Good Morning, Eagles fans! On Sunday, 26 other teams opened their 2018 regular season. The Eagles remain on top of the NFC East, tied with Washington at 1-0 as the Redskins beat the Cardinals, the Giants lost to the Jaguars, and the Cowboys lost to the Panthers. The Eagles have been in Week 2 mode since Friday but the rest of the league will join them after two games tonight. Here's what you need to know in today's Morning Roundup presented by Microsoft.
1. Taking Notice of Tampa
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, fresh off a 5-11 season, shocked the NFL on Sunday by going into the Superdome and winning a shootout against Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints 48-40. Backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick led the way as Jameis Winston remains suspended.
The Eagles will travel to Tampa on Saturday for the Bucs' home opener. After Sunday, Eagles' Insider Dave Spadaro explains that the Eagles recognize that Week 2's matchup will be no cakewalk:
All of this is a reminder of just how unpredictable the NFL can be, particularly early in the season. Who gave Tampa Bay a chance at New Orleans? Who thought that a Tampa Bay offense minus Winston could outscore the power of Brees, running back Alvin Kamara, and the terrific Saints offense? In New Orleans, one of the most intimidating stadiums in the league?
"They're a good offense with weapons," head coach Doug Pederson said of the Buccaneers when we talked in studio on Friday.
2. MMQB Shoutout
Albert Breer commended the Eagles' ability to find ways to win games in this week's "MMQB" (Monday Morning Quarterback):
What I liked about the Eagles on Thursday: It was ugly for a while, and they rode their defense, until the offense got the running game in gear, and they just found a way - which illustrates how they're a team that wins by a lot of different means. That's a great sign for Philly, and coach Doug Pederson agreed when I asked him about it on Thursday. "There are a lot of ways to win a football game. That's a great thing, because until all three phases catch up and click, it's great to see the defense step up, and it's great to see the offense make some plays in the second half, the special teams cover some kicks, [punter] Cam [Johnston] kicked the heck out of the football tonight. It's coming. it's a slow process, but we've got some time and we'll keep working."
3. Beating The Best
In his weekly column "Football Morning in America" with NBC Sports, Peter King wrote about the under-the-radar success Foles and the Eagles have had against great teams in the NFL:
We won't award style points here, but it is worth noting that in his last four games - against 11-6 Atlanta, 14-3 Minnesota, 15-3 New England and 0-0 Atlanta - Nick Foles is 4-0, with a 68.6 completion percentage and a 99.9 rating.
