Philadelphia Eagles: What We've Learned Through Week 4 of Preseason

The Philadelphia Eagles' preseason is finally over. The next time the team takes the field, it will be with a 53-man roster to play a game that will count in the NFL standings—Monday, September 14, on the road against the Atlanta Falcons.

While the outcomes didn't matter, there was nothing meaningless about the preseason, or training camp for that matter. We learned a great deal about the state of the 2015 Eagles over the past six weeks, and right at the top of the list is that they're ready for prime time.

Thursday night's 24-18 loss against the New York Jets aside, which most of the starters and key contributors skipped, the Eagles stormed through their exhibition schedule and put the league on notice for Week 1 of the regular season and beyond. Beyond that—and more specifically—what conclusions can we draw about this club as the regular season draws near?

For the last time this summer, let's empty out the notebook and see what meaningful observations we can make about the Eagles.

Offense Has Scary Potential

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Entering Thursday's final game, the Eagles were averaging 38.3 points per game during the preseason—11 points better than the second-best team. And that was with Sam Bradford playing sparingly.

Bradford took the field for just four series this summer, but it was enough to get an understanding of how potent Philadelphia's offense can be with him at the helm. All four drives ended in touchdowns, including Bradford's laser-precise outing against the Green Bay Packers, in which he completed 10 of 10 passes for 121 yards and three scores.

Between Pro Bowl running backs DeMarco Murray, Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles and a young nucleus of receiving threats that includes Jordan Matthews, Nelson Agholor, Josh Huff and Zach Ertz, the Eagles have no shortage of weapons. The unit was already a top-five offense in each of the past two seasons under head coach Chip Kelly, and there's no reason to believe it won't be again.

The scary part, however, is that with Bradford under center, Kelly's offense might be better than ever.

Offensive Line Looks Solid

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The one concern people had about Philadelphia's offense, aside from Bradford's injury history, was the offensive line. After releasing starting guards Evan Mathis and Todd Herremans and failing to address either spot or depth in general through the draft, the line seemed like it might be a weak spot in 2015.

The good news is that, so far, there haven't been any issues. Allen Barbre and Andrew Gardner have done a nice job at left and right guard, respectively. There have been plenty of lanes in the ground attack and no serious breakdowns in protection.

With Barbre and Gardner alongside Pro Bowlers Jason Peters and Jason Kelce and 2013 fourth overall draft pick Lane Johnson, the unit appears to be fine. Depth remains a serious concern, but injuries can be problematic for any team in the NFL. If everybody manages to stay healthy, the Eagles may field one of the best offensive lines in the league.

Nickel Cornerback Is Unresolved

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What was once a position of strength is now a huge question mark with the regular season a little more than a week away. At this point, the Eagles may have to mix and match at nickel cornerback, as there's no clear-cut solution at that spot.

First, the Eagles traded Brandon Boykin to the Pittsburgh Steelers, removing one of the game's best slot specialists from the equation. Shortly thereafter, 2015 sixth-round draft pick and heir apparent JaCorey Shepherd suffered a season-ending injury. Since then, defensive coordinator Bill Davis has been frantically plugging different players in, from second-round rookie Eric Rowe to veteran castoff E.J. Biggers to starter Nolan Carroll.

Who will fill that role in Week 1 remains to be seen. The good news is that the Eagles have plenty of options, including matching up safeties Malcolm Jenkins and Walter Thurmond against slot receivers, something Davis' scheme calls for already. Both players are converted corners, by the way. Rowe could be the answer as well, or Carroll can move inside while the rookie takes over outside.

It's not the end of the world or anything. The Eagles still have a dominant front seven and plenty of talent in the secondary. Now, it's all about settling on the best possible configuration.

Special Teams Are Still Dominant

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Last season, Philadelphia had a historically good special teams performance. It was hard to imagine that the Eagles could ever repeat it.

Yet here we are, heading into the regular season, and the Eagles special teams still appear to be...well, special. In particular, Kenjon Barner's punt return touchdowns of 92 and 68 yards got people talking, while Raheem Mostert nearly took a kickoff back for six during an exhibition game as well. And on the flip side, the Eagles were once again outstanding at limiting opponents to short returns.

This is no accident, of course. Kelly has focused a ton of attention on special teams, be it during practice or in the acquisition of talent. Some new special teams aces joining the team in 2015 include Brad Jones and Seyi Ajirotutu—to go along with the already stellar Trey Burton, Chris Maragos and Bryan Braman.

Make no mistake: The Eagles will field a dominant special teams unit for the second season in a row. Keep that in mind this weekend when you're drafting your fantasy defense.

Roster Is Very Deep

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With few exceptions, the Eagles are deep. There are concerns along the offensive line, at safety and, maybe most of all, at outside linebacker. However, by and large, this roster goes two, if not three, deep at just about every position.

This is important, because there will be injuries along the way. That part of the game is inevitable. Therefore, it's reassuring to know that if Bradford is out, Mark Sanchez can steer the ship for a while. If Murray is unavailable, Mathews and Sproles can handle the workload. If Matthews or Agholor is on the shelf, Huff, Riley Cooper and Miles Austin can help pick up the slack.

When Cedric Thornton needs a blow at defensive end, Vinny Curry can give him a breather. If Kiko Alonso or Mychal Kendricks is dinged up, DeMeco Ryans is there to solidify the middle linebacker position. If Byron Maxwell can't go at cornerback, a second-round pick in Rowe is waiting to fill his shoes.

And on and on it goes. There is so much talent across Philadelphia's roster that there's almost no way this team won't compete for the playoffs this season. Whether they have the makeup of a Super Bowl contender remains to be seen, but rest assured: The Eagles are going to be a challenge week in and week out in 2015.