The 2018 season was the Philadelphia Eagles' 86th season in the National Football League (NFL), their 25th under the ownership of Jeffrey Lurie and their third under head coach Doug Pederson.
The Eagles entered the season as the defending champions of Super Bowl LII, when they defeated the previous defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots 41–33 and attempted to become the first team since the 2004 New England Patriots and the first NFC team since division rival 1993 Dallas Cowboys to repeat as Super Bowl Champions. They opened the season with the NFL Kickoff Game on September 6, beating the Atlanta Falcons 18–12. A vast majority of their Super Bowl-winning squad from the 2017 season was retained, although some notable losses included tight end Trey Burton (who contributed to the Philly Special in the Super Bowl), defensive end Vinny Curry, and cornerback Patrick Robinson. Franchise quarterback Carson Wentz, who had been injured late in the 2017 season, returned as a starter in Week 3, but a back injury would bump him down as the number 3 quarterback instead of being placed on injured reserve, and Nick Foles would start in his place for the remainder of the season. In addition, they lost defensive back Chris Maragos, who had been with the team since 2014, to retirement, and linebacker Joe Walker left to go to Arizona.
The Eagles struggled through the first three months of the season to a 4–6 record, with inconsistent play and multiple injuries to players such as safety Rodney McLeod and running back Jay Ajayi. With a 21–17 loss to the Carolina Panthers in Week 7, the Eagles failed to improve or match their 13–3 record from the previous season. The Eagles also made history in Week 11 with a 48–7 loss in New Orleans, the largest loss by a defending Super Bowl champion in league history. Despite this, the Eagles proceeded to win 5 of their last 6 games, including two division wins over the New York Giants and the Washington Redskins to move to 9–7. A three-game win streak to end the season which included upset wins over the Rams, Texans, and Redskins helped the Eagles make the playoffs with a Vikings loss to the Bears. This is the first time the Eagles made the playoffs in back to back seasons since the 2008–10 seasons.
The Eagles played in their first NFL Kickoff Game and their first game at London's Wembley Stadium in franchise history.
In the playoffs, the Eagles upset the third-seeded Chicago Bears 16–15 in the wild-card round to advance to the Divisional round, where they narrowly lost 20–14 to the top-seeded New Orleans Saints, ending their hopes of defending their Super Bowl title. The Eagles were the first defending champions to win a postseason game on the road since the 2004 Patriots.
Roster changes
Free agents Position Player 2018 team Notes DT Beau Allen UFA Tampa Bay Buccaneers Signed 3-year, $15 million deal RB Kenjon Barner UFA Carolina Panthers Signed 1-year deal OT Will Beatty UFA RB LeGarrette Blount UFA Detroit Lions Signed 1 year, $4.5 million deal LB Nigel Bradham UFA Philadelphia Eagles Signed 5-year, $40 million deal DE Bryan Braman UFA TE Trey Burton UFA Chicago Bears Signed 4-year, $32 million deal LB Dannell Ellerbe UFA LB Najee Goode UFA Indianapolis Colts Signed 1-year deal S Corey Graham UFA Philadelphia Eagles Signed 1-year deal CB Patrick Robinson UFA New Orleans Saints Signed 4-year, $20 million deal RB Darren Sproles UFA Philadelphia Eagles Signed 1-year, $1.415 million deal K Caleb Sturgis UFA Los Angeles Chargers Signed 2-year, $4.45 million deal S Jaylen Watkins UFA Los Angeles Chargers Signed 1-year deal Player re-signed by the Eagles
