Eagles could face buzzsaw in opening playoff game against Packers
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Get down, Jalen! Photo: Nelson Almeida/AFP via Getty Images
The Eagles' sojourn to the Super Bowl starts Sunday at home with an opening-round playoff matchup against Green Bay.
Why it matters: If there's a team that could derail the Birds' hopes to hoist a Lombardi Trophy, it's the Packers.
State of play: With league-leading rusher Saquon Barkley and their top-ranked defense, the NFC No. 2-seed Eagles are favored to win, but No. 7 Green Bay has generated big plays this season.
- The teams last met in their season-opener in Brazil, when the Eagles beat the Packers 34-29.
Know thy enemy: The Packers are fueled by an explosive passing offense — 14 plays went for 40 or more yards during the regular season.
- And while the Eagles have the edge on the ground with Barkley, the Packers' running back Josh Jacobs is no slouch.
- Jacobs could play a bigger role in the offense to alleviate pressure on QB Jordan Love, who was injured in Green Bay's regular-season finale.
Injury report: QB Jalen Hurts returned to practice for the first time this week since sitting out the last two regular-season games with a concussion. He's expected to start Sunday.
- The banged-up Packers are without big-play wide receiver Christian Watson, who tore his ACL in last week's finale.
- Love hurt his elbow in the game, and has been coy about whether he'll play this week. But that could be gamesmanship from the Packers.
Reality check: The Packers aren't losing much explosiveness without Watson (he had one catch in last season's playoff upset of the Dallas Cowboys), and they still have playmaker Jayden Reed.
What we're watching: The Eagles' run-pass option offense is most effective when defenses fear dual-threat Hurts gashing them for big running plays. He had 630 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns this season, opening up the field for Barkley.
- Offensive coordinator Kellen Moore could dial back some of those QB running plays to protect Hurts from taking unnecessary punishment.
Our prediction: 33-21 Eagles.
What's ahead: If the Eagles win, they'll host the second-lowest-seeded team that advances out of the wild-card round.
How to watch: Kickoff is 4:30pm on Fox. Tickets: $170+