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  • A familiar voice to Birds fans will call Eagles-Commanders on CBS

    A familiar voice to Birds fans will call Eagles-Commanders on CBS

    While the Eagles are prioritizing next week’s wild-card game, Sunday’s matchup against the Commanders is the sole focus of one announcer who grew up rooting for the Birds.

    Ross Tucker, the Eagles preseason announcer on NBC10 since 2019, will call Eagles-Commanders on CBS alongside veteran play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:25 p.m. Sunday.

    Tucker, a Wyomissing native and former NFL offensive lineman, has called a number of Eagles games on radio for Westwood One, where he’s worked since 2015. But Sunday will be his first chance broadcasting a Birds game on TV for CBS.

    “It’s super cool for me on multiple levels,” Tucker said. “I grew up an Eagles fan, and all my friends are Eagles fans, so this will be really neat for them.”

    It’s a stroke of luck on many fronts. Ordinarily, Tucker works games on CBS’s No. 6 crew alongside Phillies announcer Tom McCarthy. But Harlan’s normal broadcast partner, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Trent Green, is off this weekend to attend his son’s wedding, opening a slot for Tucker.

    Despite that, the Eagles game wasn’t on Tucker’s radar, since Fox traditionally is the home of NFC games. But under new TV deals that began in 2021, the NFL is only required to schedule one of each NFC divisional matchup on Fox, which aired Eagles-Commanders in Week 16.

    Tucker didn’t know he landed the Birds game until CBS announced their broadcast lineups Tuesday.

    “I knew I was doing the game with Kevin for about three or four weeks, but I had no idea it would turn out to be the Eagles game,” Tucker said. “It’s really fortuitous.”

    This will be the first game Tucker and Harlan have called together on TV, but the two have been paired on radio a bunch on Westwood One, including for playoff games. Harlan has called games alongside plenty of analysts during his 40-year career, but thinks Tucker’s insight as a former offensive lineman in a broadcasting world dominated by former quarterbacks is enlightening.

    “Ross picks up nuance and the right way to capture what a line is doing or not doing, and I just find that refreshing,” Harlan said.

    With the Eagles resting their starters, it turned out to be a prescient move by CBS to turn to Tucker, who watched every preseason snap and knows the Birds’ backups better than most. Harlan also calls preseason games for the Green Bay Packers, but that won’t help him much when it comes to the Birds’ backups.

    “It’s a great challenge to come in and do a bunch of players I’m not really familiar with,” Harlan said. “I’m probably going to let Ross kind of lead things that he finds interesting to get the ball rolling, and then we’ll let the game take it from there.”

    Calling Sunday’s Eagles game certainly is a milestone for Tucker, but he remains a workhorse. In addition to calling NFL games for CBS and Westwood One (where he’ll broadcast playoff games), he calls college football games and continues to host the daily Ross Tucker Football Podcast. He also nearly replaced Angelo Cataldi as the morning host on 94.1 WIP, but a daily commute from Reading to Philadelphia for a 6 a.m. show wasn’t in the cards.

    “I still feel like I’m just grinding and trying to move up the ranks and doing the best I can,” Tucker said.

    Ross Tucker (right) called NFL games on CBS in 2025 alongside Phillies announcer Tom McCarthy.

    Tucker’s only regret is not being able to call his first Eagles game alongside McCarthy. The two have been friends since McCarthy called Tucker’s college football games at Princeton. And McCarthy, in his 12th season calling NFL games for CBS, has yet to land the Eagles, though he remains the only announcer not named Jim Nantz to call a game with Tony Romo.

    “He is the best,” McCarthy said of Tucker. “Just a tremendous partner. We have had such an amazing year.”

    But McCarthy has a nice consolidation prize. He will be in Cincinnati Sunday calling the Bengals’ matchup against the Cleveland Browns, where he’ll have the chance to voice Myles Garrett breaking the NFL’s single-season sack record (22), currently held by Michael Strahan.

    Where on TV is Eagles-Commanders airing

    Among other places, Sunday’s Eagles game is airing in Tampa, where a lot of Birds fans call home.

    This season, the Eagles have had their fair share of nationally televised games. That won’t be the case Sunday.

    In addition to the Philadelphia TV market, Eagles-Commanders also is airing in Washington, D.C., and throughout most of Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. The game also will be available on CBS in Tampa, Fla., which an outsized number of Eagles fans call home.

    It’s airing in two TV markets home to teams the Eagles have a chance of facing in the first round of the playoffs — San Francisco and Green Bay, along with most of Minnesota and all of Detroit.

    It’ll also broadcast in Chicago, where Bears fans will be flipping to see which team ends up with the No. 2 seed.

    Los Angeles Rams fans will be out of luck, though. While the Eagles likely will face the Rams, CBS2 in Los Angeles is locked into airing the Chargers’ game against the Denver Broncos, where the AFC’s No. 1 seed is on the line.

    Other NFL games airing Sunday in Philadelphia

    D’Andre Swift and the Bears will lock down the No. 2 seed with a win Sunday.

    Eagles fans in Philadelphia will get plenty of games Sunday impacting the playoffs.

    Saturday night on ESPN, Carolina Panthers-Tampa Bay Buccaneers will likely decide the winner of the NFC South (although the Atlanta Falcons could play spoilers Sunday) while the winner of Seattle Seahawks-San Francisco 49ers will claim the NFC West crown and the No. 1 seed.

    Sunday afternoon, Fox will air Detroit Lions-Chicago Bears at 4:25 p.m. If the Eagles win and the Bears lose, the Birds will head to the playoffs as the No. 2 seed and host the Packers in the wild-card round. Otherwise the Birds will be the No. 3 seed and face the 49ers or Rams.

    Sunday night, NBC has a win-or-go-home game in the Baltimore Ravens at the Pittsburgh Steelers. The winner heads to the playoffs as the AFC’s No. 4 seed.

    Here are the games airing on TV in and around Philadelphia in Week 18:

    Saturday

    • Panthers at Buccaneers: 4:30 p.m., ESPN (Chris Fowler, Dan Orlovsky, Louis Riddick, Katie George, Peter Schrager)
    • Seahawks at 49ers: 8 p.m., ESPN/6abc (Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Lisa Salters, Laura Rutledge)

    Sunday

    • Packers at Vikings: 1 p.m., CBS3 (Spero Dedes, Adam Archuleta, Aditi Kinkhabwala)
    • Cowboys at Giants: 1 p.m., Fox29 (Kevin Kugler, Daryl Johnston, Allison Williams)
    • Commanders at Eagles: 4:25 p.m., CBS3 (Kevin Harlan, Ross Tucker, Melanie Collins)
    • Lions at Bears: 4:25 p.m., Fox29 (Kevin Burkhardt, Tom Brady, Erin Andrews, Tom Rinaldi)
    • Ravens at Steelers: 8:20 p.m., NBC10 (Mike Tirico, Cris Collinsworth, Melissa Stark)
    Rams loss in Week 17 eliminated one Eagles wild-card opponent as playoffs approach
  • Eagles vs. Commanders predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 18

    Eagles vs. Commanders predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 18

    Welcome to Preseason Week … err … Week 18 of the NFL season.

