After going through the tape of the Eagles' decisive win over the New York Jets, one of my biggest takeaways was the performance of tight end Dallas Goedert, who was clearly a focal point of this pass game on Sunday. The fourth-year tight end led the team in targets, catches, and yards against New York, reeling in a pair of touchdowns on the first two drives of the game. How did Goedert reach the end zone? Let's take a look.
That 36-yard touchdown to Goedert ties for the longest scoring pass play for the Eagles' offense this season (along with the touchdown to DeVonta Smith against the Broncos in Week 10). It's been at least two decades since the Eagles had a tight end record a pair of touchdown passes that each went for over 25 yards, and that's a testament to how much of a threat Goedert is with the football. It's rare to find a true three-level weapon in the passing game at that position, and that's precisely what Goedert is.
"This guy is a monster when he gets the ball in his hands," Head Coach Nick Sirianni said on Monday. "He's big, he's strong, he's hard to tackle."
It wasn't just the big plays that stood out to me for Goedert in this game. The Eagles dialed up a couple of quick throws to him as well against the Jets, some of which were really creative by design. Here were a couple of my favorites.
Twenty-one tight ends in the NFL have been targeted at least 40 times this year, a fair sample size to look at when it comes to seeing who is being used as a featured weapon in their offense. Here's how Goedert ranks in some key metrics, according to Pro Football Focus:
• Yards Per Catch – 1st (14.5)
• NFL Passer Rating When Targeted – 1st (138.6)
• Yards After Catch Per Reception – 2nd (7.2 – behind only George Kittle with the 49ers)
• Percentage of Targets Caught – 2nd (77.4 – behind only Pat Freiermuth with the Steelers)
• Yards Per Route Run – 3rd (2.11 – behind only Kittle and Rob Gronkowski with the Bucs)
All of this speaks to Goedert's value as a pass catcher, but we know that's not the only way that he contributes to this Eagles offense. He also happens to be a key force in the run game as well. That was on display in the first play on this clip featuring the Eagles' execution up front in the run game.
It's this versatility that makes Goedert one of the top tight ends in football, and it's why he will be a key fixture in the Eagles' offense for years to come.