SEATTLE — It’s rare that the best tight end in the NFL looks like a pipsqueak, but there was no other way to see Travis Kelce late Wednesday afternoon as he mingled at a Jersey Shore bar, lending support to his brother Jason at a fund-raising event. Travis is 6 feet, 5 inches, and 256 pounds of speed and power. On average, he catches 95 passes and scores eight touchdowns a season for the Kansas City Chiefs, gaining about 13 yards on each of those receptions. He’s a star. He’s a beast. But compared to someone else at the bar, he was a mouse.
Jordan Mailata, the Eagles’ starting left tackle, was there, too. Mailata is the tallest player on the Eagles’ roster, and he is the heaviest player on the Eagles’ roster, which means he is the biggest player on the Eagles’ roster, by any measure. He is 6-8 and 365 pounds, and his presence was a reminder of the best reason to think the Eagles can meet the rising expectations around them. That reason is their offensive line. It was their greatest strength last season, and even with all the additions and improvements they have made, it promises to be their greatest strength this season.
The schedule is cushy and forgiving. A.J. Brown is terrific. DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert are excellent and should get better. Haason Reddick, James Bradberry, and Nakobe Dean should help the defense. Jalen Hurts is the most consequential player on the roster and is, of course, a wild card here. The offensive line is not. The line is why the Eagles, after losing five of their first seven games, could scrap their preferred offensive strategy of having their quarterback be the sun around which all their planets orbit. Hurts wasn’t ready to be that kind of quarterback. There are still questions about whether he ever will be.