    The Eagles made the decision to rest some starters for Sunday’s season finale against the Washington Commanders to give themselves a pseudo bye week ahead of the playoffs.

    But even so, Sunday’s game at Lincoln Financial Field presents the potential for the Eagles to move up a spot and into the No. 2 seed in the NFC if they win and Detroit is able to pull off a road win at Chicago.

    Will the Eagles’ backups do their part? Or will Washington end a miserable season on a high note? Here’s what our writers think:

    Jeff Neiburg

    It’s Tanner Time.

    And, really, is there anything near as interesting as the Eagles’ backup quarterback on Sunday? Sure, there are some young players whose progress and development will be on display, but this wacky season deserves nothing more than a phony quarterback controversy to start the postseason run.

    Three reassuring Eagles stats, and three reasons to worry ahead of the NFL playoffs

    In all seriousness, Tanner McKee and whichever amalgamation of offensive players take the field for the Eagles’ first series Sunday still have a very real chance at winning the game and putting the fate of the playoff seeding in the hands of the Bears.

    We can expect to see a similar McKee that we saw in Week 18 last season. He’s a capable passer who can operate the offense at a pretty high level. And Washington’s defense is really bad.

    The Commanders, meanwhile, are expected to start third-stringer Josh Johnson at quarterback. His cross-field throw into the waiting hands of Cooper DeJean in Week 16 is all you really need to know about the Commanders’ offense with Johnson playing quarterback. Jacory Croskey-Merritt got free for a 72-yard touchdown last Thursday, but otherwise he had 10 carries for 33 yards.

    The Eagles don’t typically stack the box, but if their backups are able to stop the run with success, it may be tough for Johnson to beat them with his arm. The Eagles will have some capable players on the field on defense. Imagine how long Josh Uche has been waiting to rush the quarterback in a game?

    Games like this are really hard to predict. Who plays? And for how long? But the Eagles have the advantage at quarterback, and they’re the team with more football to play beyond Week 18. I’ll take that combination in this one.

    Will there actually be a quarterback controversy? McKee will probably play well enough that the sports radio callers will engage in the absurdity. Happy New Year.

    Prediction: Eagles 27, Commanders 16

    Olivia Reiner

    The million-dollar question this week: Can the Eagles backups beat the Commanders?

    McKee will certainly give them a chance. Whenever he has been called upon, both in the preseason and the regular season, the 2023 sixth-rounder out of Stanford has risen to the occasion. In his last start, he led the Eagles to a 2024 Week 18 victory against the New York Giants.

    Jalen Hurts says he trusts Eagles coaches with sit-or-start decision — and the offense’s direction

    But McKee isn’t throwing the ball to himself, blocking for himself, nor trying to stop the Johnson-led Commanders offense. Is this Eagles team as deep as they were last season at every other position?

    That’s up for debate. The players adding secondary depth were more experienced in Week 18 of last year, with players such as Avonte Maddox and Isaiah Rodgers starting at safety and cornerback, respectively. Kelee Ringo and Jakorian Bennett are likely to get the nod at cornerback, while Sydney Brown will likely start at safety.

    On the offensive line, Drew Kendall could earn his first start at center. Last year, it was sixth-year veteran Nick Gates in that role.

    Still, the Eagles can’t rest all of the starters. Perhaps a few such as Jihaad Campbell see some playing time on Sunday.

    The Commanders aren’t exactly operating at full strength. Center Tyler Biadasz went on injured reserve this week and left tackle Laremy Tunsil isn’t expected to play, either.

    While the Eagles will be motivated to win, the banged-up Commanders have more experience playing together this season. Plus, they may still have a bad taste in their mouths given the scrum that occurred late in the Week 16 game at Northwest Stadium.

    Prediction: Commanders 21, Eagles 17

  • Tanner McKee is ready to ‘play fast’ in his next opportunity to start at quarterback with the Eagles

    Tanner McKee is ready to ‘play fast’ in his next opportunity to start at quarterback with the Eagles

    The Eagles were going through their ball security drills at practice Thursday when running backs coach Jemal Singleton chimed in.

    Many starters will get the day off Sunday in the season finale vs. the Washington Commanders. So Singleton wanted to offer a reminder: For some Eagles who will take the field Sunday, their last time getting hit was a while ago. His eyes quickly darted to Tanner McKee, the backup quarterback said.

    “It’s actually been a while since I’ve gotten hit,” McKee said Thursday afternoon.

    Sure, Jalen Hurts’ backup has hit the field a few times in mop-up duty this season. He handed to Tank Bigsby twice and kneeled twice during the final drive two weeks ago vs. Washington. He led a 17-play drive to the goal line in a blowout over Las Vegas a week earlier. And he handed once to Bigsby before kneeling three times to close out a Week 8 win over the Giants.

    This week is different. McKee will get the reins vs. the Commanders as the Eagles give Hurts and some other regulars a week off from game action to get ready for the playoffs. McKee and any other backup will routinely tell you about preparation being the same every week. Backups prepare to start because their number could be called at any time. But McKee said there is a slight difference.

    “You’re just more involved with making the calls on the field instead of watching somebody else make the calls,” he said. “So you’re back there and you’re doing your footwork. ‘This is what I would do; these are my reads if I were in.’ But now you’re actually in. It is just kind of getting those physical reps.”

    Almost a decade after his cancer scare, Eagles QB Tanner McKee champions the importance of early detection

    And he will prepare to be hit, too. McKee hasn’t gone into a game as a starter since the preseason. Prior to that it was Week 18 last year, when he completed 27 of 41 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns in a 20-13 win over the Giants. McKee will again face a divisional foe, but the big difference this time is the game has some stakes. The Eagles were locked into the No. 2 seed last season. This time, McKee could help lead the Eagles to a win with a chance to move into the second spot in the NFC if Detroit beats Chicago.

    “I’m definitely excited for that,” McKee said. “It’s obviously fun when something is on the line.”

    Philadelphia Eagles Tanner McKee throws the football during practice at the NovaCare Complex in Philadelphia

    In that regard, McKee hasn’t played a meaningful game since he was at Stanford in 2022. And while this game does have some possible stakes for the Eagles, it definitely has stakes for McKee, who is still a 25-year-old quarterback trying to put good play on tape. Next season is the final year of his contract, and while there are surely some Eagles fans that want him to be a starter here — and will make their voices heard on radio stations heading into the playoffs if he plays well Sunday — McKee is, in a sense, auditioning for his next job. The Eagles could choose to bring him back as a reliable backup option in 2026, or they could try to flip him for draft capital this offseason.

