3 reasons why Eagles will be bounced out of the NFL Playoffs before the Divisional Championship
The Philadelphia Eagles have seen their once-dominant 2023 NFL season slip away from them in recent weeks. After winning 10 of their first 11 games, they have now lost four of their past five. They have given away a commanding lead in the NFC East division and their hopes of earning the top seed in the NFC for the upcoming NFL Playoffs are long gone.
The one positive thing that they still have going for them is that they have already clinched a spot in the postseason, despite their disastrous stretch to end the year. While making it to the playoffs would be considered a successful season for many teams, the Eagles entered this season with much higher expectations after making it all the way to the Super Bowl last year.
With the way that they played in the beginning of the season, Philadelphia looked like a threat to win the Vince Lombardi trophy this year. It has not looked like that same team recently. In fact, it could be in danger of failing to even make it out of the first round of the NFL Playoffs this year, let alone making another deep run and competing for a championship. Here are three reasons why.
#1 - Eagles' defensive struggles
The Eagles' defense was one of their biggest strengths last season when they made it all the way to the Super Bowl before being defeated by the Kansas City Chiefs. This year has been much different as they have been one of the worst units in the NFL, especially against the pass.
Philadelphia is allowing the 10th-most total yards per game, fourth-most points per game and fifth-most passing yards per game this season. They have been even worse recently, ranking 31st in the NFL in all three categories over the past five weeks. Defense is a necessity in the NFL Playoffs, and if they can't fix theirs, they could be one-and-done in the postseason.
#2 - Likely playing away from Philadelphia
Every NFL teams prefers to play their games in their home stadium, where crowd-noise and familiarity are among some of the advantages. Philadelphia hosts their home games at Lincoln Financial Field, but it now seems unlikely that they will get the opportunity to play there during the NFL Playoffs.
Their recent losing streak has allowed the Dallas Cowboys to jump them in the NFC East divisional standings.
A Cowboys win or Eagles loss this week officially ends the race for the division title. With this being the likely outcome, the Eagles would have to go on the road as the fifth-overall seed and top wild card spot to face off against the winner of the NFC South division in their stadium. This is a much more difficult task than hosting a game during the Wild Card round.
#3 - Turnovers are concerning
Most around the NFL would agree that turnovers are one of the most devastating factors for any team trying to win a football game. Turnover differential is probably the most telling indicator of how this has affected any team during the course of a season. The Eagles currently have a negative-seven differential in this category, currently the seventh-worst in the NFL.
They have been able to get away with this at times during the 2023 NFL season, but some of that has required spectacular comeback victories to do so. For example, they trailed in the second half of every game during their second five-game winning streak this season in the middle of the year.
The NFL Playoffs may not be so forgiving, especially considering they will likely be playing on the road in the Wild Card round. If they don't improve on this alarming statistic, it could be a disappointingly short postseason for the Eagles.