Eagles-Browns player matchups to watch in Week 6

Eagles-Browns player matchups to watch in Week 6 originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Eagles (2-2) return from their bye week to host the Cleveland Browns (1-4) at Lincoln Financial Field at 1 p.m. on Sunday.

Here are some key matchups to watch:

Eagles receivers vs. Browns’ depleted secondary

The Eagles are expecting to get back A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith this week. That’s obviously a huge boost for an offense that needs it. Brown missed the last three games with a hamstring injury and Smith missed the Buccaneers game with a concussion. Without them, this offense just lacked juice. The Eagles go into pretty much every week feeling like they have an advantage with their top wideouts against the other team’s corners and that is no different against the Browns.

Especially if Denzel Ward can’t play. The Browns’ Pro Bowl cornerback had to leave Cleveland’s Week 5 game with a hamstring injury. So that’s something to monitor heading into the weekend. The Browns will also a young duo of safeties in this game in D’Anthony Bell and Ronnie Hickman as well as veteran and former Eagles safety Rodney McLeod. They have been without Juan Thornhill since Week 2 because of a calf injury and then Grant Delpit suffered a concussion. McLeod suffered a face laceration during the Browns’ Week 5 loss to the Commanders but was able to return to the game.

Jordan Mailata, Lane Johnson vs. Myles Garrett, Za’Darius Smith

The Browns just aren’t a very good team right now having lost their last three games. But they do have two very good edge rushers, one of whom is the reigning Defensive Player of the Year. Garrett has been dealing with some injuries early this season but the five-time Pro Bowler has been able to play through them and has 4 sacks, 8 QB hits and 4 TFLs in 5 games. So it’s not like these injuries have really slowed him down. Garrett has played way more on the right side of the Browns’ defensive line this season, which sets up a matchup against Mailata. The Eagles’ veteran left tackle is playing extremely well in 2024. Mailata has given up just 1 sack and 7 hurries in 163 pass blocking snaps this season. PFF ranks him as the third-best tackle in the NFL this season behind just Terron Armstead and Trent Williams. Mailata has never faced Garrett in a game but he did spend time with him during and after joint practices in 2022 and 2023.

Who does PFF rank as the 4th best tackle in the NFL? His teammate Lane Johnson. While Johnson missed the Bucs game in Week 4 with a concussion, he has been his usual All-Pro self this season. PFF hasn’t charged him with a single pressure in 92 pass blocking snaps this season. In this game, he’ll mostly see the 32-year-old veteran Smith, who has 3 sacks in 5 games after having 5 1/2 in 16 games last season.

Saquon Barkley vs. poor run defense

So far this season, Barkley has been everything the Eagles hoped he would be. Through four games, Barkley has 435 rushing yards and is averaging 6.0 yards per carry. He is a true do-it-all back and the Eagles have leaned on him early in this season. This could be another chance for him to shine on Sunday.

The Browns have given up 708 rushing yards in five games this season and are giving up 5.0 yards per attempt, which ranks 29th in the NFL. Against the Commanders in Week 5, they gave up a season-high 215 yards. And they’re giving up chunk plays on the ground. They have surrendered 23 runs of 10+ yards this season, which is the second-most of any team in the NFL. They’ve also given up 1.08 rushing yards over expected per carry this season — Barkley has been fantastic creating extra yardage in 2024.

Eagles pass rush vs. Browns’ depleted offensive line

The Browns have given up an NFL-high 26 sacks and lead the league in sack rate at 12.8%. DeShaun Watson has been pressured on 40.5% of his drop backs in 2024, which is third in the league behind Jacoby Brissett (50%) and Will Levis (45.9%).

Some of the pressure is certainly on Wastson but he’s also been playing behind an offensive line that has dealt with injuries and has been pretty bad. Jedrick Wills returned to action in Week 5 after missing some time but center Ethan Pocic (knee) got hurt in that game and right tackle Jack Conklin (hamstring) has missed time recently too.

Overall, the Browns have given up 88 total pressures this season. Four different players have given up double digits:

C Ethan Pocic: 17

T James Hudson: 15

T Dawand Jones: 15

G Joel Bitonio: 13

If Conklin isn’t back for this game, then Jones will be the starter at right tackle again. That is a problem for Cleveland. Jones ranks 70th in the NFL out of 78 qualified tackles, according to PFF.

Could this be the game where Bryce Huff finally makes an impact? Could this be the game where the Eagles’ pass rush finally gets after a quarterback? It’s very possible. But if it doesn’t happen, then there’s a major problem.

Eagles run defense vs. Jerome Ford

The Browns’ passing attack has been a mess but it’s not like they’re running the ball very well either. Nick Chubb, who suffered a gruesome injury in Week 2 last season, is nearing a return. But he hasn’t played in over a calendar year so even if this is the game he returns, it’s probably not fair to have huge expectations.

As a team, the Browns are averaging just 96.6 yards per game, which ranks 27th in the league. They’re middle of the pack (18th) in EPA per rushing play. Jerome Ford has been solid. Without Chubb, their top rusher has been Ford, who has 250 yards on 48 attempts (5.2) and is seventh in the NFL in rushing EPA but 26th in success rate.

The Eagles have struggled against the run this season so this is a chance for them to get some stops. They have given up 5.0 yards per carry this season, which ranks 28th in the NFL.

Deshaun Watson vs. expectations

There’s no way around it — Watson has been bad. The Browns went all-in on Watson a couple years ago and it is a complete disaster. If they hadn’t paid him a $230 million deal, Watson would probably be benched right now.

Once a three-time Pro Bowler, Watson looks like a shell of his former self. In five games this year, Watson has completed just 60.2 percent of his passes for 842 yards with 5 touchdowns and 3 interceptions and a career-low passer rating of 74.8. He hasn’t had a passer rating above 85 in 2022, 2023 or now 2024 with the Browns after going over 100 in three of his first four seasons in the NFL.

Watson’s EPA/drop back this season is 31st out of 32 starting quarterbacks. The only guy below him is Tennessee’s Will Levis.

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