    McKee, who had a good training camp with the Eagles, said he wasn’t thinking ahead about that part of it, but is viewing Sunday as just another opportunity to go do his job and perform. He feels more prepared to do that now than he did at this time last year just because of all the practice time he’s gotten since.

    “Obviously with more reps you get more confidence, you have that good chemistry with the guys around you,” McKee said. “I feel like I have a good feel, can play fast. As a quarterback it’s really big to be able to play and just react to the game instead of trying to think, ‘What’s my job? What’s my footwork? What’s everybody else doing?’ You can just play and react and so I feel like I’ve gotten to that point and I feel comfortable doing that.”

    A year after his last start, he’ll get a chance to show just how comfortable on Sunday.

    Jalen Hurts says he trusts Eagles coaches with sit-or-start decision — and the offense’s direction

    Williams added to active roster

    Rookie right tackle Cameron Williams was added to the active roster after being activated from injured reserve Thursday. Williams’ 21-day practice window was set to expire this week and the Eagles opted to activated him rather than end his season.

    Williams, 22, could see his first NFL action Sunday.

    Injury report

    The Eagles listed Jalen Carter (hip), Nakobe Dean (hamstring), Dallas Goedert (knee), Lane Johnson (foot), and Jalean Phillips (ankle) as non participants in practice Thursday.

    Safety Marcus Epps reported concussion symptoms to the medical staff after practice. He has a concussion and is in the concussion protocol.

    Jihaad Campbell (back/shoulder) was upgraded to a full participant after appearing on the estimated injury report after Wednesday’s walk-through as limited.

  • Jalen Hurts says he trusts Eagles coaches with sit-or-start decision — and the offense’s direction

    Jalen Hurts says he trusts Eagles coaches with sit-or-start decision — and the offense’s direction

    For the first time in four months, Jalen Hurts is expected to watch Sunday’s game from the sideline.

    The perimeter of the gridiron isn’t necessarily the vantage point the Eagles quarterback enjoys. But with the playoffs looming, Nick Sirianni is expected to rest most of his key starters for the regular-season finale against the Washington Commanders, even with the NFC’s No. 2 seed up for grabs.

    Kevin Patullo on struggles of Eagles offense: ’It never comes down to one thing.’

    That choice is out of Hurts’ hands. And he says he has faith in those decision-makers that they’re making the right one.

    “Just giving my trust to the coaches and trusting their plans and everything that we do,” Hurts said Wednesday. “Obviously, I’m very competitive. Every opportunity we have, we want to take advantage of and try and go out there and compete at a high level. So if that opportunity is given to us this week, I’ll have that mentality, just as I had last week.”

    That trust extends beyond Sirianni’s decision. For all of the ups and downs the Eagles offense has experienced this season, Hurts emphasized the trust he has in the coaching staff to put the players in advantageous situations going forward.

    Sunday’s 13-12 win over the Buffalo Bills was a microcosm of the offense’s inconsistency this season. The group had a solid start in the first half, then cobbled together just 17 yards in 17 plays in the second.

    Jalen Hurts and the offense had a miserable second half in Sunday’s win at Buffalo.

    The Eagles couldn’t recover from their inefficiency on early downs in the second half. They punted on all five second-half possessions, outside of the final kneel down.

    Following the early-December mini-bye in the aftermath of the loss to the Chicago Bears, Hurts said the sequencing of the offense from seasons past was one of the details he focused on in his film study. But as evidenced by Sunday night’s performance, an inefficient first down is going to make it more difficult on offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo to sequence the ensuing plays.

    While Hurts acknowledged he has opinions and even a degree of influence over the sequencing of plays, he said it’s not his primary focus.

    “As a quarterback, you want to go out there and purely focus on executing what’s called and doing that,” Hurts said. “We all have a feel for the rhythm of a game and how it flows. And I think as a unit, you don’t want to speak from a place of divisiveness or anything, but we are what we are, and we have what we have, and we’ve got a great opportunity in front of us, and so everybody’s working together to try and figure those things out.

    “Ultimately, trusting my teammates to go out there and make plays. We’ve got to master the material. We’ve got to know what to do. We’ve got to know where to line up and operate efficiently and control the things we can, and then, from a coaching standpoint, I trust our coaches to go out there and put us in good positions.”

    Every year, Hurts is required to reestablish that sense of trust with his offensive play caller, which this season is Patullo. Hurts has had a revolving door of offensive play callers since he was drafted in 2020 (and even before that as a college player at Oklahoma and Alabama).

    One of his constant companions as an Eagle has been Tanner McKee, the 25-year-old backup who is expected to start Sunday for the first time this season. Since the Eagles drafted McKee in 2023, he has been a valued sounding board for Hurts.

    “I think the conversations, the dialogue, those things are very important in the quarterback room,” Hurts said. “And considering he’s been a constant in the room for the last three years he’s been here, being able to go through some of those changes together and process those things and take the coaching and go out there and play — I think that’s very beneficial.”

    For now, the focus is on preparing McKee and the rest of the backups for the Commanders. But in just two weeks, Hurts is slated to return to action as the playoffs begin.

    Three reassuring Eagles stats, and three reasons to worry ahead of the NFL playoffs

    It’s a stage he knows well, having appeared in the postseason in every year since he’s been the starter. That experience, Hurts said, is the biggest teacher, especially for an offense that has “played ball together” dating back to last season.

    Can that experience provide a spark in the playoffs? Despite the inconsistency that has defined the offense this year, Hurts is optimistic about the opportunity ahead.

    “For everything it’s been this year, we’ve got a great opportunity in front of us,” Hurts said. “And that’s not saying that in a bad way. We’ve done a lot of special things this year. We’ve set a high standard for ourselves. And when you’ve had the level of success you have that comes with it, ultimately, nothing else matters.

    “As we play through this week and prepare through this week and then enter the tournament, it’s 0-0 for everyone. And so the mentality is just go find a way to win.”

  • Eagles expected to rest Jalen Hurts and starters on Sunday vs. the Commanders

    Eagles expected to rest Jalen Hurts and starters on Sunday vs. the Commanders

    The Eagles are expected to rest quarterback Jalen Hurts and most of their starters against the Washington Commanders on Sunday, NFL sources said Wednesday.

    Eagles coach Nick Sirianni declined to say whether he was resting his starters or not when asked during his Wednesday news conference. He said he wanted to first inform his players of his decision during a later team meeting before making it public.

    But the team later confirmed that some key starters will get the game off, some will play on a limited basis, and some will dress but not play. The Eagles will need to have a certain amount of players active to meet the league requirement.

    The decision to use the season finale as a “bye” week heading into the playoffs shouldn’t come as a surprise based on Sirianni’s other recent comments. The NFC East champion Eagles can still improve their seeding, but he emphasized on Monday the importance of giving players a week off.

