Can the Philadelphia Eagles Win the Rest of Their Games?

At 3-5 and well behind in the race for the playoffs, the Philadelphia Eagles pretty much need to win the rest of their games to reach the postseason.

Can they do it?

If the Eagles play the way they have so far this season—inconsistently, mostly disappointingly with moments of greatness—then they have no chance.

But can the Super Bowl Eagles, the Eagles that were at the top of the world during the offseason, the Eagles that tore apart the Dallas Cowboys—can those Eagles win out and make an improbable run at the playoffs?

Let's take a look at each remaining game and see what their chances are.

Week 10: Arizona Cardinals

Matchup: This game shouldn't be a problem for the Eagles, even if they don't play their best football. The Cardinals are among the worst in the league in both offense and defense and have only one top-tier playmaker on their team.

And that man, Larry Fitzgerald, will be covered by Nnamdi Asomugha.

The Eagles secondary has greatly underperformed thus far, but there is still doubt as to whether Kevin Kolb or John Skelton can get the ball in Fitzgerald's hands enough for him to be a game-changer.

Even against the league's 30th-worst pass defense—that of the Minnesota Vikings—Cardinals quarterbacks threw three interceptions and zero touchdowns. If that's all they could do against Vikings corners Antoine Winfield and Cedric Griffin, then what could they possibly muster against Asomugha and Asante Samuel?

Verdict: Eagles win easily, no matter which Eagles team shows up.

Week 11: At New York Giants

Matchup: The last time the Eagles and Giants met at the Meadowlands, DeSean Jackson returned a punt for a touchdown in the final seconds to complete an epic comeback for Philly.

Don't expect lighting to strike twice.

The Giants have been playing very well lately and demolished the Eagles in Philadelphia earlier in the year. In order to win this game, the Eagles will need to have everything figured out and put together.

In other words, they need to have their best game of the season if they want to beat New York.

The bright side is, the Giants are going through a tough stretch on their schedule and will be in between games at San Francisco and New Orleans. The sheer mental toughness it takes to win all the time against good teams could be enough to hinder their performance.

But even if the Giants are at the top of their game, their weaknesses play well toward the Eagles' strengths. This will be the Eagles' No. 1 rushing offense going up against the Giants' 24th-ranked rushing defense.

Also, the Eagles will have a break defending the run, as Giants Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw have combined for the 29th-ranked rushing offense. In terms of passing, the teams are surprisingly equal on both ends.

Verdict: Statistics say the Eagles will win without too much trouble. The reality, however, is much different. Philly can win as long as it decides to stay for the fourth quarter.

Week 12: New England Patriots

Matchup: This is another game where the Eagles will need to be playing their best football.

After a hot start, Tom Brady and the Patriots have fallen down to Earth with consecutive losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Giants. But both losses were to good teams and Brady should have them back on their feet soon enough.

The main concern, as it always is when facing the Pats, is their high-powered offense. Brady gets most of the credit, but BenJarvus Green-Ellis is extremely reliable out of the backfield as well.

New England historically doesn't turn the ball over much, but Brady has had a few more passes picked off this year than he usually does. That is something the Eagles need to take advantage of.

They also need to take advantage of New England's league-worst pass defense. Mike Vick will need to focus on moving the ball through the air and getting it to playmakers Jeremy Maclin and DeSean Jackson.

Verdict: Between this and the Giants game, it would be realistic to win one and lose one even if Philly is at the top of its game. Of the two, this is the easier battle. Eagles win in a shootout.

Week 13: At Seattle Seahawks

Matchup: The Seahawks are much like the Cardinals in that they are both 2-6 without good offenses.

The difference between the two, however, is that Seattle can play decent defense. The Seahawks have middle-of-the-pack passing and rushing defenses that can keep games close but can't win them.

Against a high-powered offense like that of the Eagles, they don't stand a chance.

Philly's defensive weaknesses won't be exposed by an offense led by Tarvaris Jackson, and it will be a welcome drop-off a week after facing Tom Brady.

The Seahawks do have home-field advantage in this game, which can cause problems for opposing teams as displayed in the Seahawks' defeat of the Saints in the 2010-11 playoffs.

Verdict: Eagles win easily. If Philly were to lose this game even after going 3-0 in the previous three, any remaining playoff hopes would be crushed into tiny bits.

Week 14: At Miami Dolphins

Matchup: Just when everybody though Miami was Sucking for Luck, they went out and beat the sense out of the Chiefs. This was also following games in which they had big leads on the Giants and Broncos, only to blow those in the second half.

Miami may be showing promise of not being as bad as we once thought they were, but they still should be a doormat for the Eagles to walk all over.

Their passing offense and passing defense are awful, and that imbalance drags down their rushing and rushing defense. Philly won't have a problem winning in South Beach.

Verdict: It will be nice for the Eagles to have an easy game like this before taking on division foes to end the season. Eagles win handily.

Week 15: New York Jets

Matchup: The story, as it always is with the Jets, is how offenses will fare against the cornerback tandem of Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie.

There's also a 75 percent chance that Asante Samuel will say that the Eagles' cornerbacks are better than the Jets'. They might be, but they haven't been performing nearly as well thus far.

In order to win this game, the Eagles must use LeSean McCoy to exploit New York's 21st-ranked rushing defense. The defense doesn't have that tough of a test going up against the likes of Mark Sanchez and Shonn Greene, but they will have to keep the Jets' scoring to a minimum in order to allow the offense to stay ahead.

Verdict: The Jets keep winning their must-win games and as a result are tied for the AFC East lead despite having sub-par stats. The Eagles have the weapons to exploit the Jets' weaknesses and because of that, they will take the victory.

Week 16: At Dallas Cowboys

Matchup: If the Sunday night game two weeks ago was any indication, the Eagles will have no problem winning this one.

However, Philly had by far its best performance in that game. It was also the week after a bye, a situation in which Andy Reid is undefeated as head coach of the Eagles.

Historically, this is also the point in the season when Philly starts losing games and playoff position. If they do that again, it won't be their seeding going down—it will be the end of their season.

Verdict: Two weeks ago, Rob Ryan couldn't solve the Eagles' offense. Maybe he sees something in the game tape that he can exploit, but it's doubtful. Expect a result similar to the previous one, with Philly winning in dominating fashion.

Week 17: Washington Redskins

Matchup: The Redskins switched quarterbacks from Rex Grossman to John Beck, and things haven't gotten any better for Washington.

Since beating the Giants in Week 1 and starting 3-1, the 'Skins have lost four straight and haven't shown any promise of improvement. With their most talented players battling injuries, they won't start winning anytime soon.

By Week 17, all of that could change.

It might not seem like it, but the Redskins do in fact have the same record as the Eagles. Fortunately for Philly, no team with John Beck as its quarterback will be making any playoff run. If the Eagles need to win this one to earn a playoff spot, they will.

Verdict: The Eagles had one of their two decent performances against Washington earlier in the year, so they will win regardless of whether or not a playoff spot is on the line.

Final Word

In order to make the playoffs, Philly needs to turn it around quickly. The talent has always been there—it's the coaches that need to put it to good use.

If Juan Castillo can get his act together and Vick can avoid turnovers, the Eagles will reach their potential as a team. They have a winnable schedule with a few tough games thrown in the mix.

The Eagles have won all of their games against teams with winning percentages of .500 or less. All five of their losses have come against teams over .500. That needs to change if players on the Eagles are still serious about the playoffs.

If Philly can control fourth quarters and keep the leads that they build, they are capable of taking a playoff spot.

They just need to turn on the jets before it's too late.