Broncos-Eagles scouting report: Bo Nix faces massive test vs. Vic Fangio’s defense in Philadelphia

Broncos - at Eagles - When a m Sunday Where Lincoln Financial Field Philadelphia Pa TV radio CBS AM FM Broncos-Eagles series Denver s only won once in seven tries at Lincoln Financial Field as the Broncos face an incredibly tough test on Sunday The Broncos are - all-time in matchups against the Eagles last dropping a event - in November when now-Eagles DC Vic Fangio was the head coach In the spotlight Bo Nix faces Vic Fangio defense in massive early test If you ask Vic Fangio the Broncos second-year quarterback is a heck of a lot like the one the Eagles just played Baker Mayfield I think he might be Baker s younger brother Fangio now the Eagles defensive coordinator explained Monday Really good Really really good It s a fairly apt comparison Mayfield the Tampa Bay Buccaneers fiery -year-old Pro Bowler stands -foot- and pounds Bo Nix the Broncos fiery -year-old QB stands -foot- and pounds Both fall somewhere in the vague realm between on-time event manager and creative shot-taker It s unclear if such a comparison will end up being a compliment though after the Eagles just held Mayfield to a completion percentage and an quarterback rating in a Philadelphia win last Sunday He s a scrambler Fangio announced of Nix He s a competitor He ll throw the ball in tight places He runs their offense really well I think Sean s done a great job bringing him along And they got their quarterback for the future They looked long and hard for countless years and they ve got one Fangio of class knows as well as anyone In Fangio s three years as the Broncos head coach from - Denver cycled through six starting quarterbacks Those were the days of a not-yet-reborn Joe Flacco and the weirdness of Drew Lock Brandon Allen and Jeff Driskel Payton discovered his offensive leader in the first round in after Fangio identified the Broncos current defensive leader Pat Surtain II in the first round in Now after an inconclusive four-game start to Nix attempts into one of the majority crucial moments of his early Broncos career Head-to-head with the Super Bowl champions Head-to-head with a Fangio defense that tormented Patrick Mahomes himself last February Head-to-head with -plus roaring Philadelphians Here s the thing The Eagles defense has looked considerably more vulnerable through four games this season despite a - start They stiffen in the red zone tied for the fewest red-zone TDs allowed of any NFL unit thus far when the field tightens and their playmakers shine Inside linebacker Zack Baun has been worth every penny of a million March extension racking up nine pressures as a blitzer and allowing just yards on targets in coverage Quinyon Mitchell is rounding into one of the best young cornerbacks in the match not named Pat Surtain II surrendering a catch rate early in When the field lengths though the Eagles are vulnerable Philadelphia s allowed the second-most average yards on deep balls thus far this season according to Next Gen Stats And they haven t been able to consistently pressure quarterbacks on such looks Fangio s defense sits in the middle of the league in pressure rate and near the bottom of the league in total sacks I don t think our rush has been bad Fangio reported Monday The ball s been coming out pretty quick at times I haven t felt an epidemic during the games when I m calling them that our rush isn t good enough Nix ripped a -yard shot to Marvin Mims Jr against the Bengals in Week one of his the majority impressive throws of the year Still his deep-ball accuracy has been an early talking point If Payton s play-calling opens up opportunities against Philadelphia Nix can t afford to miss them It s going to be a challenge to find explosive plays but at the same time it s not getting bored continuing to do the same stuff over and over throughout the encounter Nix reported Thursday When it s there you also have to be able to hit it They ll give us our opportunities we ve got to hit it But at the same time we re going to have to work for them Who has the edge When Broncos run Sean Payton unlocked a two-back effectiveness against the Bengals that he d never quite located in his two previous seasons in Denver and the Broncos ground attack is suddenly rolling They re fifth in the NFL in average rushing yards per encounter Veteran back J K Dobbins has answered the bell at every call and rookie RJ Harvey added yards on carries Monday night The Eagles defense has allowed the seventh-highest yards per carry in the league thus far but this area gets engaging if linebacker Nakobe Dean tackles last year is healthy again Sunday Slight edge Broncos When Broncos pass Vic Fangio made the joke this week that every rookie you start equates to one loss The Eagles though are rolling with second-round pick Andrew Mukuba at safety He s largely been solid to start his NFL career but he got torched for a -yard touchdown last week Philadelphia has solid cornerback play in Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean but sits right in the middle of the league in pass defense thus far Edge Even When Eagles run The follow-up to a league-altering Super Bowl rushing attack has been fine All-world back Saquon Barkley has averaged yards a carry thus far and is going for just a pop on between-the-tackles runs But the Eagles have still run for seven touchdowns on the