    “If I look back and how beneficial some of the byes that we’ve had have been, that’s part of the reason why you think through it,” Sirianni said, a day after the Eagles beat the Bills, 13-12. “It’s a marathon of a season. You give your guys some rest, you get some time to think through some different things, even though you’re preparing for an opponent as you go.

    The Eagles wouldn’t be foolish to rest their starters in Week 18. But they’d better be right.

    “Both times that I’ve been here that we’ve been to the Super Bowl, we’ve had that opportunity for a bye, and that’s ’22 and obviously ’24.”

    Sirianni took advantage of resting starters in those seasons, while in 2023, he did the opposite and played Hurts and most of his starters with the NFC East still on the line. The Eagles performed poorly in the first half at the Giants. Most of the starters were eventually pulled when it became apparent the Cowboys would win the division.

    The Eagles also suffered a significant injury in that game when wide receiver A.J. Brown left with a knee injury. He missed the first-round game at Tampa Bay, which the Eagles lost, 32-9. Hurts also dislocated a finger on his non-throwing hand in the Giants game.

    The Eagles offense has been struggling for most of this season, but it had more success in wins earlier this month over the Raiders and Commanders — two of the worst teams in the NFL.

    They had a solid first half at the Bills on Sunday but could do almost nothing in the second half and gained only 17 yards. Sirianni could use a rematch vs. Washington as an opportunity to give his offense some momentum heading into the postseason. Or it could backfire like it did two years ago.

    The 11-5 Eagles are the No. 3 seed and would host the 11-5, No. 6 seed Los Angeles Rams or the 12-4 San Francisco 49ers in the wild-card round. If they were to beat the Commanders and the 11-5 Bears were to lose to the eliminated Lions at home, the Eagles would be the No. 2 seed and would host the 9-6-1 Packers in Round 1.

    Sirianni may believe that No. 2 quarterback Tanner McKee and his backups can still beat the 4-12 Commanders. Washington is expected to start third-string quarterback Josh Johnson, who entered the first meeting with the Eagles when backup Marcus Mariota was knocked from the game.

    McKee and the Eagles reserves beat a poor Giants team playing most of its starters in last season’s finale.

  • Three reassuring Eagles stats, and three reasons to worry ahead of the NFL playoffs

    Three reassuring Eagles stats, and three reasons to worry ahead of the NFL playoffs

    Just one game separates the Eagles from their playoff opener in what will be their fifth consecutive postseason appearance.

    Sunday’s game vs. Washington has potential for both intrigue and boredom with the Eagles resting most of their starters and the NFC’s second or third seed in play.

    The Eagles may just be looking ahead to the playoffs, so we’ll follow that path and focus our weekly glance at the numbers on what’s ahead.

    The Eagles wouldn’t be foolish to rest their starters in Week 18. But they’d better be right.

    The confounding Eagles season continued with a 13-12 win against the Bills in Western New York. The Eagles seem simultaneously good enough to win it all and bad enough to score 11 points in a home loss in the wild-card round.

    There is reason to be confident the Eagles can make a run, and reason to believe this playoff appearance will be short-lived. Here are a few reassuring stats, and some concerning stats ahead of the postseason.

    Let’s start with the good stuff. It’s the holiday season …

    4

    That’s the amount of rushers the Eagles sent at Josh Allen each of the five times they sacked him Sunday at Highmark Stadium. This has been a trend of late. Sunday marked the third game in the last four that the Eagles had at least four sacks with a four-man rush.

    The Eagles, according to Next Gen Stats, have 18 sacks over their last four games utilizing four rushers. That was seven more than any other team in the NFL at the time Sunday’s game ended.

    Let’s couch the excitement a little bit and add the context that two of those games were against the Raiders and Commanders, and the previous contest came against a good Chargers team with a really bad offensive line. But doing what the Eagles did against the Bills with four rushers is remarkable. Only five teams allow pressure to the quarterback at a lower clip than the Bills’ 29.4% for the season.

    Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter sacks Bills quarterback Josh Allen on Sunday.

    The Eagles’ success with four is a big deal, as we saw last year. Vic Fangio doesn’t dial up blitzes. The Eagles send extra rushers on just 19.5% of their defensive plays, the third-lowest rate in the NFL.

    If Jalen Carter is back back from his shoulder injuries, the Eagles, with the deadline acquisition of Jaelan Phillips, might just have a versatile pass-rushing front that can take them pretty far. The Eagles have one of the best outside corners in the league in Quinyon Mitchell, one of the best nickel players in Cooper DeJean, linebackers who can cover, and adequate safeties.

    This type of success rate with four gives the Eagles a numbers advantage beyond the line of scrimmage that works in their favor.

    Quinyon Mitchell breaks up a pass intended for New York Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton during the second quarter against the Giants on Oct. 26.

    42.4%

    So, the Eagles are humming up front, but let’s focus on the aforementioned Mitchell, who is having one heck of a second NFL season. He deserves his own section here because he will have the ability to take opposing receivers out of the game throughout the playoffs, and his coverage chops help the guys up front, too.

    Among all defensive backs with at least 10 games played, Mitchell leads the NFL in catch rate allowed (42.4%). According to Next Gen, Mitchell has been in coverage on 576 defensive snaps and has allowed just 36 catches on 85 targets for 451 yards. He has allowed one touchdown.

    Why wouldn’t the Eagles go for the No. 2 seed? Nick Sirianni pointed to the Super Bowl for some insight.

    Mitchell also leads qualified players in average target separation (1.8 yards).

    A dangerous Rams passing attack could be up first next week, and Mitchell and the Eagles front will be waiting.

    8-0

    There was one turnover in the game Sunday, a crucial and controversial fumble by Allen that flipped the field and led to an Eagles touchdown.

    That helped the Eagles improve to a league-best 8-0 when they win the turnover margin. They’re now 42-2 in the Nick Sirianni era when the turnover margin is in their favor.

    This is one way of sneaking an offensive stat in here from a unit that hasn’t provided a lot of reassurance this season. But even in doing so, it’s a stat the offense shares with the defense. The Eagles have forced a turnover in eight consecutive games and are tied with Chicago for the longest active streak.

    Jalen Hurts, meanwhile, has recovered nicely from his five-turnover disaster vs. the Chargers. He has six touchdown passes and no interceptions since that game.

    The offense lacks an identity, but taking care of the ball is one it can hang its helmet on. That’s not nothing when the defense is playing like it is.

    Reasons to worry

    We’re not going to sneak a defensive stat in here.

    40.1%

    The Eagles were shut out by the Bills in the second half. They ran 17 plays and netted 17 yards before Hurts took a knee to end the game. It wasn’t pretty.

    For the second time this season, Hurts didn’t complete a pass (in seven attempts) in the second half, and somehow the Eagles are 2-0 in those games. No other team has failed to complete a pass in the second half this season.

