Seahawks vs. Eagles: Complete Week 14 Preview for Philadelphia

The stage is set Sunday for what should be a tremendous test for Chip Kelly and the Philadelphia Eagles as the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks come to town.

Fortunately, the Eagles get to play host here, and the Seahawks are a remarkably different team on the road than they are at home. Since Russell Wilson took over as the starting quarterback in 2012, they’re 20-2 at home but just 11-10 on the road (and 1-1 in the playoffs).

Seattle is coming off consecutive thrashings of NFC West opponents, having dismantled the San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals, each by 19-3 scores. But Kelly has a tough team with an offense that can score points and a defense and special teams unit that are both on a historically efficient pace.

Winning this game will be huge for the Eagles’ playoff positioning.

"

With a win against the Seahawks this weekend, the Eagles would improve their chances of a getting a playoff bye to 75%

— EaglesNation (9-3) (@PHLEaglesNation) December 4, 2014"

Here is everything you need to know regarding the news leading up to the game.

Eagles’ Week 13 Recap

Tim Sharp/Associated Press

The Philadelphia Eagles beat up on the Dallas Cowboys, handing the City of Brotherly Love an early Christmas present and providing plenty of reasons for Eagles fans to be thankful.

Mark Sanchez played arguably his best game as a pro, accounting for two touchdowns without a turnover while posting a 102.2 passer rating. LeSean McCoy ran wild, racking up 159 ground yards and a touchdown, and Jeremy Maclin put up another 100-yard receiving game.

The Eagles outplayed the Cowboys in every way: DeMarco Murray was held to just 71 yards. Dez Bryant had just 73 of his own. Tony Romo looked uncomfortable in the pocket, getting sacked four times. The Eagles’ underrated front seven also registered seven tackles for loss.

In all, there weren’t many things to complain about. Special teams standout Cody Parkey converted all four of his field-goal attempts. The offense outgained Dallas by over 200 yards and stopped Dallas on its only fourth-down try.

News and Notes

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

LeSean McCoy About to Become Franchise’s All-Time Leading Rusher

Right now, LeSean McCoy is sitting at 6,491 rushing yards, just 48 behind franchise rushing champion Wilbert Montgomery.

McCoy should break that mark on Sunday and with ease. He’s playing his best football now; in fact, McCoy has 745 rushing yards since Week 6, just 12 fewer than season leader DeMarco Murray.

At just 26 years old, there’s a chance McCoy doesn’t just go down as the best running back in Eagles history, but as one of the best ever. He plays in an offense that brings out the best in him, and the offensive line is top-notch.

Chip Kelly Outdueled Pete Carroll Back in Their Oregon-USC Days

In 2009, Chip Kelly’s Oregon Ducks beat Pete Carroll’s USC Trojans by a 47-20 score. Kelly’s philosophy in that game was pretty simple: Run the ball, and just keep running it until the clock says zero.

In all, the Ducks ran the ball 49 times, gaining 391 yards and four touchdowns. All four players to carry the football scored. Kelly may want to adopt that same game plan for this Sunday, especially considering the Seahawks are without top run defender Brandon Mebane, and they have a ferocious secondary.

Don’t Worry About Chip Kelly and Those Florida Rumors

There’s been some speculation about the University of Florida being interested in Chip Kelly. But that won’t happen.

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HC Chip Kelly: Florida hasn't contacted me. And if they did, I wouldn't listen. It's false. I think false things are silly.

— Eagles Insider (@EaglesInsider) December 3, 2014"

When asked about it, Kelly offered his usual subtle humor.

"

Chip Kelly again on why he wasn't interested in the Florida job: "I don't think our pro offense would work at the college level."

— Jeff McLane (@Jeff_McLane) December 4, 2014"

Connor Barwin, NFC Defensive Player of the Month

It was nice to see Connor Barwin rewarded for his tremendous play in the month of November, as he was selected to be the NFC Defensive Player of the Month.

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24 tackles + 6.5 sacks + 1 forced fumble = A #Barwinning November. Congrats, @ConnorBarwin98! #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/Cor5mP0eb3

— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) December 4, 2014"

Barwin is now at 12.5 sacks for the season, and in a world without J.J. Watt, he may be a favorite for the Defensive Player of the Year award.

Injury Report

Tim Sharp/Associated Press

There are a couple of injury updates with Philadelphia Eagles players, including the status of rookie kicker Cody Parkey.

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#Eagles practice report: Trey Burton (hamstring) and Cody Parkey (right groin) were limited at practice today. Everyone else was full go.

— Jeff McLane (@Jeff_McLane) December 4, 2014"

Don’t expect Parkey to miss the game, though.

