Eagles vs. Packers: Complete Week 11 Preview for Philadelphia

There’s a lot riding on this Sunday’s game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers. The Eagles are fresh off a Monday night thrashing of the Carolina Panthers, and backup Mark Sanchez played extremely well in his first start running Chip Kelly’s offense.

But the Packers are as dangerous as any team in the league right now, as they showed with a Sunday night annihilation of the Chicago Bears. The Eagles get their chance to try to slow down former league MVP Aaron Rodgers, who is well on his way to winning a second such award.

This game is much more than the battle of the quarterbacks, although obviously that will be huge in determining the contest’s outcome. Here’s what you need to know about this matchup.

Eagles' Week 10 Recap

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The Eagles dominated the Panthers on Monday Night Football, winning the matchup on all three facets of the game.

The offense scored four touchdowns in just 21 minutes of possession, the defense sacked Cam Newton nine times and forced five turnovers and the special teams units got another touchdown, this time courtesy of a Darren Sproles punt return.

The result was a 45-21 win on prime-time football, one that for now solidifies the Eagles as a legitimate NFC contender, even with quarterback Nick Foles sidelined due to a collarbone injury.

Backup quarterback Mark Sanchez rallied the team, throwing two touchdowns and just missing a third. Most importantly, Sanchez played turnover-free football; it was, in fact, the first game the Eagles offense played this year without turning the ball over.

The struggles of LeSean McCoy and the running game were concerning, especially considering the Panthers entered the day ranked dead last in the league in average rushing yards allowed per attempt. Still, McCoy did score on his lone goal-line carry, and Sproles (in addition to his punt-return touchdown) added an eight-yard scamper for a touchdown.

Rookie second-round receiver Jordan Matthews showed a strong connection with Sanchez, catching seven passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns. Brent Celek also put up a 113-yard day on the receiving end, showing there are a handful of weapons on this offense besides just McCoy and Jeremy Maclin.

The pass rush against the Panthers was furious, bothering Cam Newton all game, and this ultimately helped the Eagles stage an early, insurmountable lead.

News and Notes

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Could This Game Decide Home-Field Advantage in NFC?

It goes without saying that this upcoming matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers will be huge in determining playoff seeding in the NFC.

The Eagles (7-2) are currently one-half game up over the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC East, and they’re at the third overall seed in the conference, behind the Arizona Cardinals (8-1) and Detroit Lions (7-2). Ironically, the Cardinals and Lions face each other this week, and considering that the Cardinals already beat the Eagles, Philadelphia fans should be rooting heavily for the Lions.

Surprisingly, the red-hot Packers (6-3) would actually miss the playoffs if the season ended now. Green Bay loses a tiebreaker to Seattle due to the Seahawks’ Week 1 win head-to-head; this means the Packers’ best shot at the postseason is winning their own division.

Casey Matthews vs. Clay Matthews

Perhaps the NFL's most successful football family will have two of its players square off this Sunday, as Casey Matthews' Philadelphia Eagles travel to Lambeau Field to take on Clay Matthews' Green Bay Packers.

It's the second such meeting between these two but the first time that Casey is expected to start. In fact, he didn't even see any defensive snaps in last year's 27-13 win over the Packers, but he will definitely see the field this year, given the season-ending injury to veteran DeMeco Ryans.

"

Casey Matthews on Sunday's #BrotherlyLove against Clay: I'll treat this week like any other week, but it's blood. We want that win.

— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) November 12, 2014"

Casey hasn't had the same NFL success as Clay, a four-time Pro Bowler with 53.5 career sacks, but he played well last week in limited snaps. Casey's early forced fumble helped set the tone for Philadelphia's big win.

"

Chip: I like Casey Matthews' instincts. Good, quick decision maker. Good tackler in the box. Great demeanor, very even-keeled.

— Eagles Insider (@EaglesInsider) November 13, 2014"

It looks like his brother Clay, normally an outside linebacker, will be seeing more time at inside linebacker this week. The Packers moved Clay there last game, and he picked up nine tackles, a sack and two quarterback hurries against the Chicago Bears.

Clay has always played well against the Eagles, notably in that 2010 Week 1 game when he harassed Winston Justice all day and concussed starting quarterback Kevin Kolb.

According to Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Daily News, Casey says his brother isn't as big of a fan of playing on the inside, although Clay then denied Casey's comment.

"

Clay Matthews asked if brother Casey is messing w him thru media: 'nah, he's not that smart. He's an inside linebacker, after all.'

— Justin Felder (@Justin_Felder) November 13, 2014"

If Clay playing inside is working though, the Packers are likely going to stick with it, especially considering they already have two talented outside linebackers in both 2012 first-round pick Nick Perry and offseason acquisition Julius Peppers, a future Hall of Famer.

Philadelphia Eagles Have Never Beaten Aaron Rodgers

This is Aaron Rodgers’ 10th season in the league, and the Philadelphia Eagles have never beaten him. Then again, they’ve only played him twice.

Rodgers sat on the bench for three years then didn’t meet up with the Eagles in 2008 or 2009. He swept the Eagles in 2010, winning both the regular-season game and playoff matchup.