    The Eagles were often in third-and-long because they again couldn’t get their running game going — this time against one of the worst run defenses in the NFL. Saquon Barkley barely had space to move thanks to missed assignments from the offensive line and tight ends. The Eagles often ran into stacked boxes (they face the fourth-highest stacked-box rate in the league). Dallas Goedert playing fullback was an experiment that failed. Barkley had just 1.75 yards per carry in the second half.

    The Eagles’ success rate on the ground is 40.1%, which ranks 24th in the NFL. It’s been the root of the offense’s issues all season.

    Saquon Barkley is stopped by Bills outside linebacker Shaq Thompson in Week 17.

    Barkley had encouraging performances recently vs. the Commanders and Chargers, but Sunday was a step back, and considering there’s a real chance the starters rest Sunday, it’s a sour taste to enter the postseason with.

    The Eagles are probably going to need to be able to run the ball to win in the playoffs, and the lack of a running game makes them so much easier to defend.

    The Eagles are going to keep driving you crazy with their passive offense. Get used to it.

    9.9

    Since their Week 9 bye, the Eagles have scored more than 21 points just twice in eight games, and those were against two of the worst teams in football (Commanders and Raiders).

    This isn’t a high-powered offense, and it’s one that particularly has trouble scoring in the second half. Sunday wasn’t an outlier. The Eagles average just 9.9 second-half points. That’s good for 25th in the NFL. The combined record of the teams below them: 32-80.

    Scoring in the second half might come in handy in the postseason.

    73.1%

    Jake Elliott went 2-for-2 Sunday, with field goal makes from 28 and 47 yards. He also made his lone point-after attempt.

    It was a nice rebound performance in bad weather from Elliott after a game against the Commanders in which he missed two field goals (plus a third that was negated by a penalty).

    But saying it’s been a shaky season from Elliott is probably putting it mildly. His conversion rate of 73.1% on field goals is the lowest of his nine-season NFL career. This, on the heels of a 77.8% campaign in 2024.

    An inept offense will make the margins slim, and the Eagles’ playoff life could at some point come down to a single kick.

  • The thrill of victory and the exasperation of trying to feel good about it define the 2025 Eagles

    The thrill of victory and the exasperation of trying to feel good about it define the 2025 Eagles

    Quinyon Mitchell isn’t one of those cornerbacks who speaks as if he is paid by the word. That’s a good thing. Brevity is often a sign of a man with more important things on his mind. It also suffices, more often than not.

    For anybody who walked away from the Eagles’ 13-12 victory over the Bills on Sunday with an even greater sense of trepidation regarding the postseason, it might be helpful to consider the three short declarative sentences that Mitchell offered up as his interpretation of the proceedings.

    “We’re battle-tested,” the Eagles’ second-year cornerback said as he stood in the postgame swirl of a cramped visitor’s locker room at Highmark Stadium. “Just look at our schedule. Look at our opponents.”

    The sentiment is equal parts encouraging and maddening. Which is fitting, because the Eagles themselves are both of those things. It is their yin and their yang, their two mystical tadpoles, one of them midnight green, the other kelly green, chasing each other in a circle. The thrill of victory and the exasperation of trying to feel good about it.

    The Eagles wouldn’t be foolish to rest their starters in Week 18. But they’d better be right.

    On the one hand, the scoreboard is the ultimate judge. On the other hand, why does the scoreboard have to say 13-12? And why does it have to feel so fitting?

    To anybody who possesses both a functioning brain and a reasonable amount of prior exposure to playoff football, the Eagles look like a team whose luck is destined to run out well before Super Bowl Sunday. The quarterback has not been good enough. Not even close. The play-calling has not been good enough to make up for the quarterback’s deficiencies. The defense has been good enough to make up for both of those things. But only barely.

    On Sunday, the result was the second time this season that the Eagles failed to complete a pass in the second half. Yet it was also the second time this season where they failed to complete a pass in the second half and still won the game.

    Yin and yang.

    Sunday was also the third time this season when the Eagles won a game in which they scored fewer than 17 points. They are just the fifth team to accomplish that feat over the last 15 seasons. Of the four teams that did it previously, three went on to lose in the wild card round. Yet the one exception was the 2012 Ravens, who went on to win the Super Bowl.

    Yin and yang.

    Defensive tackle Jalen Carter (98) and running back Saquon Barkley celebrate after the Eagles stopped the Buffalo Bills on a two-point conversion attempt late in the fourth quarter Sunday.

    “I’ve never really been on a playoff team, but I can tell the difference just in the sense of these crunch time moments, being able to bend but don’t break,” said defensive end Jaelan Phillips, who had one of the Eagles’ five sacks against the Bills. “Obviously they had a little bit of a surge toward the end, but we were able to do what we needed to do offensively, defensively, and special teams wise to come out with the win. Gritty games like that are things you need to have to prepare yourself for the long haul.”

    The Eagles may not be the most dynamic team heading into the postseason, but they will be the most prepared.

    They have faced 10 of the top 13 quarterbacks in the NFL in terms of passing yards with a 3-1 record against the top three. They are 4-1 against the top seven QBR leaders. They have won games against five of the six quarterbacks who, along with Jalen Hurts, lead the NFL in wins over the last four seasons.

    Sunday was the 10th time in 16 games that the Eagles faced a team that ranked in the top 10 in the NFL in either offensive or defensive yards per play (as of Sunday).

    Kevin Patullo on struggles of Eagles offense: ’It never comes down to one thing.’

    They have faced four of the NFL’s five highest-scoring offenses. They’ve faced five of the six quarterbacks who entered Sunday with the most passing yards, and three of the four who entered with the highest passer ratings. They have faced five of the seven defenses that entered Sunday with the highest rating, according to Pro Football Reference’s rating system.

    These have been the Eagles’ hallmarks throughout Hurts’ tenure at quarterback and Nick Sirianni’s at head coach. Sunday’s win over the Bills only added to a road record that is the best in the NFL since Sirianni’s arrival.

    “I think that’s a product of really good players and good coaches, and so it’s everything that goes into that, but good mental toughness,” Sirianni said Monday. “I think that really signifies your mental toughness, too.

    “We experienced some highs and some lows [on Sunday], and we were able to continue to be relentless in our approach handling ups and downs. They ended up making a critical mistake in the game and we didn’t, which ended up being the difference in that game. So again, coming down to fundamentals. Just great resilience by the guys in there, and we prepare for that as coaches and players.”

    Resilience is great. But even better is playing well enough to avoid the situations that test your resilience. That tension of opposites will determine the Eagles’ ultimate fate in the playoffs.

  • The Eagles are going to keep driving you crazy with their passive offense. Get used to it.

    The Eagles are going to keep driving you crazy with their passive offense. Get used to it.

