PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia Eagles have Super Bowl aspirations heading into this postseason, and have the talent on their roster to make a second Super Bowl appearance in three years. While the Eagles (14-3) are one of the teams expected to challenge for the NFC, their biggest obstacle may be in the wild-card round -- the Green Bay Packers.
Green Bay is a team with championship aspirations and has the experience of being the No. 7 seed in the postseason before. Under the 14-team playoff format, the Packers (11-6) are still the only No. 7 seed to win in the wild-card round (defeated the Dallas Cowboys last season). The Packers have been battle-tested in this situation, making Green Bay a tough out for any team.
How do the Eagles handle the Packers and get to the divisional round? Here are three reasons they will beat the Packers and move on in the playoffs.
1. Jalen Hurts doesn't turn the ball over
The Eagles won 12 of their last 13 games after a 2-2 start to the season, 11 of which Hurts started. Perhaps the Eagles dialed down the passing and protected Hurts from himself, but the Eagles quarterback has been one of the best in football because he's taking care of the ball.
During the Eagles' 12-1 stretch, Hurts has completed 69.0% of his passes with 14 touchdowns to just one interception and a 114.0 passer rating, third in the NFL. Hurts averaged 8.6 yards per attempt, which was also third in the league. He also had 12 rushing touchdowns and one fumble lost, giving Hurts 26 touchdowns to just two giveaways in those 11 games.
The Eagles win games when Hurts protects the football, as they have a +17 turnover margin in their last 13 games (tied for first in the NFL). If Hurts protects the football, the Eagles have an excellent chance of winning.
2. Transformational defense
Back to the the theme of the bye week, as the Eagles have possessed the NFL's best defense since Week 5 (their bye week). The Eagles have allowed the fewest yards per game (251.5), yards per play (4.3) and points per game (15.9) in the league since their bye week -- making them the best defense in the league.
"I felt like we as a defense have come a long ways with everything as far as stopping the run, stopping the pass," linebacker Nakobe Dean said this week. "Our technique, blocking strengths, our tackling, our fundamentals. The little things like that. I thought we all have come far in every type of way."
Against the pass, the Eagles allow the fewest pass yards per game (154.8), yards per attempt (5.6), and passer rating when targeted (79.0). The Eagles are fourth in the NFL in sacks (35) since the bye week, and their pressure rate on the quarterback is fifth in the NFL (37.6%). The run defense has been excellent, too, ranking fifth in yards per carry (4.0) and sixth in rush yards allowed per game (96.6).
The Packers have an explosive offense, but the Eagles have shut down the majority of offenses they've faced since returning from the bye week.
3. Starting fast
The narrative surrounding the Eagles throughout the season is their slow starts. That has certainly changed since the start of December, as the Eagles are fifth in the NFL in offensive points per game (6.3) and yards per play (6.5) in the first quarter during that stretch (six games). The Eagles are also first in yards per carry (7.0) in the opening 15 minutes since the start of December, getting Saquon Barkley going early.
Barkley was second in the NFL in rushing yards in the first quarter since the start of December (192), and he didn't play the final game. The Eagles running back is first in the NFL in yards per carry (8.7) and yards before contact per rush (5.36). As the Eagles have transformed their offense in the first quarter, they have gotten Barkley going early to build early leads.
The Eagles have been one of the best teams after the first quarter all season, averaging 23.5 offensive points per game in the final three quarters (fourth in NFL). A fast start could determine the outcome of the game, especially with Hurts coming back from a concussion.
Whichever team gets their quarterback going early will have the advantage. For the Eagles, it may just be giving the ball to Barkley early as the pass game warms up.
