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So here we are, on the edge of week three, wondering: will the Rams keep their unbeaten streak sizzling with another statement win, or will the Eagles finally snap out of their shell and soar to a commanding 3-0 start? It’s not just any game — it’s a canvas painted with jaw-dropping stats, intense scrutiny on Jalen Hurts’ passing game, and a peek into the minds of two top-tier NFL powerhouses trying to outwit each other. The Rams have rolled through six straight road victories, while the Eagles boast a roster packed with star talent but can’t shake off the chatter about their explosive potential… or lack thereof. The Opta supercomputer already leans slightly toward Philly with a 61% win probability, but in a matchup like this, who really knows? Can the under-the-radar tactics shake up the odds? Let’s dive into the keys to victory and see what might tip the scales in this nail-biter.
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Will the Rams keep rolling with a statement NFL win, or will the Eagles break out of their shell for a definitive 3-0 start? We give the keys to victory and reveal the Opta supercomputer’s win probability.

Rams vs. Eagles: The Key Stats

Puka Nacua has hauled in 202 receptions in 30 career games. He joined Odell Beckham Jr. as the second player in NFL history with 200+ receptions through his first 30 career games.
Jalen Hurts has gone a career-high 185 consecutive pass attempts without throwing an interception. He is looking to join Nick Foles (237) and Michael Vick (224) as the only Eagles in the last 30 years with 200+ straight attempts without an interception.
This is a matchup featuring two of the top six teams in NFL TRACR, which measures how many points per 10 drives better or worse teams are compared to the league-average club.
The Opta supercomputer gives the Eagles a 61% chance of beating the visiting Rams, who have won their last six road games.

On the surface, it would appear that things are going perfectly for the Philadelphia Eagles.

The reigning NFL champions are 2-0, including a win over a division rival and one in a high-profile Super Bowl rematch. All of Philly’s stars are back, and they still have arguably the most talented top-to-bottom roster in the league.

Despite their undefeated start, the offense has come under public scrutiny, with most of it focused on Jalen Hurts. The quarterback has won at every level, and Philadelphia fans argue that he has become underrated, focusing more on the team’s result than individual passing statistics.

This point of view was encapsulated perfectly when an on-field microphone picked up Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones trash-talking Hurts about his production at the end of the game last Sunday.

Hurts’ reply was brief: “Who won the (expletive) game?”

Hurts has completed 34-of-45 passes (75.6%) for 253 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions through two games. The former Heisman Trophy runner-up has also rushed for three touchdowns and 12 first downs.

“At times, it hasn’t looked pretty altogether, but we’ve found a way to win,” coach Nick Sirianni said Monday. “By no means are we a finished product.

“We have to be more explosive. The players always have to go out and execute and I trust our players fully. You’re always looking to win the explosive play battle. The last two weeks, we haven’t won it. But we’ve protected the football.”

Hurts himself has become a litmus test for NFL observers.

Some see high-efficiency, low-risk quarterbacking paired with the “tush push” play that is so reliable it feels like the Eagles start every sequence with a 1st-and-9. By all accounts, Hurts is also a passionate leader who extracts the best from his teammates.

But his 253 passing yards rank 31st in the league, and he is the only quarterback with more than eight pass attempts who has yet to throw a touchdown. Hurts’ detractors view him as just a spoke in the wheel, a beneficiary of an extremely good supporting cast.

The “tush push” itself has come under the microscope this week, with the NFL admitting that the Eagles should have been flagged at least once for a false start on the offensive line while using the play against the Chiefs.

With the discourse surrounding Hurts and the Eagles growing louder, they are preparing for another stiff challenge when the 2-0 Los Angeles Rams visit Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday. This is a matchup featuring two of the top six teams in NFL TRACR, which measures how many points per 10 drives better or worse teams are compared to the league-average club.

And fresh in both their memories is how Los Angeles gave Philadelphia everything it could handle in a 28-22 Eagles win in the divisional round of the 2024 playoffs.

This season, the Rams are the only team ranked in the top five in both yards per play (6.34, third) and yards per play allowed (4.27, third) after victories over the Houston Texans and the Tennessee Titans.

The preseason worries over Matthew Stafford’s ailing back appear to be unwarranted, as he’s had a passer rating over 100 in both games, while the defense is off to a hot start with eight sacks.