    The quieter his offense is, the louder Nick Sirianni gets. There he was Sunday night, strutting down a tunnel at Highmark Stadium in the aftermath of the Eagles’ 13-12 victory over the Bills, crowing about how all those Buffalo fans had nothing more to say, how they didn’t have so much bleep to talk anymore. He caught up to A.J. Brown and turned to look him in the eye, and Brown shot a smirk back that said, Coach, did you watch us try to move the ball after halftime?

    Did Sirianni watch it? Of course. Did he care? My guess: only so much. If you’re complaining about the Eagles’ impotent offense and unimaginative play-calling both from Sunday’s second half and from several previous games this season, if you’re waiting for Sirianni and coordinator Kevin Patullo to have some eureka moment and suddenly start dazzling everyone with their play designs and a wide-open style of offense, you’re missing the key to understanding the 2025 Eagles.

    They want to play like this. They want to rely on their defense. They want to limit every and any available possibility that their offense and special teams might commit a turnover. It took some time and some trial and some error, but they’ve settled on an approach, and this is it.

    Running back Saquon Barkley (right) embraces defensive tackle Jalen Carter after the Eagles defense stopped the Bills on a two-point conversion attempt late in the fourth quarter Sunday.

    By they, I don’t necessarily mean Jeffrey Lurie and Howie Roseman. They’re happy with the wins, to be sure, and they’re surely thrilled that Roseman and Vic Fangio have worked to create a defense of such quality that the Eagles can gain all of 17 yards in a single half and still hold on to beat a Super Bowl contender, which is what happened Sunday. But you can pretty much guarantee that Lurie, in particular, is looking at the money and salary-cap space that he has allocated to Brown, Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, DeVonta Smith, Dallas Goedert, Lane Johnson, Jordan Mailata, Landon Dickerson, and Cam Jurgens and asking himself, Did I really spend all that money so Jalen could hand the ball to Saquon on delayed inside handoffs in second-and-long situations?

    No, by they, I mean Sirianni. If he rented a small plane, attached to its tail a banner that read, WHEN WE DON’T TURN IT OVER WE WIN, and flew it over Lincoln Financial Field, he could not be more overt about his intentions here, about the way he wants the Eagles to play. He even put the lie to the notion that nothing revealing comes out of HBO Max’s Hard Knocks series anymore, because the cameras captured him in a team meeting earlier this month spelling out this strategy.

    Eagles’ inexplicable second half offense nearly soils defensive gem vs. Josh Allen and the Bills

    “This is what it’s about this week,” he said to an auditorium full of players. “We’ve got to be obsessed with the football. We’ve got to be obsessed with the [expletive] football. When we take care of the football, it is so hard to beat us. When we turn the football over as a defense, it is so hard to beat us. …

    “This is the most important fundamental we have. We’ve got to be so locked in to this, because as we continue on this year, this is what presses us: the ball, the ball, the ball, the ball. We win when we take care of the football. We win when we turn them over on defense.”

    During Sirianni’s five-year tenure as their head coach, the Eagles have won 42 of the 44 games in which they have committed fewer turnovers than their opponents; that record includes Sunday’s win, when Josh Allen lost a fumble while trying to fend off Jaelan Phillips and the Eagles did nothing so daring that might have cost them possession of the football. That 42-2 mark is a stark and striking statistic, one that has a talismanic quality for Sirianni. He believes in its power so deeply that he is willing to bet that the Eagles can build an early lead, then hold any opponent at bay thereafter.

    Let us raise a glass to the Tush Push. It’s dead, and the Eagles have to find an alternative.

    Two games from the last five weeks are particularly insightful in this regard. On Nov. 23, the Eagles lost to the Dallas Cowboys, 24-21, after getting out to an early 21-point lead. On Dec. 8, they moved the ball well against the Los Angeles Chargers but still lost, 22-19 in overtime, largely because Hurts threw four interceptions and lost a fumble. One could certainly conclude from those losses that the Eagles should have continued to be aggressive on offense, that it would be a mistake for them to dial back their aggressiveness. They tore up the Dallas defense for that game’s first 15½ minutes, and it took an all-time terrible performance from Hurts, maybe the worst of his career, to cost them a victory against the Chargers.

    Eagles coach Nick Sirianni banters with Buffalo Bills fans after Sunday’s victory in Orchard Park, N.Y.

    But after scoring a combined 60 points against a couple of bad teams (the Las Vegas Raiders and Washington Commanders), the Eagles went right back to being conservative against a good team, the Bills. The lesson that Sirianni took from the Dallas and L.A. losses wasn’t, In one game, we took our foot off the gas pedal, and it came back to bite us. In the other, Jalen had the kind of game that he’s unlikely to have again. So we can afford to open things up. No, the lesson he took was, We opened things up, and we lost. We can’t afford to do that again.

    Can the Eagles return to the Super Bowl and win it again this way? Yes, they can. But that doesn’t mean they will, and even if they do, their journey there will be stressful and tenuous, with winter storms and giant potholes. But this is the road they’ve chosen. So stop mentioning the firepower that they have on offense, the players whose talents are being wasted. Stop arguing over whether Hurts is a winning winner who just wins or a fraud who has been propped up by the infrastructure around him. Those discussions are pointless. This is who the Eagles have been this season. This is who they are. This is who they’re going to be. They don’t have Trent Dilfer at quarterback, but they’re going to play like they do. Get used to it.

  • Eagles vs. Bills: Everything you need to know about Sunday’s game

    Eagles vs. Bills: Everything you need to know about Sunday’s game

    The Eagles clinched the NFC East title last week, and now head into a heavyweight battle against reigning MVP Josh Allen’s Buffalo Bills with an extra day of rest.

    Here’s everything you need to know about the Eagles-Bills matchup…

    How to watch

    The game will kick off on Fox at 4:25 p.m. on Sunday in Highmark Stadium. Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady will be on the call, marking the former New England Patriots star’s fifth time covering the Birds this year, with Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi as sideline reporters.

    If you prefer to listen to the game, Merrill Reese and Mike Quick will call the game on 94.1 WIP.

    Expected weather

    The National Weather Service is forecasting steady rain throughout the late afternoon and into the evening in Buffalo. Warm weather will prevent snow, but 10-20 mph winds may impact the throwing and kicking game for both teams.

    Jeff McLane’s keys to Eagles vs. Bills in Week 17: What you need to know and a prediction

    Final Week 17 injury report

    The Eagles have ruled out Lane Johnson (foot) and Nakobe Dean (hamstring) for Sunday’s game, with Jalen Carter finally being cleared to return to action after missing three games following procedures on both shoulders.

    Tackle Cameron Williams is once again listed as questionable after being a full participant in practice throughout the week. The Eagles have one more week to decide to end his season or sign him to the active roster.

    For the Bills, Allen is expected to play after suffering a foot injury at halftime last week against the Cleveland Browns. But Allen may be without two of his top targets, as tight ends Dawson Knox and Dalton Kincaid are both listed as questionable with knee injuries.