The teams didn’t face off in 2011 or 2012. Last year, Rodgers was injured, and backup quarterback Scott Tolzien filled in, with the Eagles winning by a 27-13 score.

Interesting fact about the Eagles’ quarterbacks: This is the sixth consecutive game Philadelphia will be starting a different quarterback against Green Bay. Those quarterbacks were Mike McMahon (2005), Donovan McNabb (2007), Kevin Kolb (2010), Michael Vick (2010 playoffs), Nick Foles (2013) and now Mark Sanchez.

Injury Report

Michael Perez/Associated Press

There won’t be any surprises with the Philadelphia Eagles’ injury report this week. Nick Foles is sidelined for at least six to eight weeks. Veterans Todd Herremans and DeMeco Ryans are added to the season-ending injured reserve list. And both Evan Mathis and Jason Kelce are back and fully healthy.

Per Brandon Lee Gowton of Bleeding Green Nation, here is the full Eagles injury report for Week 11.

Player	Position	Injury
Brent Celek	TE	Ankle (Probable)
Bradley Fletcher	CB	Shoulder (Probable)
Mychal Kendricks	ILB	Calf (Probable)
Jeff Maehl	WR	Foot (Probable)

Expect all four of those players to suit up for Sunday.

Key Matchups and X-Factors to Watch

Mike Roemer/Associated Press

CB Cary Williams vs. WR Jordy Nelson

Both Aaron Rodgers and Jordy Nelson have to be giddy about this matchup. Cary Williams has been one of the NFL’s most targeted cornerbacks since 2012, and this year is no different.

Per Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Williams has been targeted 59 times, tied for the 12th-highest total among all cornerbacks. He’s been beat for five touchdowns and a 109.9 passer rating. Since the start of ’12, Williams has surrendered 15 touchdowns. The only cornerbacks to have allowed more are Buster Skrine (20), Patrick Peterson (19) and Janoris Jenkins (16).

Meanwhile, Nelson is fifth among receivers with 889 yards this season, and he’s tied for second with eight touchdowns. He’s been targeted an average of nine times per game in 2014, and the Rodgers-to-Nelson duo is second among all QB-WRs in passer rating (131.6), per PFF.

RB LeSean McCoy vs. Green Bay Front Seven

LeSean McCoy’s performance last Monday night against a 32nd-rated Carolina rushing defense was highly disappointing. McCoy finished with just 19 yards on 12 carries, averaging a paltry 1.6 yards per rushing attempt.

He’s against a Green Bay front seven that is full of former first-rounders and big names yet still ranks 28th in average rushing yards allowed per attempt and 30th overall in rushing defense.

The Packers boast former first-rounders in Clay Matthews, Julius Peppers, A.J. Hawk, Datone Jones and Nick Perry (plus B.J. Raji on IR). End Mike Daniels may be the best defensive lineman of the group, but the Packers haven’t succeeded in slowing down opposing running backs.

McCoy has no excuses not to get his season back on track. The Philadelphia Eagles may not run the ball too much if they go down early. But McCoy does catch a ton of passes, and he’s capable of scoring on any given play.

WR Jordan Matthews vs. NCB Casey Hayward

This matchup will be just as pivotal to the game's outcome as the Randall Cobb vs. Brandon Boykin faceoff.

Last week showed Mark Sanchez's trust in Matthews, who has the size and strength to be a mismatch nightmare from the slot receiver position. Matthews is a physical specimen at 6'3", 212 pounds, especially considering he's both fast (4.46 speed in the 40-yard dash) and strong (position-best 21 repetitions in the bench press).

Casey Hayward is no slouch himself, though, and now that the Denver Broncos moved Chris Harris to an outside role, Hayward is probably the best nickel corner in the league.

The numbers don't lie. Since the Packers stole Hayward in the second round of the 2012 draft, he's been as close to a shutdown corner as this league has seen.

Per Pro Football Focus, opposing quarterbacks have targeted Hayward 94 times in three years. They've completed just 46.8 percent of those passes for no touchdowns. Hayward has intercepted nine passes.

Here's a comparison of how dominant Hayward has been.

Richard Sherman since 2012 (205 targets): 46.8 completion percentage, 5 TD, 16 INT (one interception every 12.8 passes)

Casey Hayward since 2012 (94 targets): 46.8 completion percentage, 0 TD, 9 INT (one interception every 10.4 passes)

Granted, Hayward does play in the slot. But that shouldn't diminish the fact that he's been flat-out amazing. If Matthews can beat him for a touchdown, he’ll be the first NFL player to do so. Sanchez hasn’t been shy about targeting Matthews, so there’s a real possibility this could happen.

Prediction

Mike Roemer/Associated Press

Aaron Rodgers is playing as well as anyone in the NFL right now, the Green Bay Packers are home and the Philadelphia Eagles are down to their backup quarterback.

All of that means it would take a lot to go into Lambeau Field and win.

Mark Sanchez was more than competent a week ago, and the Eagles defense and special teams units have a knack for creating plays.

Don't expect a win, though. The Eagles go down early, rally to make it close but ultimately watch as Rodgers and Co. pull away in the end.

Prediction: Packers 34, Eagles 31