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Dec 29, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; ESPN MNF broadcaster Jason Kelce shown on set prior to the game between the Los Angeles Rams against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Jason Kelce Suggests Clear Offensive Fix for Eagles

Originally posted on Philadelphia Eagles on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Jan 8, 2026 11:37 AM ET

The Philadelphia Eagles have a big opportunity ahead of them on Sunday when they take on the San Francisco 49ers.

Philadelphia enters the contest with some fresh legs after resting its starters in Week 18. Last year, we saw the Eagles do this and it worked in the postseason. The Eagles dominated pretty much every game they played in the postseason with the only one really up in the air being the Divisional Round contest against the Los Angeles Rams.

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Now, the Eagles are facing off against a 49ers team that isn't fully healthy and is coming off a 13-3 loss at the hands of the Seattle Seahawks in the final week of the regular season. The Seahawks obviously didn't score a lot, but they showed a weakness in San Francisco: the running defense. Kenneth Walker had 97 yards on the ground on 16 carries and Zach Charbonnet had 74 yards and a touchdown on the ground on 17 carries. Philadelphia is seemingly getting Lane Johnson back to help the offensive line and have a better running back room overall, so it should be able to take advantage.

The Eagles should take the advice

On Thursday, Eagles legend Jason Kelce joined 94WIP Sports Radio and talked about how the running game could be the difference here and made the case for Tank Bigsby to get a larger role.

"It's really going to come down to, I think, does the slanting and angling -- because they're going to watch the tape, they're going to move those guys -- does the slanting and the angling and miscommunications cost us? Because that's really the only way I see us not running the ball well. Especially with Saquon Barkley and I hope to see a pretty decent usage of Tank at this point. How many times does a guy have to flash to be like why are we not giving this guy more? That's the reality of it. It pairs up so well with what Saquon does...

"Saquon is so good at reading these zone plays and hitting them front side, hitting them back side. Tank isn't reading anything, I'm convinced, he just gets the ball and he just shoom right up. When you're a linebacker, unless you fill that hole now on a guy like that, he's going to get four or five yards. You've got to come downhill and fill your gap now and then you go back to Saquon and and that guy gets used to that tempo."

Looking at how the Seahawks attacked San Francisco, they did so kind of just how Kelce said about Barkley and Bigbsy. The Seahawks utilized two different looks and the 49ers' defense bent to it. Barkley and Bigsby are a better tandem than Walker and Charbonnet.

Bigsby has shown every time he has gotten a larger role, that he can handle it. He had 16 carries for 75 yards and a touchdown in Week 18 against the Washington Commanders, 17 carries for 54 yards against the Las Vegas Raiders on Dec. 14, and nine carries for 104 yards on Oct. 26 against the New York Giants.

Those are his three games with nine or more carries. Overall, he's averaging 5.7 yards per attempt on 63 carries this season. Kelce is onto something here. This doesn't mean less Barkley. Instead, it means more running in general and make sure Bigbsy gets a bit himself.

This article first appeared on Philadelphia Eagles on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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