    The Buffalo defense will also be without defensive tackles DaQuan Jones and Jordan Phillips, as well as former All-Pro safety Jordan Poyer and kicker Matt Prater.

    The Eagles will be without starting linebacker Nakobe Dean on Sunday in Buffalo.

    Eagles vs. Bills odds

    As of Saturday morning, the Birds are 1.5-point underdogs at DraftKings and FanDuel, with each sportsbook setting the total at 44.5 points. For more betting props, check out our betting guide here.

    Eagles Playoff Picture

    The Eagles secured back-to-back NFC East titles for the first time since 2004 with their triumph over the Washington Commanders last week — guaranteeing a home playoff game come January. Now, the team will battle for seeding in the NFC.

    Eagles vs. Bills predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 17

    The Birds are mathematically eliminated from competing for the No. 1 seed, and could only rise to the No. 2 seed with two straight wins coupled with two losses from the Chicago Bears (11-4). This leaves the Eagles squarely in control of the No. 3 seed with a two-game lead over the Carolina Panthers (8-7).

    The San Francisco 49ers (11-4), the Los Angeles Rams (11-4), and the Green Bay Packers (9-4-1) are the Eagles’ likeliest first-round playoff opponents — with the 49ers and Rams still in the hunt for the No. 1 seed.

    Storylines to Watch

    Can the Eagles gain momentum heading into the playoffs?

    The Birds haven’t beaten a team that currently has a winning record since their 10-7 victory over the Packers on Monday Night Football all the way back on November 10th.

    On the flip side, the Bills have had a resurgence to end the year, winning four straight, including a barn burner versus the AFC’s No. 2-seedeed New England Patriots.

    Saquon Barkley has a great matchup against a porous Buffalo run defense.

    Facing two straight backup quarterbacks in the team’s recent wins over the Las Vegas Raiders (2-13) and the Commanders (4-12), the Birds have their work cut out for them against a Bills offense that is third in the league in total yards and scoring. Can Jalen Hurts and the offense keep up with Buffalo, or will the defense have to carry the day once again?

    More storylines to watch:

    One number to know

    37: How many points it took to defeat the Bills in overtime back in 2023.

    Adoree’ Jackson has had ups and downs as an Eagle. A positive approach has him playing his best when it matters most

    Our Eagles vs. Commanders predictions

    Here’s how our beat writers are predicting Sunday’s game:

    Olivia Reiner: “While the Bills boast one of the best pass defenses in the league, their run defense is suspect, conceding 5.4 yards per attempt (the second-worst rate in the NFL). Buffalo is a tough place to play. The Bills are a good team with a great quarterback, who may or may not be limited by a foot injury on Sunday. I’m not fully convinced that the Bills are a great team, especially given their strength of schedule this season. Eagles 28, Bills 27

    Jeff Neiburg: “The Eagles have struggled this year against quarterbacks who run, but they kept Marcus Mariota in check before he left the game in the second half. It’s a tough one to predict in what essentially is a coin-flip game. But I think the Eagles find a way to win. Eagles 27, Bills 23

    National Media Predictions

    Here’s a look at who the national media is picking for Sunday’s game …

    • ESPN: Only two of 11 panelists are picking the Birds straight up.
    • CBS Sports: Three of seven experts are leaning towards the Eagles.
    • USA Today: Four of six panelists like the Eagles.
    • Bleacher Report: Only two of seven analysts are choosing the Birds.
    • Sporting News: Bill Bender has the Eagles losing 27-20.

    What we’re saying about the Eagles

    Here’s a look at what our columnists are saying, starting with Mike Sileski’s eulogy of the Eagles’ world-famous Tush Push, followed by Marcus Hayes’ review of the team’s recent performance against the Commanders:

    Mike Sileski: “But the demise of the Tush Push is real, and it has to be a worry as the Eagles look ahead to the postseason. Hurts has made it clear that he had grown tired of running it anyway, and the league officials had raised their level of scrutiny of it, calling more penalties against the Eagles this season. It has gone from an automatic first down to an unreliable chore. They will have to find a new way to remain aggressive, and to succeed, in fourth-and-short situations.”

    Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott, who grew up just outside of Philly and used to coach with the Eagles, knows the challenge the Birds present on both sides of the ball.

    Marcus Hayes: “Glass half full: A good win — on the road, against a division opponent, with no offensive turnovers, but with a defensive turnover. Also, a win having lost linebacker Nakobe Dean, who left early with a hamstring injury. Also, a win with right tackle Lane Johnson and defensive tackle Jalen Carter likely to return for next Sunday’s game at Buffalo.

    Glass half empty: Another ugly win — against a poor team, a win despite a skittish $5 million kicker who has missed five of his last 11 kicks; a win in which Hurts continued an inconsistent season; a win in which the coaching staff seemed unprepared with a game plan that seemed uninspired.”

    What the Bills are saying about the Eagles

    Allen, who has faced off against the Eagles only twice in his career, knows not to underestimate the reigning champs.

    “Well, they got a lot of studs on that side,” Allen told reporters. “Their front, they get after the quarterback. They’ve got two of the best linebackers in the game. A shutdown corner. They rotate well. Got a safety from Wyoming that’s a stud. They got a lot of dogs on that side of the ball. We got to make sure we have a good week of game planning. Ultimately, it’s going to come down to who executes better on Sunday.”

    Here’s more from what they are saying…

    Eagles Week 17 film preview: What to look for against the Buffalo Bills

    Cornerback Tre’Davius White: “It’s going to take all 11 guys on deck this week,” White said. “We got to play the whole field. Be able to cover the whole field. These guys do a great job of exploding the ball each and every direction, through the air, on the run. So we’re going to have to be able to try to limit the big-time plays. This is an explosive offense. It’s going to be on us as a defense to communicate well and play well as a group.”

    Head coach Sean McDermott: “Very talented roster,” McDermott, who grew up just outside of Philly, told reporters. “They’ve done a great job building it in particular with the key positions. Numbers are numbers. And numbers can indicate certain things. But they can also not tell the full story. We know who Saquon [Barkley] is. I mean, he’s a Hall of Fame player. Their offensive line, very talented as well. … It’s a tough unit to stop. And the run game in particular is real. I know what the numbers say, and I’m not buying the numbers.”

    What we are reading (and watching)

    🏈 Jordan Mailata’s journey, the Eagles clinch the division, and more ‘Hard Knocks’ highlights

    🎁 A ‘New Heights’ gift guide for ‘dudes who can’t shop good:’ Where do scented candles and gift cards stand?