ground and the Jalen Hurts Tush Push remains as lethal as ever Edge Eagles When Eagles pass You re in a tough early-season spot when your WR is quoting scripture about not being welcomed after catching two balls on nine targets A J Brown has been fully neutralized in all but one of the Eagles four contests this season at the moment averaging fewer than yards a battle Hurts has been remarkably efficient as a thrower but the Broncos just shut down arguably the best receiving tandem in the league last week in the Bengals Ja Marr Chase and Tee Higgins Edge Broncos Special teams Fangio went on a diatribe this week about how the NFL s new kicking rules teams being allowed unlimited time to break in balls have drastically changed field goals around the league Eagles kicker Jake Elliott apparently won t complain though as he s of on kicks longer than yards this year Philadelphia meanwhile has blocked three combined field goals or punts in just the last two games This could be a bloodbath Edge Eagles Coaching Sean Payton s play-calling popped in Week against the Bengals and the shift to full series for Dobbins and Harvey manifested clear self-evaluation Vance Joseph s defense meanwhile was allergic to letting the Bengals across midfield for most of of the event For all the combined years of experience there though Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni is at present piloting a football squad that is - in its last games and has overachieved in relative to yardage ranks Edge Eagles Tale of the tape Broncos Eagles Total offense th th Rush offense th th Pass offense th st Points per tournament T- th th Total defense th nd Run defense th st Pass defense T- th T- th Points allowed T- nd T- th By the numbers Passing attempts since Jalen Hurts last threw an interception Eagles running back Saquon Barkley s average yards-per-carry in when facing a light box less than seven defenders Philadelphia tight end Dallas Goedert s catch rate in A J Brown s catch rate in Eagles pressure rate against Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers last Sunday their highest since the start of Bo Nix s quarterback rating when pressured by the Bengals on Monday night X-factors Broncos DL Zach Allen Denver requirements its interior defensive linemen to step up massively against the Eagles ground encounter and Allen has yet to record a true breakout contest in despite doing the dirty work for edges Nik Bonitto and Jonathon Cooper to shine Philadelphia guard Landon Dickerson has allowed pressures in four games this year There s an opportunity for Allen to do chosen damage Eagles LB Nakobe Dean The Eagles opened Dean s practice window to return from the PUP list after a torn patellar tendon in last year s playoffs and his presence could massively shift Sunday s outcome If Dean s healthy Philadelphia could stick him next to rookie Jihaad Campbell at ILB and shift Baun to the edge to try to generate more pressure on Nix Post predictions Parker Gabriel beat writer Eagles Broncos The Eagles haven t really hit their stride yet this season and yet are - The Broncos haven t really hit their stride yet though perhaps Monday night was the start and are - with a pair of brutal road losses Those games matter Sunday in this context Sean Payton s group hasn t learned to close away from home yet Philly on the other hand has won of the past games it s played over the past calendar year-plus That and special teams could be the difference Luca Evans beat writer Broncos Eagles Let s get a little crazy Philadelphia has way overachieved its underlying offensive and defensive numbers this year winning games with fantastic special-teams and red-zone play The Broncos have one of the best red-zone defenses in the league and their run meeting is rolling Darren Rizzi s special teams will face its test of the season but if they play a clean contest and don t spring themselves off any linemen the Broncos have a real shot here Related Articles A win away from surpassing mentor Broncos Sean Payton still shaped by Bill Parcells lessons Around the NFL Will Baltimore or Houston fall to - after early season disappointment bowl Broncos Journal Mike McGlinchey sees Eagles-type probable in his association but work remains Renck Until Evan Engram stops being ghost Broncos offense will never reach its prospective Sean Payton defends Broncos center Luke Wattenberg after penalty-filled Bengals outing Troy Renck columnist Eagles Broncos This screams upset if Denver were at home The Eagles are vulnerable Their wings are clipped in the passing battle They have an A J Brown concern They had zero yards through the air in the second half last week The Broncos could run the ball take care of the ball and shock the Eagles But not in Philadelphia The Eagles have won straight home games and haven t lost there in months A special teams play will prove the difference Sean Keeler columnist Eagles Broncos With apologies to the great Reggie Jackson Sean Payton is the new Mr October Since the Broncos head coach sports a - record straight-up in October road games Like Tampa and the Meadowlands last year nobody outside the Front Range gives the orange and blue much of a chance Bo Nix and the Broncos discovered something on Monday night Unfortunately I think what they mostly ascertained is that the Bengals stink Want more Broncos news Sign up for the Broncos Insider to get all our NFL analysis