Inside the Iggles
FanSided

Philadelphia Eagles versus New England: 3 more ingredients for victory

By Hunter Doyle

LANDOVER, MD - DECEMBER 30: Head coach Doug Pederson of the Philadelphia Eagles reacts against the Washington Redskins during the second half at FedExField on December 30, 2018 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - DECEMBER 30: Head coach Doug Pederson of the Philadelphia Eagles reacts against the Washington Redskins during the second half at FedExField on December 30, 2018 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /
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LOS ANGELES, CA – DECEMBER 16: Nick Foles #9 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks to pass during the first half of a game against the Los Angeles Rams at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on December 16, 2018, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – DECEMBER 16: Nick Foles #9 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks to pass during the first half of a game against the Los Angeles Rams at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on December 16, 2018, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

Here’s some encouragement for the game ahead.

The Eagles’ season appeared to be over last year when they were 6-7 with just three games remaining, and they had to travel to the West Coast and face an 11-2 Los Angeles Rams team.

The odds were stacked against them, but they pulled out the victory and saved their season. How did they do it? An interception by Avonte Maddox, a strip-sack from Kamu-Grugier Hill, and a muffed punt by Jojo Natson that was recovered by D.J. Alexander.

New England won’t provide a ton of opportunities to capitalize on, but they will provide a few. The Eagles must be ready when that happens.

The offense has done well with ball security, for the most part, this season minus whatever that was that we witnessed versus Detroit. Carson Wentz hasn’t forced anything until he’s had to, normally when his team has been down by multiple scores late in the game and when the running backs have held onto the ball, especially recently.

The defense needs to step up in this department. They are ranked 13th in the NFL in turnovers with 13 which isn’t terrible, but they haven’t gotten those turnovers at optimal times. Nathan Gerry’s pick-six against the Jets was important, but the Eagles could use them in bigger moments like when Gerry picked off Matt Ryan in the red zone late in the game in Week 2.

Next. Birds, Pats: Odds, injuries, TV and radio, prediction. dark

If the defense can get a takeaway early on or in a key moment during this game, there’s a strong chance ‘The Birds’ come away with a ‘W’. Setting the tone early on with a key turnover would give the Eagles plenty of momentum and get the crowd into it. Someone needs to step up and make a big play on defense in this game. It’s time to bring those ski masks out again.

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