A game at Philadelphia, however, will be a much stiffer challenge as these two NFC contenders look for a key victory. Will the Rams keep rolling with a statement win, or will the Eagles break out of their shell for a definitive 3-0 start?

Eagles’ Key to Victory vs. Rams

There’s no use in overthinking this one. Philadelphia needs to be more explosive on offense.

During his historic 2024 season, Saquon Barkley led the NFL with 46 rushes of 10 or more yards, doing so on 13.3% of his carries. While Barkley’s overall numbers this season haven’t lived up to the high bar he set last year, he is still running the ball for 10+ yards on 12.5% of his carries.

The true decline has come in Philadelphia’s passing game.

The Eagles offensive attack did not have a very explosive passing game last year, ranking 31st with 131 passing plays that gained 10 or more yards. Despite this, they still managed to dominate the rest of the NFL.

While it’s not surprising to see Philadelphia near the bottom of the big-play passing leaderboard again this season, the offense has fallen way below even quarterback-troubled teams.

The Eagles have just three completions of 10 or more yards so far in 2025, easily the least in the league. No other team has fewer than 11. The Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints – who entered the season with major questions about their quarterback situations – each have 17 big plays in the passing game.

Hurts and the Eagles will need to be more aggressive even to get back to last year’s passing production.

Hurts is averaging 5.58 air yards per attempt, ranking 34th out of 35 quarterbacks with at least 15 adjusted attempts. He has dumped the ball off to a check-down receiver on 22.5% of his adjusted attempts, the highest rate in the NFL and more than double the league average of 10.9%.

One answer might be to get Hurts out of the pocket more. The Eagles have run just four bootleg plays this season, and three of them have been with Hurts lining up in the shotgun.

Play-action bootleg from under center is usually a staple for run-heavy offenses, and the Rams are allowing 10 yards per play against bootleg concepts this season.

At some point, the Eagles will need Hurts to be more than a role player. Playing against a Rams defense that has caused a run disruption on a league-high 87% of the carries it has faced, Hurts may be called upon to make some plays in the air.

Rams’ Key to Victory vs. Eagles

The Rams hit the ground running to start the 2025 season, albeit against unheralded competition.

Head coach Sean McVay loves to funnel his offense through his star players, and Kyren Williams, Puka Nacua and Davante Adams have accounted for 556 of the team’s 764 yards from scrimmage (72.7%).

The real challenge for the Rams on Sunday will be in the red zone and extended red zone (inside the opponent’s 30-yard line), where Eagles have been exceptional defensively.

Los Angeles has scored five touchdowns on nine trips to the red zone (55.6%) – 21st in the league. This will need to improve against a stingy Philly defense.

The Eagles have allowed just 2.08 yards per play inside their own 30-yard line this season – ranking third in the NFL – and they’ve allowed a passer rating of 0.0 in the extended red zone.

One further complication is that the Philadelphia defense, which blitzes at a 24.7% rate overall, turns up the heat and brings extra defenders to the pass rush on 60.0% of its red-zone snaps.

Matthew Stafford has a 60.4% expected completion rate against the blitz (NFL average is 69.9%) so far this season. That means the ground game could be preferable in the red zone for the Rams.

Los Angeles could utilize more two-tight end sets (122 personnel), one of McVay’s favorite groupings for inside runs. The Eagles have matched 122 personnel with nickel (five defensive backs) 60.0% of the time and have played a light box against 122 on 56% of their snaps.

With Williams averaging 4.75 yards per carry in sets with two tight ends and the Eagles allowing 4.4 yards per carry in the red zone, the Rams’ best chance to end drives with touchdowns instead of field goal attempts could be to stick to the run.

Opta Supercomputer’s Prediction

The Eagles opened the week as 4.5-point favorites in most sportsbooks, but with the ongoing discussion about Philadelphia’s offense, they have settled as 3.0-point favorites.

The Opta supercomputer doesn’t seem as worried about the Eagles’ early passing woes, giving them a 61% chance of improving to 3-0.

Despite the Rams also being unbeaten, the supercomputer marked six games as more even matchups than this one, making it a confident pick.

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The post Rams vs. Eagles Prediction: Can Los Angeles Put Another Scare Into the Defending Champs? appeared first on Opta Analyst.