The Eagles started off their 2016 season with a big 29-10 win over the Browns last weekend. Now, they have a chance to start the Carson Wentz era with a 2-0 record.
They’ll face a Bears team coming off a 23-14 loss to the Texans on the road. This will be the Bears’ first home game this season.
Here are five key matchups to watch on Monday Night Football:
Jalen Mills vs. Alshon Jeffrey
With Leodis McKelvin out with a hamstring injury, rookie seventh-rounder Jalen Mills will be on the field plenty Monday night. As soon as Mills entered the opener, Robert Griffin III and the Browns immediately attacked him. Bears veteran quarterback Jay Cutler is going to know where the rookie is at all times.
Now, the Eagles didn’t switch their corners much in Week 1, but they might want to think about having Nolan Carroll shading Jeffrey, who is by far the Bears’ biggest weapon. When asked about that possibility, defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz declined to talk about game plan.
Jeffrey had four catches for 105 yards last week in Houston. With Kevin White too, the Bears have two wideouts who are listed at 6-foot-3. One Eagle who knows White said he’s listed taller than he really is.
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Brandon Graham vs. Bobby Massie
Bears right tackle Massie struggled mightily against the Texans and outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus last week. Massie was ProFootballFocus’ 66th-best tackle out of 67 in Week 1. That’s saying something because there were only 64 tackles to start last week.
Last week, Connor Barwin worked against the left tackle, so it looks like Graham or Vinny Curry should get the first crack at Massie.
Schwartz thought his rotation at defensive end worked well in their limited defensive snaps in Week 1. He said to not look too much into Curry’s playing less than Barwin and Graham.
Eagles interior D linemen vs. Bears interior O linemen
While the Bears’ offensive tackles struggled in Week 1, Chicago does have two pretty good starting guards in Kyle Long and recently-acquired Josh Sitton. It should be fun watching Fletcher Cox and Bennie Logan go against those two guys.
There might be somewhat of a weakspot at center thanks to rookie Cody Whitehair taking over the position. The rookie from Kansas State is still learning the position in the NFL and didn’t get put there until recently, after the team signed Sitton.
But even with Whitehair, the Bears are much weaker on the edge than they are up the middle. That means it would probably be a good time to flip Cox outside and move Curry inside a few times Monday night.
Lane Johnson vs. Lamarr Houston
The Bears don’t have a great pass rush, but they do have a few guys who can get to the quarterback. The best of the bunch is likely Houston, who had eight sacks in 2015. Because the NFL hasn’t yet suspended Johnson, he’ll be able to face off against Houston on Monday night.
The Bears didn’t do a great job of getting to Brock Osweiler last week, bringing him down just twice. And that was with Texans starting left tackle Duane Brown out. The Eagles have a better tackle combo going this week.
Eagles receivers vs. Chicago secondary
This is going to be youth vs. youth. The Eagles are young at wideout and the Bears are pretty young in their secondary. Sure, the Bears have veteran Tracy Porter, but after that … a bunch of young guys.
In the Bears' Week 1 game vs. the Texans, Porter played every snap, while Jacoby Glenn was the other outside corner and Bryce Callahan was in the slot. While Porter is 30, Glenn, Callahan and Kyle Fuller, who might return, are all 24 or younger.
Sound familiar? Well, that’s because the Eagles’ wideouts are all 24 or younger too.
