September 18, 2026
Colleen Claggett/For PhillyVoice
Jalen Carter and the Eagles' defense have a favorable matchup this week.
The Eagles are an imperfect 1-0, but do have the makings of another winning team that can take the NFC East.
The Tennessee Titans, after getting thrashed by the annually lowly New York Jets, seem like they're looking for the makings of anything, but certainly won't find the pieces that bring them anywhere close to the thought of the playoffs for a good while.
The Eagles will face the Titans in Nashville this Sunday for Week 2, in their first road trip of the season.
Here are our staff's picks and predictions for what will happen...
| Sportsbook | Spread | Money Line | Total O/U |
| DraftKings | PHI -7.0 | PHI -310 TEN +250 | 40.5 |
| FanDuel | PHI -7.0 | PHI -350 TEN +280 | 39.5 |
| BetRivers | PHI -7.0 | PHI -375 TEN +280 | 39.5 |
| BetMGM | PHI -7.0 | PHI -325 TEN +270 | 39.5 |
| Caesars | PHI -7.0 | PHI -345 TEN +270 | 39.5 |
*Lines as of Monday, Sep. 14
As usual, the Eagles won their football game Week 1 against the Washington Commanders. Also, as usual, there was plenty to gripe about in the aftermath. It's going to take some time for the Eagles to get their sea legs in the new scheme, which frankly looked a whole lot like the old scheme, if we're being honest.
But the schedule makers were kind to Philly this season, giving them early games against a pair of teams in the Commanders and Titans that had a combined record of 8-26 with a combined point differential of -289 in 2025.
The Titans' offense line contains a pair offensive tackles that give up a lot of sacks, a career backup starting at center, and a fifth-round rookie starting at RG. So I like that matchup for the Eagles. And then defensively, the only thing the Titans did reasonably well last season was stop the run, and this offseason they traded their 360-pound run stuffer, T'Vondre Sweat.
The Eagles get to 2-0, and we'll see what the next set of postgame gripes will be.
MORE: 5 things to watch in Eagles-Titans
Robert Saleh somehow figured out a way in 2023 to get his 2-3 Jets team to beat the the 5-0 Eagles, with a relentless pass rush that surprisingly had its way with a then-elite Eagles o-line. Will history repeat twice? Doubtful, but given the Eagles' run game issues and now down to their first bench option to replace Landon Dickerson, I would expect Saleh to have his defense a little more prepared than it showed Week 1 vs. the Jets, and I would also anticipate some growing pains for Drew Kendall.
The Eagles have cornered the market on winning ugly in the Nick Sirianni era, and also winning on the road. So I'm anticipating the Eagles getting to 2-0, but I have some reservations about the margin of victory being in the double digits or the game having the feel of a blowout from start to finish.
This is the last lay up for a while, and I think the Eagles showed enough in Week 1 to instill some confidence that they can win against lesser opponents. Drew Kendall, while worse than a healthy Landon Dickerson, could help to steady the offensive line that was reeling from Dickerson's lack of mobility last week.
I think Saquon Barkley will run for 100 yards, I think DeVonta Smith will also crack the century mark, and I think the defense will create a few turnovers against Cam Ward. This might be the most optimistic I'll be all season with the Bears, Rams and Jaguars ahead in Weeks 3-through-5. Enjoy the lighter opponent while you can..
The Eagles beat Washington, but left a bit to be desired.
The Titans got walloped by the Jets of all teams and left just about everything to be desired
If Cam Ward couldn't handle the New York defense, then he's definitely not going to have any answers when he sees Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis rushing at him.
And if the Titans couldn't defend against Geno Smith and Breece Hall, then they're absolutely not going to fare any better with Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley.
Last week, the Commanders were a team the Eagles should've beaten and did, despite the result being closer than it probably needed to be.
The Titans are another opponent the Eagles should be able to handle, and this time, there really shouldn't be any doubts.
If anything, there's going to be a lot of fixation on how Drew Kendall looks in place of Landon Dickerson and whether Kendall holds up any better in the trenches with better health. That will probably be the most crucial storyline to focus on this week.
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