Eagles News: Philadelphia is the playoff team “no one wants to play”

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No one wants to play the Eagles in the postseason, and they know it - Inquirer
The Bears could have laid down to the Vikings knowing that they had their number and could likely have it again in a rematch. Maybe coach Matt Nagy considers the Eagles an easier test. But the mood of Doug Pederson’s squad, at least after taking the locker-room temperature, was seemingly one of buoyed confidence. “We feel like we’re playing really good ball right now,” Jenkins would later say to reporters. “Anything happens in the postseason, so you can throw out everything, how everybody got there. It doesn’t matter. It’s a one-game season, and we’re looking to compete.” The Eagles will be underdogs, but that was the case last year, when they ended up being anything but. There are some similarities — most notably, Foles — but the road into the postseason this season was much different.

Eagles players celebrate making playoffs: “We ain’t sneaking in, we kicking the motherf***ing door down” - BGN
Ay, like we said before the game, we ain’t sneaking in, we kicking the motherf***ing door down! Know what I mean? We in this party. Nobody wanted us in but guess what? They gotta deal with us now. Keep your mind right, keep playing as a family, keep fighting, keep having fun. Family on three!

The Kist & Solak Show #61: Eagles Are In the Playoffs! - BGN Radio
Michael Kist and Benjamin Solak react to a wild Sunday of football action with joy because the Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles have returned to the playoffs! Thoughts on the Eagles-Redskins, upcoming matchup with the Bears and much much more!! Powered by SB Nation and Bleeding Green Nation.

Handing out 10 awards from the Eagles-Redskins (and Bears-Vikings) games - PhillyVoice
There were far more Eagles fans in attendance for this game than Redskins fans, and in my opinion, it wasn’t very close. The same was true of the Eagles’ games last year, mostly notably against the Chargers, Rams, and Giants. Eagles fans brought a lot of energy, and often some humor, as “LET’S - GO - BEARS” chants filled the stadium at times when the Bears-Vikings score appeared on the jumbotron.

What A Day - Iggles Blitz
The Eagles are back in the playoffs!!! Even better, they did it in part due to an ugly Vikings loss. Even better than that, the Eagles shut out the Skins, 24-0. I live for shutouts. The last one was in 2014. Before that you have to go all the way back to 1996. Seeing a goose egg on the scoreboard is just a beautiful thing.

Eagles In Playoffs: ‘We’re Here To Do Some Damage’ - PE.com
“We’ve had a lot of growth through the ups and downs of the season,” safety Malcolm Jenkins said. “We have to go back to the process and prepare well for a big challenge. The road hasn’t been a straight line to this point. To be here is not surprising, because we expected to be here. We’re playing good football and we have to take it up another notch for the playoffs. Most of the guys have been in the playoffs before. We are not sneaking in. We’re here because we earned it. We’re here to do some damage.”

Week 17: Ravens, Eagles, Colts Crash Playoffs; Black Monday Begins - FMIA
Philadelphia (NFC 6th seed, 9-7) at Chicago (NFC 3rd seed, 12-4), 4:40 p.m., NBC. The heart says Nick Foles. The head says Khalil Mack. Watching the Chicago defense swarm around Kirk Cousins all day Sunday (albeit in a climate-controlled stadium in Minneapolis; who knows what the conditions will be Sunday afternoon on the shores of Lake Michigan), I wondered how any quarterback would have the time and space to dice up the Bears D. The presence of Mack allows Akiem Hicks and Leonard Floyd to take their star turns. Foles won’t be cowed by them, or by the noise that will make a silent snap count imperative. But if his ribs or chest affect him, that’s another distraction from playing a tight offensive game. The rise of the Bears has been more of a defensive story, but they’ll need the shifty Tarik Cohen to make plays against an oppressive Philly front that’s been dominant at times but also generous against the run. Three times in the season’s second half the Eagles allowed more than 140 rushing yards to a foe. Clearly that’s how the Bears will want to want to play this game, with an efficient and clock-eating run game. The Eagles are dangerous. They’ve played in many more bigger games than the Bears have over the past 13 months, and an early deficit won’t rock Philly. I’ve got a feeling this is a tight game late in the fourth quarter.