Signings Position Player 2017 team Date signed Notes LB Corey Nelson UFA Denver Broncos March 14 Signed 1-year, $2.25 million deal DT Haloti Ngata UFA Detroit Lions March 15 Signed 1-year, $2.6 million deal WR Mike Wallace UFA Baltimore Ravens March 22 Signed 1-year, $2.5 million deal LB Paul Worrilow UFA Detroit Lions April 3 Signed 1-year deal TE Richard Rodgers UFA Green Bay Packers April 4 Signed 1-year dealWR Markus Wheaton UFA Chicago Bears May 2 Signed 1-year dealQB Joe Callahan UFA Green Bay Packers May 7 Signed 2-year dealRB Matt Jones UFA Indianapolis Colts May 9 Signed 2-year dealLB LaRoy Reynolds UFA Atlanta Falcons May 15 Signed 1-year dealWR Kamar Aiken UFA Indianapolis Colts July 25 Signed 1-year dealWR DeAndre Carter UFA San Francisco 49ers July 28 Signed 1-year dealTE Gannon Sinclair UFA Jacksonville Jaguars August 5 Signed 1-year dealQB Christian Hackenberg UFA Oakland Raiders August 12 Signed 1-year dealWR Darius Prince N/A Philadelphia Soul August 18 Signed 1-year dealS Deshawntee Gallon UFA Arizona Cardinals August 27 Signed 1-year dealTE Anthony Denham UFA Arizona Cardinals August 28 Signed 1-year deal
Departures Position Player 2018 team Date Reason P Donnie Jones Los Angeles Chargers April 4 Released TE Brent Celek N/A March 13 Retired DE Vinny Curry Tampa Bay Buccaneers March 16 Released CB Daryl Worley Oakland Raiders April 15 Released LB Mychal Kendricks Seattle Seahawks May 22 Released WR Marquess Wilson TBA July 24 Released CB Randall Goforth TBA July 24 Released TE Adam Zaruba TBA August 11 Released LB Corey Nelson TBA August 26 Released
Trades March 14: The Eagles traded WR Marcus Johnson and a fifth-round draft pick in the 2018 NFL draft to the Seattle Seahawks for DE Michael Bennett and a 7th-round draft pick. March 14: The Eagles traded WR Torrey Smith to the Carolina Panthers for CB Daryl Worley. October 30: The Eagles traded a 2019 third-round pick to the Detroit Lions for WR Golden Tate.
Draft
Draft trades The Eagles traded their second-round selection (64th overall), first-, third- and fourth-round selections in 2016 (8th, 77th and 100th overall), and their first-round selection in 2017 (12th overall) to Cleveland in exchange for Cleveland's first-round selection in 2016 (2nd overall) and a fourth-round selection in 2017 (139th overall). The Eagles traded their third-round selection (96th overall) and wide receiver Jordan Matthews to Buffalo in exchange for cornerback Ronald Darby. The Eagles traded quarterback Sam Bradford to Minnesota in exchange for Minnesota's fourth-round selection (130th overall) and a first-round selection in 2017 (14th overall). The Eagles traded cornerback Eric Rowe to New England in exchange for a conditional fourth-round selection (131st overall). The Eagles traded a fourth-round selection (131st overall) to Miami in exchange for running back Jay Ajayi. The Eagles traded their seventh-round selection (250th overall) and offensive tackle Matt Tobin to Seattle in exchange for Seattle's fifth-round selection (156th overall). The two sides later returned these selections to each other with the trade of Michael Bennett The Eagles traded their first-round selection (32nd overall), and their fourth-round selection (132nd overall) to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for a 2nd-round draft pick (52nd overall), a fourth-round pick (125th overall), and a 2nd-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. The Eagles traded their second-round selection (52nd overall) and their fifth-round selection (169th overall) to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for a second-round draft pick (49th overall).
