January is here and with that is the NFL playoffs. As the NFL gears up, Eagles fans have thoughts! There is a lingering fear in Philadelphia circulating around one thing: The Birds’ offense. This is for good reason. The second half of the season was a rollercoaster for the Eagles. Ever since the week 10 matchup between the Packers where the Eagles squeaked out a 10-7 defensive masterclass at Lambeau, the Birds have found little to no success against good teams on the offensive side of the ball.
A three-game losing streak, and some ugly wins later bring us to Sunday. A home playoff game at the Linc, marking what could end up being the beginning of another deep run. Once the playoffs come around, what happened in the regular season does not matter. The regular season struggles are difficult to pinpoint. The blame of offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo and his decision-making has been hot. On the other hand, Jalen Hurts continues to be labeled as a system quarterback after 5 seasons of making the playoffs. There is hope for a postseason run, but how much hope?
Kyle Shannahan’s 49ers are arguably the hottest team in football. In the 6 weeks prior to their last game against the Seahawks, the Niners outscored opponents 214-128. During that period, the team’s health has been in the air. Trent Williams, Brock Purdy, Ricky Pearsall, and George Kittle have been injured at some point this year. There have not been many games where the 49ers are with their whole core, and a full force 49er squad has not been seen in the past 2 months of football. If Trent Williams and Pearsall play, the team looks like a hard team to stop.With that being said, you don’t earn the -4.5 point favorite mark for no reason. Philly’s defense lines up beautifully with San Francisco’s dynamic offense. The ability of the Eagles to create pressure with 4 pass-rushers will let 7 defenders drop back into coverage. Kyle Shanahan is known for having answers on offense as far as adjustments, but without Trent Williams at tackle and Pearsall outside, the Niners offense should be fairly limited.
Even at full health, it would be hard for Purdy to create magic given the circumstances. Defensively, the 49ers have an above average defense, ranked 13th in the NFL even without Nick Bosa and Fred Warner on the defensive side. They have both been on injured reserve for quite some time now.
This game’s fate is decided by the simplest, yet hardest to predict factor: what version of the Eagles’ offense will show up on Sunday? Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts, who has displayed his ability to defeat the best of the best on the biggest stages? Or will Patullo draw up 6 pass plays in a half again like he did against the Bills? If Lane Johnson is available, could a Saquon Barkley day be in hand with a banged-up Niners front 7?
Out of all the NFC wild card matchups, this one is the most up in the air. There are so many different versions of both teams. Come Sunday, it will be interesting to see how the Jalen Hurts-led offense comes out of the gate. More importantly, can they put four strong quarters together on both sides of the ball?
Say what you want about Jalen Hurts’ play recently, but he wins. He does just enough to get a win and nothing more. The Eagles will win Sunday. It might not be pretty, but there is a divisional round game to be played.
