Philadelphia vs. Green Bay: What Are Experts Saying About Philadelphia?

The Philadelphia Eagles travel to Lambeau Field to play the Green Bay Packers in a game that has serious playoff implications for both teams. 

The 7-2 Eagles lead the NFC East by a game and are in the hunt for a bye in the postseason—perhaps even the No. 1 overall seed. If the season ended now, they would be the No. 3 seed and would host the Seattle Seahawks on Wild Card Weekend. 

The 6-3 Packers would actually miss the playoffs if the season ended today, even though Aaron Rodgers has been the hottest quarterback in the league this year. Another loss would seriously hurt their postseason chances, especially if the Detroit Lions (7-2) can win on the road against the Arizona Cardinals this week. 

The Eagles and Packers played last November, but with Rodgers (and Clay Matthews) sidelined with injuries, it almost felt like an exhibition. The Eagles won easily, 27-13, behind three touchdown passes from Nick Foles. 

The last time the Eagles faced Rodgers, they lost at home in the Wild Card Round of the postseason. The Packers went on to win the Super Bowl that year. 

Arguably the game of the week in the NFC, expect Mark Sanchez and the Eagles to come prepared to play in Green Bay. 

Around the rest of the NFL, the Eagles are a hot topic right now. Here are five of the biggest storylines surrounding the team.

Defense and Special Teams Touchdowns Carrying Team Right Now

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Last year, the Eagles scored 442 points. In total, 426 came from the offense, nine from the defense and seven from special teams. They ranked fourth in the league in scoring offense. 

This year, the Eagles also rank fourth in the league in scoring offense. However, they have actually taken a slight step back.

Look at the breakdown of the scoring—the Eagles have scored 279 points, with 216 coming from the offense, 28 from the defense and 35 from special teams. That's insane. That's nine non-offensive touchdowns in nine games this season.

Fletcher Cox, Malcolm Jenkins, Cedric Thornton and Bradley Fletcher have each scored defensive touchdowns this year. Meanwhile, Darren Sproles (twice), Chris Polk, Chris Maragos and Brad Smith have collected special teams touchdowns.

Bleacher Report's own Mike Freeman wrote about the Eagles in his weekly 10-point stance, calling them "scary."

"If Philadelphia gets its offense playing as well as its special teams, the Eagles would be damn near unbeatable," he adds.

While it is unlikely the Eagles will continue to score one non-offensive touchdown per game, Freeman is correct when he says they will be almost unbeatable if they can get things clicking on offense.

If the Eagles can find a way to limit their turnovers and pound the ball with the running game as effectively as they did last year, they will be a legitimate Super Bowl contender.

No Marcus Mariota in Eagles Green in 2015

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The Philadelphia Eagles have seven games (and potentially one, two, three or four more in the postseason) to determine if veteran quarterback Mark Sanchez is the long-term answer at the game's most crucial position. 

Sanchez, who signed a one-year deal last offseason, has played very well in one-and-a-half games since Nick Foles broke his collarbone against the Houston Texans.

It's still too early to tell if Sanchez has truly revived his career or if Chip Kelly's offense is so quarterback-friendly that anyone could succeed.

Maybe the Eagles just played two bad defenses.

In any case, Nick Foles is on a four-year deal. Therefore, barring an offseason trade, he'll still be on the team next year. What's more, he'll be making less than a million dollars, per EaglesCap.com. 

Some fans are holding out hope that Kelly will package a host of draft picks to move up and select Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota.

The thought of Mariota and Kelly in the same offense has to scare the rest of the NFL. 

Will it actually happen, though?

Not if you ask Andrew Kulp of The 700 Level. 

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What do you think it would cost to go from No. 26 to No. 2? Three firsts? Four?

Even assuming the Mariota pick is up for grabs, the Eagles would face steep competition from other interested parties who are much higher in the draft. This means a club like the Oakland Raiders or Jacksonville Jaguars wouldn’t have to drop as far in the first round. It also means the future picks would come from rebuilding teams who are likely to continue picking higher than the contending Eagles.

And as Sando himself does mention, Philadelphia appears to be getting along just fine with either Nick Foles or Mark Sanchez, at least based on their record. That doesn't mean Kelly is as content with his quarterback situation as he lets on, but it is highly suggestive there's no need for this team to go so far out of its way to acquire another young passer who is every bit as much of a question mark right now.

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Top-10 Defense

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In 2013, the Philadelphia Eagles surprised many by finishing the year as the 17th-ranked scoring defense.

That put them in the middle of the pack and was a respectable figure for Bill Davis' first year as the team's defensive coordinator. 

This year, the Eagles have continued to improve. Free-agent signing Malcolm Jenkins has been a tremendous acquisition, but it's the pass rush—with loads of young talent—that has been playing out of its mind.

The Eagles are second in the league in sacks, with Connor Barwin's 10.5 leading the charge. Football Outsiders ranks the Eagles sixth in defensive DVOA this year, higher than the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, who are ranked seventh. 

Whether the Eagles have a Super Bowl-caliber team remains to be seen, but right now, it's the defense that is playing better than all but a few teams in the league.

3-Headed Monster at RB Here to Stay

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The 2014 season has been extremely forgettable for LeSean McCoy, the NFL's rushing champion in 2013.

A year after averaging more than 100 yards per game, McCoy has rushed for just over 71 yards per game on 3.7 yards per carry. That's the lowest of his career.

He's also had three of the most brutal running games in franchise history.

In those three games, he rushed 19 times for 22 yards, 10 times for 17 yards and 12 times for 19 yards.

The inconsistency in the running game will likely cause Chip Kelly to rely more on his three-headed running attack. 

Backups Darren Sproles and Chris Polk have combined for just 52 carries in nine games so far this season, but fans can expect those numbers to increase.

According to NJ.com, former Pro Bowl running back Brian Westbrook agrees:

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It's tough. (McCoy) went from being the guy...I was the opposite way. I was a rookie, and then the second year I was part of the 'three-headed monster.' So I was getting my touches up. His touches are going down. It's going to be tough for him, because he is used to touching the ball 20, 25 times per game.

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Jordan Matthews the Replacement for Jeremy Maclin?

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The hype surrounding rookie wide receiver Jordan Matthews was pretty intense during OTAs. He was being touted as the best receiver on the field for the Eagles. 

Although Matthews had a quiet first half of the season—by the lofty standards set for him—he's likely going to be a major weapon over the second half of the year.

Matthews caught seven passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns in the blowout win against the Carolina Panthers. He has an obvious connection with Mark Sanchez, so it's not out of the question to expect him to become the top receiving threat over the next two months. 

Bleacher Report's Brad Gagnon even went as far as to speculate that Matthews could take over Maclin's job beginning next season.

The Eagles have a lot of available cap space and no replacement alongside Matthews, so it's far from a certainty, but Gagnon definitely has an interesting theory. 

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Now, though, with Sanchez at the helm indefinitely, he (Matthews) has a chance to become the top guy. And if that comes to fruition, he'll at least turn this receiving corps into something even more special than what it had with Jackson, Riley Cooper and Jason Avant in 2013. At most, he'll make Maclin expendable, saving the Eagles a considerable amount of cash this spring. 

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