Make or Breaks for 2022 and What Needs to be Done?

     Today, OTAs began which means we are getting closer and closer to that week 1 kickoff! But, today I want to talk about who the make or breaks for the Eagles this year are and what their expectations for the 2022 NFL season are. First off, we have obviously drastically upgraded our roster this offseason and we should be contending for a Super Bowl run in the next couple of years. But, let's start listing some players who are make and breaks:

1. Miles Sanders

[Kirby Lee - USA Today Sports]

    First off, Miles Sanders is still pretty young and is going into his 4th NFL season with the Eagles. A second round pick from the 2019 Draft, Sanders has shown a lot of potential and has shown lots of talent in his time with the Eagles. But, it's getting to the stage where he should be getting past that "young"/rookie type of stage and he needs to really show his true potential. This is why I think this year is a make or break for Sanders. I also do think that the Eagles acquired good backfield depth in the past couple of years in the case where Sanders "busts". This year is also the last year of his rookie contract and he will probably demand more money after this season, which, depending on his performance, I think the Eagles will either cut him or re-sign him. Worst case, we have to cut him, but to be honest, I'd be completely fine with that. Last year our team showed that we could run the ball when needed and we have a lot of depth at the RB position and we still have Hurts who has shown he can be a mobile quarterback. I think regardless of if he stays on the team or not, the Eagles backfield will stay elite.

2. Jalen Hurts

[USATSI]

    Yep, you and I both knew that this was coming. I do think Jalen Hurts is the future and that he will "make" it this season rather than "breaking" it. Though, the primary reason for this is that, the Eagles have upgraded so much this offseason. The O-Line has and will stay elite and the receiving core improved A TON! If Hurts can't prove his worth this season, then it may be better off to trade him and try to draft a QB in next year's draft. Though, Hurts does still have 2 years left in his rookie contract, but I would think that we'd need a QB ready to lead a team that will be contending for a Super Bowl run at that time. I do really hope that the kid does it since I think that we can all agree he is over hated by many NFL analysts. I also do think he will since he's proven to be a leader and it's been seen on social media that he has been working out a lot in the offseason.

3. K'Von Wallace/Marcus Epps

[Marcus Epps, photo by Yong Kim]

[K'Von Wallace, Eagles]

    Yes, I chose two players for this and the reason being, I think that one of them needs to step up to save the safety position in our secondary. Now, this is all negated if Jessie Bates ends up on the Eagles come August. But, it doesn't look like that's gonna be happening as of now. Both of these guys are young, Epps on the last year of his rookie contract and Wallace has one more year (after 2022 season) on his. Right now, the team has a gaping hole at this position and while some have looked to Howie to fix this. I think that it isn't completely unreasonable to see a pop-off season happen for at least one of these guys. I do think that it may ultimately have to be their job to step up and be a key piece to the Eagles secondary this year.