Moore happy with run-first offense but knows challenge is coming

The Eagles have found their offensive identity since the bye week.

This is now a run-first team.

That doesn’t mean that there won’t be games down the stretch where they need to air it out to win; there will be. But it’s clear that they’re prioritizing the run game right now behind the strength of their offensive line and star running back Saquon Barkley.

Has this season changed Kellen Moore as a play-caller?

“Every year, your team is going to be structured differently,” the Eagles offensive coordinator said on Tuesday. “I think it's important for us to build how we want to play based off the identity and the players that we have. Our guys have done an awesome job. We have run the ball a number of times the last few weeks, and that's become a big confidence thing for us. 

“But we know we are going to have to play different styles throughout the season. There's going to come a time when we have to throw the football and people are going to be very committed to it. We're going to have a challenge at some point, but it's something we believe in and want to continue to emphasize.”

During the bye week, a few offensive linemen approached Nick Sirianni to present a plan to run the ball more and the head coach was receptive of the suggestion. Pardon the pun, but they’ve run with it.

In the six games since the bye week, the Eagles lead the NFL with 244 rushing attempts. No. 2 on the list is the Lions with 194. The difference between 1 and 2 on the list is the same difference as 2 and 17.

During this stretch, the Eagles also lead the NFL with 1,198 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns while still staying in the top five in rushing average at 4.9 yards per attempt.

What has been most impressive about the Eagles’ rushing attack is how much Moore is willing to stick with it even when it doesn’t appear to be working. Against the Commanders last Thursday night, the Eagles had 117 of their 228 rushing yards in the fourth quarter.

After some early struggles, they stuck with it and Barkley busted two long touchdown runs to help the Eagles take down the Commanders 26-18.

“We have been fortunate in a number of games this year where eventually those big plays happen,” Moore said. “Whether it be at New Orleans, where it's kind of ugly, ugly, ugly, and eventually a couple pop. Cleveland was one where none of them really ever popped, and you're kind of stuck there. You don't quite get those.

“But I think our guys have a strong commitment to it. They feel really confident that we just keep getting after it, keep giving ourselves opportunities. Eventually we're going to steal something at the end and we were able to get those in this game as well.”

The Eagles’ 244 rushing attempts are the most in the NFL in a six-game span since … the Eagles in 2021. And just like in 2021, the Eagles in 2024 had to reenvision their offense to maximize production.

Of course, if this offense is going to reach its ceiling, it’ll need to be more productive and efficient through the air. And some that might happen naturally. You’d have to imagine with all this success on the ground, opposing defenses are going to start to really load the box against the Eagles.

“Any time your rushing attempts are that high, naturally it will be a focus for defenses,” Moore said. “We have to play good adjustment football. We’ve got to understand that teams will give you different challenges, different presentations, and we’ve got to be able to adjust throughout the game.

“Washington, credit to those guys. I thought they made some adjustments coming into our game on a short week. Gave us some looks we had not seen previously by them. And I think our guys did a really, really good job as the game went, hanging in there, hanging with it, making the adjustments we need to make. And then [we were] able to make some plays as the game progressed.”

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