As odd as it sounds to say, both the Eagles and Seahawks are a part of the two most competitive divisions in the NFL, the NFC East and the NFC West. It’s odd because both of these teams are fighting to remain in first place in their respective division although their records could not be more opposite of each other.
When we look at the NFC East the Giants overtook first place with a win against the Bengals yesterday and they currently sit at 4-7 while the Eagles are 3-6-1. With a win the Eagles overtake first place once again and with a loss they will sit in third place behind both the Giants and the Football Team. Then we go over to the NFC West and the Seahawks still own first place after a Rams loss yesterday as they are 7-3. Seattle will only fall into a tie for first place if they lose this game (even though they do not own the tiebreaker), but they will gain a one game lead over the Rams with a victory. As stated, these two divisions are the tightest races from top to bottom even if these divisions look completely different.
Let’s start with the visiting Seahawks and they are going from one primetime game (last Thursday) to another primetime game on Monday all of which ended up giving the Seahawks a complete 10-day rest before the game. In their most recent game, they got a huge victory over the in-division Cardinals which not only gave them a division lead but also helped snap a two-game losing streak. After that win last week over the Cardinals, they have now reached the “easy” portion of their schedule where they play virtually the entire NFC East as well as the Jets over the next four weeks. They have a chance to win all of those games, but it all starts with a victory on the road against the Eagles (similar to the wild card game last season).
Then we have Philadelphia who is currently on a two-game losing streak in losses against the Giants and the Browns and things are not looking any easier for them. As opposed to the Seahawks who seemingly have a cupcake schedule over the next four weeks, the Eagles have a gauntlet in which they start with the Seahawks, travel to play the Packers, take on the Saints at home, and finally fly out to face the Cardinals. At this point of the season the Eagles do not look like they will be making the playoffs, but the NFC East is wide open so with a couple of victories they get right back in it, that has to start with a win against Seattle.
These teams met two times last season (one in the regular season and one in the playoffs) and both times the Eagles had home field advantage and both time they lost, weirdly enough they lost both games with a score of 17-9. The biggest issue last season was that they had trouble finding the endzone and that is still an issue they have been facing (especially in their past two games). This time though we have an offense that struggles (Eagles) going up against a struggling defense (Seahawks), so will we see a repeat of last season or will the home team final come away with a victory?
Monday Night Football: Seahawks at Eagles
Kickoff: Monday, Nov. 30 at 8:15 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Spread: Seattle -6
How the Seahawks will win
Seattle was in a bit of an offensive slump for the past two weeks prior to their victory against Arizona last week. Now, offensive slump means different things when you’re talking about the number one offense in the NFL, but in week nine they scored 34 points even though Wilson had two interceptions and took five sacks. That doesn’t seem like much of a slump, but the week after when they played the Rams it most definitely was. There were many firsts in that game for Seattle this season, they did not score 20 points for the first time this season, Russell Wilson failed to have a touchdown pass for the first time this season, and they allowed six sacks which is a season high. Last Thursday they changed things up a little bit winning the game 28-21. Wilson had a season low 197 yards on the day, but he did not have any turnovers and that was what led them to a victory.
So far this season that has been the key to victory for Seattle, limit interceptions. Seattle has seven wins on the season and in all seven of those games Wilson has had one interception or less for a total of three interceptions. In their three losses Wilson has had at least two interceptions for a total of seven interceptions. Wilson is the heart and soul of the offense if not the entire team, but he does not play defense so we can’t account that, when he does not play well the rest of the team will usually follow suit. Outside of Wilson the same has been true, limit turnovers to maximum one and the win only having four turnovers in victories this season while having 10 turnovers in losses.
Seattle has completely flipped the script this season from what they have built their identity on and that is defense, defense, DEFENSE. Over the past couple of seasons, they have gone from one of the best defenses in the league to one of the best offenses in the league. Since 2011 they have had a top 13 or better scoring defense in eight of those seasons (five top fives), in the past two they have ranked 22nd and currently 27th. On the offense they have also had eight top 13 scoring offenses or better, the biggest difference being they have only had two top fives (that includes this season).
Last season and this season they have had to heavily rely on their offense to win games because the defense is just not that good. That could finally change this week as they play an offense who has had their issues this season ranking 24th in the league. It is entirely possible that the Eagles offense finds the weak spots in the Seahawks defense therefore forcing their offense to win the game, but the defense can help alleviate the pressure Russell Wilson has been facing by forcing turnovers. The Eagles have had at least one offensive turnover in all, but one game, if Seattle can give Wilson and this offense short fields then a win should not be in doubt.
How the Eagles will win
Philadelphia has dealt with a ton of injuries this season and they still do (surprise!) but that doesn’t mean that they can’t pull off an upset. Why can they pull of an upset, they have the receivers to do so against one of the worst pass defenses in the league. This isn’t an indication of things to come because frankly they have not shown they can pull off upsets this season. Philadelphia has won three games this season and in only one of them were they considered underdogs, although with the injuries the 49ers have had could it be considered a true underdog game.
Their best way to pull off an upset this game is to involve the run game. The Seahawks have the 27th ranked defense, 32nd in the pass, and third in the run. So, while they may be very good in the run it would be crazy to not attempt to involve them. The best/closest games the Eagles have had this season is when they have involved the run and pass almost equally. They have two healthy running backs in Miles Sanders and Boston Scott and they have to keep them involved early and often. These two, help open up the pass game for Carson Wentz and with the health of his receivers getting better the backs will be massively important.
The big question on the offensive end is, how long does Wentz have? Jalen Hurts was getting a good number of first-team reps this week, so if Wentz does not perform could Hurts come in. Well, it’s entirely possible since the Seahawks are not a good defensive team on the passing end, but it will be interesting to see what comes of this. The offense is getting healthier, but the biggest issue comes in the offensive line. The line is still dealing with a large number of injuries, so if they can pressure Wentz then his time at starter may be short lived this game.
The offense is no doubt important, but they do not have the same firepower as the Seahawks so what will really win them this game is the defense. As mentioned, the Seahawks losses have come when Wilson has more than one turnover, the Eagles pass defense is very good and that is the strength of the Seahawks offense so force them to pass and you have a chance to win. The one problem with their pass defense is they don’t force turnovers, so if you don’t do that then containing Wilson, Metcalf, and Lockett is the next logical step. If you contain them and allow your offense to play a close game then they can avenge their losses from last season, however, if they have to play catch up then it will be over early.
Final Analysis
Both of these teams need a victory to stay well positioned in the playoff race, but one of these teams needs a win more than the others, that would be the Eagles. If the Seahawks lose they will still be in first place, if the Eagles lose then it could be tough to make that up with their upcoming schedule. This is a game where if Wentz struggles early then it could be Hurts time to lead them to a victory, but at the end it will actually come down to the Eagles defense vs. Seattle’s offense. These are both of these team’s strengths so if one can slow down the other than that is the team likely to win. This bodes well for Seattle as the Eagles pass D is good, but they don’t force turnovers, if you can’t force turnovers from Wilson then it will be tough to keep him down all game.
Score: Seahawks 27, Eagles 20