    🚨 Former Eagles player’s Super Bowl LIX ring fetches more than $120,000 at auction

    📷 Eagles vs. Commanders: NFL Week 16 photos

    Tune in this Sunday at 2:55 p.m. as The Inquirer’s Olivia Reiner and Jeff McLane break down the Eagles’ matchup with the Buffalo Bills on Gameday Central.
  • Jeff McLane’s keys to Eagles vs. Bills in Week 17: What you need to know and a prediction

    Jeff McLane’s keys to Eagles vs. Bills in Week 17: What you need to know and a prediction

    The Eagles travel to face the Buffalo Bills in a Week 17 matchup at Highmark Stadium on Sunday at 4:25 p.m. Here’s what you need to know about the game:

    When the Eagles have the ball: The Eagles have a chance to build off their recent success on the ground by facing another poor run defense. The Bills are second-to-last in the NFL in yards allowed (5.4) and expected points added per rush (0.08). They’ve allowed 63 runs of 10-plus yards, which is second worst to only the New York Giants. Buffalo coach Sean McDermott doesn’t exactly stack boxes at a high rate (20.7%), but he’ll stay in his base 4-3 front vs. heavy personnel. The bigger issue has been how his defenders have — or haven’t — handled run fits. There have been a lot of big holes for running backs to run through. Tackling also has been a problem. The Bills are last in the league in rushing yards allowed after contact (4.1).

    Eagles Week 17 film preview: What to look for against the Buffalo Bills

    Say what you will about the last two opponents, but the Eagles have improved in the run game. “Turned the corner” would be too strong a phrase, but some wrinkles have contributed to the Eagles averaging 174.7 rushing yards in the last three games. Buffalo is depleted in the interior. Defensive tackles Ed Oliver, DaQuan Jones, and Jordan Phillips will be out. I think Saquon Barkley could also do some damage if he gets to the second level. The Bills have corners who don’t tackle well in space, and they’ll also be without veteran safety Jordan Poyer. The Eagles didn’t dial up as many runs from under center last week vs. the Washington Commanders as they did the week before. I could see Nick Sirianni and Kevin Patullo using Buffalo’s weak defense as a chance to reestablish that facet of their offense.

    Joey Bosa (97) is expected back to help bolster the Buffalo pass rush this week.

    The Bills have gotten behind in games because of their inability to stop the run. They’ve allowed an average of 13.9 points in the first half, but have been better after the break (9.1). Why the disparity? It could be McDermott’s ability to make adjustments, or the Bills have benefited from their offense getting ahead, which has forced quarterbacks to throw. Buffalo has a good pass defense. It has allowed just 52.8% of passes to be completed. A lot of the Bills’ success can be traced to their defensive ends getting pressure. Greg Rousseau (14.3%) and Joey Bosa (13.8%) have above-average rates on their rushes. Right tackle Fred Johnson, who is starting again for the injured Lane Johnson (foot), will have a stiff test in Bosa. Rousseau will bounce back and forth between each side.

    Eagles vs. Bills predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 17

    McDermott doesn’t blitz — a 23rd-in-the-league 23.7% rate this season — as much as he once did. He’ll send any of his linebackers, but Matt Milano and Terrel Bernard are most effective in getting pressure. A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith should have opportunities on the outside, though. Cornerbacks Tre’Davious White and Christian Benford are beatable, especially in man coverage. McDermott’s zone-man split is about 70-30. His safeties do a good job of rotating late. Cole Bishop is solid, but Poyer’s replacement — whether it’s rookie Jordan Hancock or veteran Darnell Savage — could be exploited.

    When the Bills have the ball: Josh Allen makes the Bills offense go, but I’m going to focus first on running back James Cook. He’s been arguably the best running back in the league this season. He leads the NFL with 1,532 rushing yards and averages 5.3 yards a carry. He’s not especially big at 5-foot-11, 190 pounds, but he’s fast and runs hard. Cook has great vision and can slip through creases. If he has a kryptonite this season, it’s ball security — he has lost three of six fumbles. Cook runs behind a reliable, if not spectacular, offensive line led by left tackle Dion Dawkins. The unit’s relative good health has contributed to its chemistry. The Bills also have good blocking tight ends, although Dalton Kincaid (knee) and Dawson Knox (knee) are questionable.

    Josh Allen (17) remains dangerous, but the Eagles can’t sleep on the electric James Cook (4) either.

    Allen, of course, is almost as dangerous on the ground. Offensive coordinator Joe Brady will dial up designed runs, but Allen scrambles as well as any quarterback. He often knows when running is applicable and can be hard to bring down. A foot injury limited him early in the week, but he’s cleared to go. The Eagles have to stay disciplined in their rushes. I’d imagine defensive coordinator Vic Fangio will devote a linebacker to spying Allen on obvious passing downs, especially against empty sets. The Bills have effectively used their version of the Tush Push with the 6-5, 237-pound quarterback converting 13 of 15 rushing attempts on third- or fourth-and-1.

    Allen holds the ball longer than most — a sixth-longest 2.93 seconds — because he can make big plays out of structure. He doesn’t get sacked at a high rate (8.12% of attempts), but he can take big losses or turn the ball over when playing the hero. Allen doesn’t have a group of receivers that gets much separation downfield. He has cut down on interceptions by not forcing throws into tight windows — 11.3% of the time, which is 31st among qualifying quarterbacks — vs. last season (16.8%). Brady has helped by utilizing the under-center run game to set up play-action passes. He’ll also employ misdirection and motion at the snap.

    The Bills don’t often keep their tight ends or backs in to help with the pass rush. They want to give Allen underneath options to offset what he lacks on the outside. Fangio blitzes at a low rate (19.4%), so Brady probably won’t alter the formula. Receiver Khalil Shakir leads the offense with 66 catches. Most of his yards (515 of his 684) come after contact off short passes. The Eagles will need to be stout in tackling after the catch. Cornerback Quinyon Mitchell could be neutralized simply by Allen staying away from him.

    Extra point: The weather could change, but it looks like rain will be a factor late Sunday afternoon. Both teams have kicker woes. Jake Elliott’s struggles over the past five games have been documented. The Eagles are sticking with their guy — for now. The Bills will be without 41-year-old Matt Prater (quad) for a second straight game. His replacement, Michael Badgley, missed an extra point and the landing zone on a kickoff last week. Buffalo tried out some kickers as a result, but Badgley will get another chance.

    The Eagles don’t have as much on the line as the Bills. I don’t think that should matter much. Sirianni’s squad wants to measure itself against one of the best. Two years ago, they outlasted Buffalo, despite an amazing performance by Allen. Elliott’s 59-yard field goal sent the game to overtime and Jalen Hurts walked it off. I just realized I didn’t mention the Eagles quarterback above. He has settled down since the Los Angeles Chargers debacle. I think he’ll hit some shots downfield as long as the offense takes advantage on the ground. The Eagles’ defense has been susceptible at times against the run, but it has tightened the hatches since the Chicago Bears game. Jalen Carter (shoulders) is back, although the front more than managed in his absence.

    I don’t feel great about my pick. My gut says the opposite. But it’s hard to pick against Allen in the penultimate game at the Bills’ longtime home, Highmark Stadium.

    Prediction: Bills, 31-27