller than teams, especially the Eagles. traditional as in OTs. Pieper has experience under center.