Schultz: Undefeated Eagles are built to last on both sides of the ball
Jalen Hurts is a bona fide MVP candidate and the 5-0 Philadelphia Eagles are the NFL's lone undefeated team.
If you polled a group of random football fans before the season and asked them which of those things was more likely, they might say neither. But such is life in the NFL.
Perhaps the most impressive element has been Philadelphia's balance. Sure, Hurts is playing like a man possessed, but so are his receivers, the offensive line, and his running back. Defensively, all three levels have stepped up.
"There's no easy way to defend them," one former NFL general manager told theScore.
With boatloads of splashy plays, it's also easy to mistake the Eagles' offense for a finesse unit. But at the core, their identity remains that of a physical, blue-collar running team - exactly the way GM Howie Roseman drew it up.
The one-two backfield punch of Hurts and Miles Sanders leads a dominant offense capable of a quick-strike approach or a methodical, 12-play drive.
"Everything you try to take away, there's a built-in counter with personnel and scheme," the former GM said.
In fact, with Hurts at the helm, the Eagles have amassed a record 92 second-quarter points - the most in NFL history through five games - and 68 more than their opponents. Equally impressive, they've yet to face a second-half deficit all season.
With the head coach/offensive coordinator pairing of Nick Sirianni and Shane Steichen fully synced up in Year 2, the Eagles also top the NFL with 58 explosive plays, a stat tracked internally and defined as either pass completions longer than 16 yards or rushes exceeding 10 yards. (Hurts ranks first with 42 himself.)
Sanders already has 414 rushing yards, which not only slots him fourth in the league but is the most by an Eagles player through five games since All-Pro LeSean McCoy in 2013.
When you add the game-breaking speed of DeVonta Smith, the sheer power and skill of A.J. Brown, and the talent of tight end Dallas Goedert, you begin to understand their sheer dominance.
Bottom line: With a potent ground game and a dynamic aerial attack, the Eagles rank second in total offense (419.8 yards per game) and fifth in scoring (27 points per game).
"Pretty complete team," a scout told me.
"You start going through each position and pretty quickly you realize there's no real weakness."
Buoyed by an elite secondary that's as physical as any other in the league thanks to its quartet of playmakers - Darius Slay, James Bradberry, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, and Marcus Epps - you can't exactly throw on Philadelphia either. Equally important, the secondary is opportunistic and takes full advantage of mistakes.
The defensive front - led by stalwarts Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham, free-agent acquisition Haason Reddick, and first-round draft pick Jordan Davis - has been very stout, accumulating 98 pressures in five games, according to PFF. That's second only to Dallas and San Francisco. During a Week 4 comeback win over the Jags, Reddick became the first NFL player in 17 years to record at least two sacks, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries in a game.
In turn, he's one of three Eagles to earn NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors this season. Slay won it in Week 2 and Graham in Week 3.
Pressures, as we know, often lead to turnovers. Naturally, the Eagles are tied with the Ravens and Bills for the league's most takeaways (11). Better yet, they rank second in opponent three-and-out percentage (43.4%), trailing only the lights-out Niners defense (43.6%).
"Reddick was one of the best signings of free agency," the scout said.
"He's really versatile and Jonathan (Gannon, the defensive coordinator) knows how to use him and I think trusts his instincts. Reddick's smart too. He moves around the field and knows how to rush with his speed and quickness."
Through the first five games of 2021, Philadelphia allowed 23.2 offensive points per game. Through the first five games of 2022, that number has dropped by more than a converted touchdown to 16 points.
Jordan Schultz is theScore's NFL insider and senior NBA reporter. Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.