By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 
After four weeks of preseason football and a whirlwind day of cuts, trades and hoopla that was on Saturday, the focus shifts to Sunday's Week 1 matchup against the Cleveland Browns.
The Eagles really are an enigma of sorts when trying to predict success. The sky is the limit for rookie Carson Wentz, who brings a ton of potential into his newfound starting role, but he also comes in with very little preseason action and off of a health issue.
Doug Pederson, who was impressive with his command and playcalling in the preseason, believes that the Eagles have a good enough team around Wentz to be in contention this season.
So how should we read the expectations for the Eagles 2016 season? By lacking a veteran presence at quarterback, are the Eagles waving the white flag on this season before it even starts? Or are the Eagles going to surprise a lot of people and prove that a 4-0 preseason really can translate into regular season success?
The first key factor is Wentz, and while Sam Bradford certainly looked capable of leading the Eagles to a modest record in Pederson's first season, Wentz could take it to the next level. Or Wentz could have a typical rookie year of hiccups and disappointments and make it another long grueling season.
That's the one thing the Bradford trade did for all Eagles fans. Trading Bradford may not be the best move to those who were holding on the slim hope of making a playoff run this season, but it gets Wentz a chance to move into the role he was going to take over soon enough. And watching a quarterback blossom into a potential star and rise through the NFL ranks will be enough to keep Eagles fans coming back week after week.
The offense isn't a particularly impressive group, but there are pieces that when all goes well are lethal in this league. When Ryan Mathews is healthy, he's a very capable starting back. Jordan Matthews and the brief exposure of Dorial Green-Beckham look like a talented twosome in the receiving core. Zach Ertz could still be one of the better tight ends in football if Wentz relies on him as much as Bradford had in the past.
Which brings us to the defense. The offense isn't going to set the world on fire, but should be effective enough, and the more Wentz grows, the more he could become the type of quarterback that makes the players around him better. That said, the Eagles are going to hope their defense can be a contributing factor in wins this season. They will have arguably the best front-four in football and the secondary has shown improvement over the preseason from last year's relative incompetence. This is the group, with its new philosophy and mentality, that will carry the Eagles success this season.
And finally, the schedule. You could have kept Bradford or started Wentz and either way, the Eagles would have been favored to win the season opener on Sunday. The Eagles have a chance to get ahead of the curve early against the Browns and Bears before starting to see the schedule hit tougher opposition.
But the division, the NFC East, remains arguably the worst in football. And divisional games are unpredictable enough as it is. With that in mind, the Eagles could certainly sneak their way into contention by stealing a win or two against a division rival.
The Eagles do have a tough conference schedule, facing the Seattle Seahawks, Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings. Their non-conference schedule features the Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals. That is six very difficult games for the Eagles.
Overall, the Eagles certainly fall right into the 6-7 win range easily with the x-factor being both Wentz's performance and the games against divisional opponents. For the Eagles to climb higher in the win column, the games that will make a difference will be against Dallas, New York and Washington. Three of those meetings come in the final four weeks of the season.
If the Eagles can survive the storm, get off to a hot start and get Wentz and the defense rolling with consistency, it could be a very memorable season for the Eagles as they start their new era. But those games can turn very quickly.
The expectations for the season, then, should not be about the final record, but the progress and success of the players that matter most to its success: Wentz and the defense. If Wentz can bloom into the natural leader he is projected to be and the defense can play with the same kind of tenacity they had in the preseason, the Eagles have a chance. But if injuries or a lack of interest get in the way again, a long season could be ahead for the Eagles.