Here are the rest of the players appearing on the official injury report.

Player	Position	Injury
Nick Foles	QB	Collarbone (Out)
Trey Burton	TE	Hamstring (Questionable)
Cody Parkey	K	Right Groin (Probable)
Brandon Bair	DE	Elbow (Probable)
Chris Polk	RB	Ankle (Probable)
Emmanuel Acho	ILB	Groin (Probable)

Key Matchups and X-Factors to Watch

Tim Sharp/Associated Press

WR Jeremy Maclin vs. CB Richard Sherman

Richard Sherman is the best cornerback in the world, a player capable of completely changing an offense’s game plan (see: Green Bay Packers vs. Seattle, Week 1).

Sherman doesn’t have the interceptions he has last year, but he’s still as close to a shutdown corner as there is in this league. Per Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Sherman leads the NFL with a 24.6 passer rating allowed. He’s coming off a game in which he completely blanked Colin Kaepernick.

"

Congrats NFC Defensive Player of the Week @RSherman_25! 2 INT and 0.0 opponent passer rating in targets. #StanfordNFL pic.twitter.com/SpbFEYKUAl

— Stanford Football (@StanfordFball) December 3, 2014"

The Eagles aren’t afraid of Sherman, though. They respect him, but they’re prepared to attack him if necessary.

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Chip: Richard Sherman, right now, is probably the best CB in the league. Always have to be aware. But we have our plan, they have theirs.

— Eagles Insider (@EaglesInsider) December 4, 2014"

It looks like Jeremy Maclin will battle Sherman for most of the game. It makes sense. Maclin is Philadelphia’s best receiver, and he’s having a Pro Bowl-caliber season.

"

Early WR/CB info: It will be Jeremy Maclin vs. Richard Sherman ~75% of the time next week. Not a bad idea to try and sit Maclin.

— Mike Clay (@MikeClayNFL) December 1, 2014"

Maclin isn’t scared though, saying he likes his chances, according to NJ.com's Eliot Shorr-Parks, even against a corner of Sherman’s caliber.

LT Jason Peters vs. RDE Cliff Avril

Jason Peters is a six-time Pro Bowler in the middle of another truly spectacular season, so he should win the one-on-one matchup with Seattle’s Cliff Avril.

Avril is a good player rated by PFF as a top-12 defensive end. Just three players at his position have more quarterback hurries (32), and Avril has picked up multiple hurries in nine of the Seahawks’ 12 games this season.

This is the kind of battle the Philadelphia Eagles will need Peters to win. The secondary will be tough for Mark Sanchez, so he’s going to need all the protection he can get in the pocket.

ILB Mychal Kendricks vs. RB Marshawn Lynch

The Philadelphia Eagles will need their whole defense to stop "Beast Mode," as Marshawn Lynch is on pace for another 1,200-yard, 10-touchdown season.

Lynch—not DeMarco Murray—leads the NFL with 61 missed tackles, per PFF, and he’s carried the ball 20-plus times in four of the last five games. Russell Wilson is a good quarterback, but he operates more as a game manager who controls the offense with a heavy dose of Lynch on the ground.

The Eagles are without veteran inside linebacker DeMeco Ryans, which means Mychal Kendricks will have an increased role as a run-stopper. Kendricks is tied for the team lead with 48 tackles (excluding the injured Ryans), and he’s missed just six, per PFF. Compare that to the 23 Kendricks missed last year, and his improvement in this area is significant.

The Eagles will need Kendricks to play an efficient game as a tackler, helping to contain Lynch as much as possible.

X-Factor: Darren Sproles

Darren Sproles may be too obvious of an X-factor. But he’s done that role so well this year, and this is the kind of game where the Philadelphia Eagles could use an unexpected big play.

LeSean McCoy will probably get 20-plus carries, so if the team can also get production from Sproles, that’s going to go a long way. Sproles already leads the NFL with two punt return touchdowns, and he’s averaging a ridiculous 6.6 yards per carry on his limited touches.

A score vs. Seattle may make the difference, especially considering the Eagles are 5-0 when he scores a rushing touchdown this year.

Prediction

Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

At 9-3, the Philadelphia Eagles likely need to win one of their next two games (vs. Seattle, vs. Dallas) and their final two games (at Washington, at New York Giants) to have a good shot at getting a first-round bye.

Seattle is in a similar scenario, although at 8-4, the Seahawks probably need to win out. Both of these teams will come out firing.

The problem is that Seattle may be a little bit better. It’s a quarterback league, and Russell Wilson is substantially better than Mark Sanchez. He also doesn’t have to go against Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas.

Prediction: Seahawks 23, Eagles 17