Everyone in the NFL is gunning for the Philadelphia Eagles. The defending Super Bowl champions one in convincing fashion and are now the envy of the rest of the league.
The Los Angeles Rams had the closest defeat to the Eagles in the postseason during the team’s six-point loss in the NFC Divisional Round. And with the 2025 season approaching in the next few months, former NFL receiver and current analyst James Jones thinks L.A. is the only team that actually improved enough to contend with Philadelphia.
“The only team that I would go with that closed the gap a little bit is the Rams,” Jones said. “The Rams took the Eagles at home down to the wire. If they pick up a protection, who knows how that game would have went. You have a very good defense about to play together again this year. They’ll get better. Then you add Davante Adams to the mix with Puka Nacua and the running game. I think the Rams closed the gap a little bit, and you can go quarterback for quarterback. Matthew Stafford and Jalen Hurts.”
James’ key points make sense: The Rams have a quarterback who is as good if not better than Hurts, L.A. has two stud receivers like Adams and Nacua with a young defense that will continue to improve after coming on strong at the end of the 2024 season.
The Rams made the necessary moves to contend with every team in the NFL, including the Eagles. But, one of the more underrated moves included the addition of interior defensive lineman Poona Ford, who’s known as a tremendous run-stopper. The Eagles ran all over the Rams in the playoffs, so bringing in an experienced defensive tackle to play alongside Kobie Turner is huge. The Eams even added defensive tackle Ty Hamilton in the fifth round for depth.
Will all of these moves work? That’s why we play the game. But on paper, the Rams look like a formidable opponent to try and unseat the defending champions.