The Playoff Field Is Set, and the Coaching Axe Swings - MMQB
Foles did get knocked out of the game late (Nate Sudfeld actually looked sharp in his place), and his sore ribs will merit monitoring this week, as the Eagles prepare to go to Chicago for Sunday’s wild-card game. Foles did, though, sound OK afterward. And at this point even if Sudfeld had to go against the Bears, it’s hard to imagine the Eagles crumbling because of it. “We definitely have that feeling,” Jenkins said. “Like, it doesn’t matter. Whatever the adversity is, whatever we face, it doesn’t matter. Because we know as a group, we trust every individual we put out there. We trust the coaches to come up with a plan, we trust that everybody’s preparing, we trust that the leaders will step up and lead the way. We’ve done that, and it’s proven. I don’t see this being any different.” Over the last few weeks, it sure hasn’t looked different.

Refocused, NFL Week 17: Philadelphia Eagles 24, Washington Redskins 0 - PFF
Before anyone writes off this Eagles defense, they put on a defensive performance to remind the NFL that they are very much still alive. The secondary has been playing better of late, but their front seven is deadly for any offensive line, regardless of the talent. Fletcher Cox was a monster from the interior while Michael Bennett and Brandon Graham were forces off the edge. The play of Malcolm Jenkins shouldn’t be overlooked this season. He’s been the glue for the secondary, even after their midseason struggles because of injuries. He’s been excellent all year and was great again against Washington. He was targeted just once but earned himself a pass breakup on the plays.

Super Bowl chances for all 12 playoff teams - ESPN
12. Philadelphia Eagles. Super Bowl title chances: 0.5 percent. They’ve beaten the odds with Nick Foles before, but it will be much harder this time around. FPI gives Philadelphia almost no shot to repeat

‘We going to the playoffs!’: A minute-by-minute chronology of the wild Sunday afternoon that landed the Eagles in the postseason - The Athletic
7:51 – As the media throng begins to exit the crowded locker room, Graham FaceTimes with his daughter. “We going to the playoffs!” they shout back and forth as he cackles in between sentences.

Bears postgame notes: 12-win season, Vikings eliminated, Eagles next - Windy City Gridiron
By eliminating the Vikings, for better or worse, the Bears must now face the surging defending Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles, who won 24-0 over Washington. The Eagles lost Nick Foles to a chest injury, but it was already reported that he was expected to be all right. Will the Bears choice to go for broke end up biting them? It remains to be seen. Foles was 28/33 for 221 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT before his injury. Now, on to you: How do you feel about the match up with the Eagles? Do you wish the Bears had laid down for Minnesota?

Vikings Stink It Up At Home To End a Season of Disappointment - Daily Norseman
In a game that meant everything to the Vikings this season, they showed next to nothing on the field at US Bank stadium. To say their performance was disappointing would be generous. They stunk it up. There was never much doubt about the game’s outcome. The Vikings started slow yet again, and the Bears built a lead. But if you looked at how the Bears manhandled the Vikings in the trenches on both sides of the ball, you could see the Vikings were at a bad disadvantage the whole game. Add to that the flat performance at the skill positions, and tension on the sidelines, and you knew the game- and the season- was a bust.

Philly Special Effect: Touchdown passes from position players to QBs on the rise - PFT
The Eagles scored one of the most famous touchdowns in NFL history when tight end Trey Burton threw to quarterback Nick Foles in the end zone in the Super Bowl last season. The NFL is a copycat league, and this year plenty of teams emulated the Eagles. In fact, there were 13 touchdown passes thrown by non-quarterbacks this season, the most in a single season in 35 years. Three of those passes came today, when Falcons wide receiver Mohamed Sanu, Dolphins receiver Kenny Stills and Lions kicker Matt Prater all threw touchdown passes.

2019 NFL Draft order: Cardinals will own first overall pick - SB Nation
After those four, are the teams looking to add a quarterback. The Jacksonville Jaguars could turn this season’s fall from AFC title contender to doormat into a potential replacement for Blake Bortles at quarterback. The Giants could do the same for an aging Eli Manning.

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