Copyright The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Eagles are back from their bye week. Their welcome back gift? A trip to Green Bay for a Monday Night Football game with major NFC stakes. It’s the third meeting between the Eagles and Packers since the start of last season. Will the Eagles make it three-for-three with another victory? Here’s how our writers see Monday playing out: The Eagles may be down center Cam Jurgens, but they are flying to Wisconsin Sunday with a pretty healthy roster, all things considered. Nolan Smith (triceps) is slated to make his return from injured reserve and the Eagles will trot a new-look pass rush onto Lambeau Field Monday night, one that looks a lot different than the unit that traveled to MetLife Stadium and played the Giants as recently as Week 6. How much of an impact will Jaelan Phillips have in his Eagles debut? What will his workload look like? We won’t know until Monday, but Phillips, Smith, and Jalyx Hunt at the top of the Eagles’ edge rotation is a much more formidable unit than they’ve had so far this season. They’ll need it, as Green Bay has been among the best in the league at protecting the quarterback. The Packers have only surrendered 11 sacks this season. Only one team (Seattle) has allowed fewer (9). Green Bay’s offense, though, will start life without Tucker Kraft, Jordan Love’s favorite target. The tight end, who leads the Packers in receiving yards, is out for the year with an ACL injury, and we’ll see how Green Bay adjusts its passing offense. The Eagles have a lot to worry about with Josh Jacobs running the ball, but Kraft being out should make them feel even more comfortable when Love drops back. As for the offense, we’ll see if the Eagles’ Week 8 showing is what this offense will continue to look like moving forward. Jumbo packages, Jalen Hurts playing from under-center, and play-action passes had the offense humming before the bye. Now, with A.J. Brown back from a hamstring injury, will the balanced attack be at its best? The Eagles are the better team, and it’s hard to pick against the better team here, even if oddsmakers made the Packers a slight favorite. Prediction: Eagles 27, Packers 23 The Eagles have faced the Packers so frequently over the past year that it practically feels like they’re in the same division. Between the 2024 season opener in São Paulo, Brazil, and the wild-card round of the playoffs, the Eagles went 2-0 last year in their meetings with the Packers. You could make an argument that the Eagles kept winning in the offseason after the league’s owners failed to pass the Packers’ rule change proposal to effectively ban the Tush Push. » READ MORE: Answering biggest Eagles questions after the trade deadline The Packers are looking for vengeance, but even as the home favorites, a win over the Eagles won’t come easily without Kraft. When Love has the ball, the key for the Eagles defense will be to take away the explosive play. According to Next Gen Stats, he has thrown a deep pass of 20-plus air yards on 11.6% of his attempts, which ranks eighth in the league. He’s completed 41.4% of those passes (the NFL average is 37.2%). Getting pressure on Love will be paramount for a new-look group with Smith likely returning from injured reserve and Phillips set to make his Eagles debut. Meanwhile, the Eagles offense will seek to build upon their successes from Weeks 7 and 8, especially in the under center run game and play-action game. Getting Brown back should be a boost, too, in the passing game. So long as the offensive front can keep Micah Parsons from wrecking the game, the Eagles should have a chance to extend their win streak to three contests. This matchup could be close, but if the Eagles blow the Packers out, they should Tush Push down the field on consecutive plays for good measure.
