Packers-Eagles Playoff Preview: ‘We’re That Team’

The Green Bay Packers (11-6), who have lost two consecutive games, will face a huge challenge against the Philadelphia Eagles (14-3) in Sunday’s NFC wild-card game.

Rashan Gary and the Packers will have to contain Jalen Hurts. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Green Bay Packers lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1 in Brazil. The stakes will be much, much higher for their rematch in Philadelphia.

The Packers will face the Eagles in an NFC wild-card game on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. The Eagles won 34-29 in São Paulo to kick off the season, though both teams have evolved over the past four months.

Both teams also face some potential uncertainty at quarterback, which could significantly impact their offensive approaches.

Green Bay’s Jordan Love, recovering from an elbow injury sustained on Sunday against Chicago, returned to practice on Wednesday and is expected to start.

Love has had a solid season, completing 63.1 percent of his passes for 3,389 yards, 25 touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a passer rating of 96.7, though he faltered a bit in the final games.

His ability to stretch the field and make timely completions will be key to Green Bay’s success.

On the Eagles’ side, Jalen Hurts is progressing through the concussion protocol and returned to practice on Wednesday, as well.

While not fully cleared yet, his likely return adds a dynamic element to Philadelphia’s offense. Hurts passed for 2,903 yards, 18 touchdowns and five interceptions in 15 starts.

His mobility, rushing for 630 yards and 14 touchdowns, makes him a dual-threat quarterback that will further stress the Packers’ defense, especially if he’s fully cleared after suffering a broken ring finger in Week 14 and a concussion in Week 15.

Until an ill-timed slump to end the season, Green Bay’s offense had been a force, finishing eighth in points per game (27.1) and fifth in yardage (370.5 per game).

They’re led by running back Josh Jacobs, who posted 1,329 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. Jacobs averages 78.2 yards per game on 4.4 yards per carry, helping the Packers rank fifth in rushing yards per game (146.8) and rushing touchdowns per game (1.4).

Receiver Jayden Reed, tight end Tucker Kraft and receiver Romeo Doubs, who have been key in the passing game with 857, 707 and 601 receiving yards, respectively, lead a balanced passing attack that will be tested by the Eagles’ top-ranked passing defense.

On the other side of the ball, the Eagles’ offense thrives on balance and physicality, with their run-heavy attack ranked first in rushing yards per game (179.3) and first in rush play percentage (55.8 percent).

The Eagles’ rushing game is powered by Saquon Barkley, who led the NFL with 2,005 rushing yards. He rushed for 100-plus yards in 11 of 16 games and scored 15 total touchdowns, including 109 rushing yards and three scores against the Packers in the opener.

The receiving corps, led by A.J. Brown (1,079 yards, 16.1 average, seven touchdowns) and DeVonta Smith (833 yards, 12.3 average, eight touchdowns), has been electric. Tight end Dallas Goedert, who caught 42 passes for 496 yards in only 10 games, is back to add another threat.

“He’s just deadly in space,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said of Barkley. “The more space he has, the more dangerous he can be, so he’s a tough guy to defend. And he’s not the only weapon. Certainly, the receivers, tight ends, they’ve got a lot of they got a lot of playmakers.”

The Packers’ defense under first-year coordinator Jeff Hafley has had a strong season, ranking sixth in points allowed (19.9 per game), fifth in yards allowed (314.5 per game) and fourth in takeaways (31).

Rashan Gary, with a team-high 7.5 sacks, and the rest of the pass rush will need to find the sweet spot in terms of pressuring Hurts to disrupt Philadelphia’s offensive rhythm while not allow him to find seams to make big plays on the run.

Safety Xavier McKinney is having an All-Pro season with eight interceptions and linebacker Edgerrin Cooper is having an All-Rookie caliber season. The defense could be boosted by the potential returns of linebacker Quay Walker (team-high 102 tackles, 2.5 sacks) and rookie safety Evan Williams.

For as impressive as Green Bay’s defense has been, the Eagles’ defense has been even better.

Philadelphia finished the season ranked second in points allowed per game (17.8) and first in yards allowed per game (278.4) and per play (4.7).

Their pass defense, led by veteran cornerback Darius Slay (13 passes defensed), rookie cornerbacks Quinyon Mitchell (12 passes defensed) and Cooper DeJean (six passes defensed), and safeties C.J Gardner-Johnson (six interceptions) and Reed Blankenship (four interceptions, including one vs. Green Bay in Week 1), ranks first in opponent passing yards per game (174.2) and third in opponent passer rating (82.5).

Eagles defensive tackles Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter and linebacker Zack Baun, the Wisconsin native who is having an All-Pro-caliber season with 150 tackles and five forced fumbles, will make life difficult for Green Bay’s run game.

Green Bay’s offensive line, which has allowed the third-lowest sack percentage (4.4 percent), must hold strong against an aggressive Philadelphia front. Eagles outside linebackers Josh Sweat (eight sacks) and Nolan Smith Jr. (6.5 sacks) are the top pass-rushing threats.

This wild-card matchup features two teams with contrasting strengths, setting the stage for what could be another tightly contested battle.

The Packers must overcome their struggles on third down on offense (15th) and in the red zone on defense (20th) and capitalize on their potent rushing attack and ability to create turnovers in order to advance to the divisional round for a second consecutive year.

Last year’s team was peaking as it entered the playoffs. Can this year’s team upset the Eagles after losing their last two games?

“Everybody knows in this locker room that we’re that team,” Love said. “I don’t think there’s a secret about that. I really think it’s just blocking out all the outside noise, knowing who we have in this locker room. And like I said before, it’s playoffs. It’s zero-zero. Who cares about the record? And I really think we have to be confident.

“You can’t go into the playoffs lacking that confidence because you’ll get beat. So, we have one shot at this thing. I told everybody today, we’ve got five days guaranteed left in our season, so just go out there and play free, everybody do their job and just go out there and handle business and make plays. That’s all we can do, and go win the game.”

Latest Green Bay Packers News 

The statistics (laid out in the story) show that #Packers rookie LB Edgerrin Cooper is a budding star.

He barely played against the Eagles in Week 1. “Just watching the film from me earlier this year, it’s like, ‘Ugh,’ what I was doing?’” ⬇️https://t.co/kSaNot578w

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) January 9, 2025

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