Undrafted free agents Player Position College Jeremy Reaves S South Alabama Josh Adams RB Notre Dame Toby Weathersby OT LSU Joe Ostman DE Central Michigan Dominick Sanders S Georgia Chandon Sullivan CB Georgia State Jordan Thomas CB Oklahoma Stephen Roberts S Auburn Bruce Hector DT South Florida Anthony MahoungouWR Purdue Asantay Brown LB Western Michigan Aaron Evans OT UCF Ryan Neal S Southern Illinois Ian Park OG Slippery Rock Danny Ezechukwu DE Purdue Tim Wilson WR East Stroudsburg Kyle Wilson LB Arkansas State Adam Reth DT Northern Iowa Jaboree Williams LB Wake Forest
Staff
Roster
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 Pittsburgh Steelers L 14–31 0–1 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 2 at New England Patriots L 20–37 0–2 Gillette Stadium Recap 3 at Cleveland Browns L 0–5 0–3 FirstEnergy Stadium Recap 4 New York Jets W 10–9 1–3 Lincoln Financial Field Recap
Regular season
Schedule On January 11, the NFL announced that the Eagles will play the Jacksonville Jaguars in one of the London Games at Wembley Stadium in London, England, with the Jaguars serving as the home team. It will be the Eagles' first appearance in the International Series. The game would occur during Week 8 (October 28), and will be televised in the United States. The exact date, along with network and kickoff time, were announced in conjunction with the release of the regular season schedule.
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 September 6 Atlanta Falcons W 18–12 1–0 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 2 September 16 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 21–27 1–1 Raymond James Stadium Recap 3 September 23 Indianapolis Colts W 20–16 2–1 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 4 September 30 at Tennessee Titans L 23–26 2–2 Nissan Stadium Recap 5 October 7 Minnesota Vikings L 21–23 2–3 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 6 at New York Giants W 34–13 3–3 MetLife Stadium Recap 7 October 21 Carolina Panthers L 17–21 3–4 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 8 October 28 at Jacksonville Jaguars W 24–18 4–4 Wembley Stadium Recap 9Bye 10 November 11 Dallas Cowboys L 20–27 4–5 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 11 November 18 at New Orleans Saints L 7–48 4–6 Mercedes-Benz Superdome Recap 12 November 25 New York Giants W 25–22 5–6 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 13 Washington Redskins W 28–13 6–6 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 14 December 9 at Dallas Cowboys L 23–29 6–7 AT&T Stadium Recap 15 December 16 at Los Angeles Rams W 30–23 7–7 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap 16 December 23 Houston Texans W 32–30 8–7 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 17 December 30 at Washington Redskins W 24–0 9–7 FedExField Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. Atlanta Falcons NFL Kickoff Game
The Eagles kicked off the 2018 season hosting Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons in a rematch of last year's Divisional Round. The Falcons struggles in the red zone continued as they were stopped on fourth and goal on their first drive. The Eagles, however, had struggles of their own being held scoreless until midway through the second when Jake Elliott kicked a 26-yard field goal to tie the game. The Falcons responded with a Matt Bryant field goal to take a 6–3 lead at the half. The Eagles offense finally found life midway through the third in a remake of the Philly Special with the reigning Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles catching a pass from Nelson Agholor on a trick play. A 1-yard TD run by Jay Ajayi gave the Eagles their first lead of the night. A couple of drives later, the Eagles defense came up big again with a Rasul Douglas interception that ended a potential scoring drive for the Falcons. However, Foles (who struggled for most of the game) return the favor after throwing an interception to Deion Jones. Atlanta took advantage and scored on a 9-yard TD run by Tevin Coleman to give them a 12–10 lead (Bryant missed the extra point). The Eagles scored with under 3 minutes left on an 11-yard TD run by Ajayi and converted a two-point conversion to take a 6-point, 18–12 lead. Ryan and the Falcons had one more shot to win the game but in a repeat of last year's playoff matchup, the game came down to the final play with the Eagles stopping the Falcons on five consecutive plays, with the last being an incomplete pass from Matt Ryan to Julio Jones.
The Eagles won a nailbiter and open the season with a 1–0 record for the seventh time in their last nine openers dating back to 2010. Despite the defense's outstanding game, the offense struggled mightily. Foles finished 19/34 with 117 yards and 1 interception. Atlanta and Philadelphia combined for 26 penalties by the end of regulation.
Week 2: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers