Philadelphia Eagles Schedule: 6 Games You Don't Want To Miss

The NFL is back. The lockout has ended, training camps have been completed and the preseason has concluded. 

The Philadelphia Eagles will open their regular season at the St. Louis Rams, close it against the division-rival Washington Redskins and play 14 games in between. Five of those games will be in prime time, three of them will be against serious Super Bowl contenders and one of them will be against a former franchise quarterback. 

Here are the six Philadelphia Eagles games you don't want to miss in 2011. 

No. 6: Philadelphia Eagles vs. Arizona Cardinals, Week 10

It was almost exactly one year ago when Eagles Head Coach Andy Reid held a press conference to say that Kevin Kolb, the team's second-round draft pick in 2007, was the new franchise QB. 

What a difference one year makes. Kevin Kolb—the kid that patiently waited behind Donovan McNabb for his chance, only to be knocked out of the Eagles' Week 1 game and never have a serious chance again—will be back in town to play his old team in week 10.

While he was in Philadelphia, Kolb did everything right. He never complained, he never drew attention to himself, he never did anything but help the Eagles organization. He was the consummate teammate and professional. 

Come November 13, he'll have a chance to square an old debt and remind the Eagles what kind of talent they traded away. 

If that wasn't enough, there's also quite a bit of history between these two teams.

It all starts back in the late 1940's, when the Eagles and Cardinals played for the NFL title in back-to-back seasons.

More recently, there was the 2008-09 NFC Championship game (Cardinals won), the Thanksgiving Day Massacre (Eagles won) and quite a bit more in between. 

This time around, it will be Vick vs. Kolb, DeSean Jackson vs. Larry Fitzgerald, Andy Reid vs. Ken Wisenhunt. It's a game no NFL fan will want to miss. 

No. 5: Philadelphia Eagles vs. Chicago Bears, Week 9

This is another one of those games that's always a hard-fought, knock-em-dead battle on the gridiron. Two storied franchises from two passionate sports towns collide again and as always, there will be playoff implications. 

I'm sure the ESPN crew will have a field day with the "soft" Cutler vs. "tough" Vick, but for me, the real key to this matchup will be the defenses. The last time these two teams met (2010), the Bears offense shredded the Eagles secondary. 

Granted, this Eagles defense is much different than the one that took the field in Chicago almost ten months ago, but I'm sure they haven't forgotten. As for the Bears defense, they surrendered 300+ passing yards to Mike Vick—something any Bears fan will tell you does not happen twice. 

This is going to be another in the long line of ruthless, tooth-and-nail battles that have defined this rivalry. It's a game no Eagles or Bears fan will want to miss.

Jay Cutler, well he might take himself out of it. 

No. 4: Philadelphia Eagles vs. New York Jets, Week 15

Quite a few years ago, Buddy Ryan, father of Rex, was the beloved head coach for the Philadelphia Eagles. His passion, his energy, his penchant for blatant honesty endeared him to the residents of the city of brotherly love. 

Fast forward to present day, and another brilliant, arrogant, brutally honest member of the Ryan family will once again coach in Philadelphia. Only this time, his name is Rex Ryan and he'll be on the visitor's sideline. 

In what has become an offseason NFL custom, Rex has again declared his Jets will win the Super Bowl.

For Philadelphia Eagles fans, its Super Bowl or bust (again) after an offseason that saw the team bring in six former Pro Bowlers, including free agent prize Nnamdi Asomugha. 

Its no secret that the Jets and Ryan wanted Asomugha badly. Rex loves his corners, and Nnamdi might be the best in the business.

The old saying goes that "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned," but we might need to update it to: "Hell hath no fury like a Ryan scorned."

Like his father, Rex is a brilliant defensive mind with an ego the size of a small continent. And like his father, Rex does not take well to being scorned. You can bet he'll have a special section of the playbook dedicated to stopping Mike Vick and the Eagles cold. It's a game you don't want to miss. 

No. 3: Philadelphia Eagles vs. New York Giants, Weeks 3 and 11

As if this rivalry needed any more logs thrown onto the fire. 

Last season, NFL fans saw the complete collapse of Tom Coughlin's Giants, as they blew a 31-10 lead with less than eight minutes to play in the fourth quarter.

The game ended with DeSean Jackson returning a Matt Dodge punt 65 yards for the game-winning score and the aforementioned Coughlin running onto the field to scream at his young punter. 

This offseason, tensions between the two teams have increased further, with repeated exchanges between Eagles RB LeSean McCoy and Giants DE Osi Umenyiora. Following that, the Eagles signed former Giants Pro Bowl WR Steve Smith.

Again, this is already one of the NFL's best rivalries. The fire between these two teams was already burning hot before the aforementioned offseason logs were thrown on the proverbial fire. These are games no Eagles fan wants to miss. 

No. 2: Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots, Week 12

Tom Brady vs. Mike Vick

Wes Welker vs. DeSean Jackson

Asante Samuel vs. his former team

Jerrod Mayo vs. LeSean McCoy

Andy Reid vs. Bill Belichek

Eagles vs. Patriots

This is a game no football fan will want to miss.

Two of the best franchises in the NFL today, two of the most electrifying quarterbacks, and two of the most successful coaches square off in a game with definite playoff implications. 

No. 1: Philadelphia Eagles vs. Dallas Cowboys, Weeks 8 and 16

This might be the biggest rivalry in the NFL today. Its a rivalry that extends off the field, where even the announcers (I'm looking at you, Troy Aikman) still hold a grudge. 

Who can forget the Terrell Owens TD celebration on the Cowboy's star? Or the antics of DeSean Jackson? How about the recent comments by Cowboys' defensive coordinator Rob Ryan (brother of Rex)? 

It's the Eagles vs. the Cowboys, in prime time. 

Need I say more?