December 17, 2020
Following a surprise win over the Saints in Jalen Hurts' first NFL start, the Eagles will now make the cross-country trip out to Arizona for a date with the 7-6 Arizona Cardinals, who are currently fighting for the final wild card spot in the NFC.
If the season ended today, the Cardinals would make the playoffs, while the Eagles would be left out as they still sit a game and a half behind Washington for the NFC East lead. With a head-to-head matchup still remaining in Week 17, the Eagles aren't out of it just yet. But a loss on Sunday coupled with a Washington win over Seattle would officially spell the end of the Eagles' 2020 season.
Even if Washington doesn't win on Sunday, an Eagles' loss to the Cardinals would all but eliminate Philly, who would then need to go 2-0 in the final two weeks while Washington would need to lose out. With a head-to-head matchup still remaining in Week 17, they would still have a chance, but it would make the Eagles' path to a division title quite narrow. And that doesn't even take into account the Giants, who currently hold a half game lead on the Eagles in the division race.
First thing's first, however, as the Birds will need to pull off a second-straight upset on Sunday in Arizona if they really want to stay in the race to not only make the postseason, but to host a first-round game.
Will Jalen Hurts put together another strong performance now that he's put out more film for opposing coordinators to study? Will the Cardinals' familiarity with their own mobile quarterback, former first-overall pick Kyler Murray, lead to a long day for the Eagles offense? And can Jim Schwartz's defense put on another solid showing against Arizona?
Here's what our writers have to say about the Birds' Week 15 matchup with the Cardinals...
TV: FOX (Brandon Gaudin & Aqib Talib)
RADIO: 94.1 WIP (Merrill Reese & Mike Quick)
| Book | Spread | Money Line | Total |
| DraftKings | ARI -6 | PHI +220 ARI -263 | 49 |
| FanDuel | ARI -6.5 | PHI +220 ARI -270 | 49.5 |
| UniBet | ARI -6 | PHI +220 ARI -265 | 48.5 |
| Bet Rivers | ARI -6 | PHI +220 ARI -265 | 49 |
Stylistically, Jalen Hurts looked a little bit like early-career Russell Wilson in the Eagles' upset win over the Saints last Sunday. To be clear, we're not saying Hurts is anywhere near the talent that Wilson is at this stage in their respective careers. Hurts just looked kinda similar, in his ability to make off-schedule plays with his feet and his arm, while limiting negative plays by finding a way to get rid of the ball when it wasn't there.
Of course, the Cardinals have to game plan for Wilson two times per season, so they're likely to have a better plan for Hurts than the Saints had last Sunday, only on the back end they'll be facing receivers like Greg Ward, Alshon Jeffery, and Jalen Reagor, instead of DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. Not to mention, their defense faces Kyler Murray in practice all season.
Offensively, the Cardinals should be able to take advantage of a now injury-depleted Eagles secondary that will be without Rodney McLeod and Avonte Maddox, while a less than 100 percent Darius Slay tries to follow DeAndre Hopkins all day.
Also, there's this:
The Eagles have lost their last 5 bird vs. bird matchups.
— Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) December 16, 2020
Give me the Cardinals, comfortably.
I found it incredibly interesting to see that Jalen Hurts is ranked as the 12th best fantasy quarterback for Week 15 (according to fantasypros) but it makes sense. He’s a dual threat and not in the mold of former Eagles starter Carson Wentz, who scrambles for an occasional first down or touchdown. Hurts is likely going to contribute around 100 yards on the ground. The key for Week 15, in my opinion, is if he can avoid turning it over to a Cardinals defense that is pretty much in the middle of the pack in every statistical category.
The Eagles will also need to step up on the defensive side of things, with opposing quarterback Kyler Murray just as big a threat to keep drives alive with his legs and go deep to DeAndre Hopkins, who will be able to decimate Philly's broken secondary. I think the Eagles should be able to keep pace when they have the football, but I think Arizona’s offense is better, and should lead them to a slim victory — and end Philadelphia’s playoff hopes officially.
I have the Eagles covering the six-point spread against the Cardinals, but that's largely due to the "unknown" factor. We've only seen about six quarters of Jalen Hurts, so it's difficult to know what to expect out of the Eagles offense. But that works both ways, as the Cardinals are also working off limited scouting material when it comes to Hurts. If Doug Pederson sticks to a similar gameplan as he had against the Saints — after all, if it ain't broke... — then it's not hard to see the Eagles keeping this one close.
Once again, just like it did last week, Sunday's game is likely going to come down to how the Eagles defense performs. If they're able to play like they have for the majority of the last month and a half, then it should remain a tight game. Of course, mobile quarterbacks have caused the Eagles some problems this year. They acquitted themselves nicely against Taysom Hill last week, but calling him a quarterback is generous. Murray is not only faster and more elusive than Hill, but he's also a better passer. And he has DeAndre Hopkins. Against an Eagles secondary that might be without three starters, that could spell disaster for the Birds, no matter how well Hurts plays.
The Eagles are banged up beyond belief in the secondary, so as much as I would like to lean into the good vibes after last week, I’m expecting Murray and Hopkins to tear them up.
It was kind of funny last week that suddenly Doug Pederson's offense and plays worked, wasn't it? Maybe, just maybe, Jalen Hurts had something to do with that. Saints' quarterback Taysom Hill is awful. That also helps. The Cardinals' Kyler Murray is not awful. He's downright dangerous, and someone very difficult to contain.
The Saints were caught looking at this week's opponent, the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, and the Cardinals are looking at the possibility of not making the playoffs if they lose to the woeful Eagles. Hurts will make things fun again, but Murray has more around him. I can see the Eagles driving for a late tying score, and Arizona stopping them and kicking a field goal to seal it.
Here we are at an amazing crossroads in the Eagles season. I want to believe in Jalen Hurts, but I question if the rest of the team can keep up with the energy. I'm also concerned about defenses - specifically the Cards - catching up to him. Arizona has everything to play for, while the Eagles are still figuring this thing out with Hurts. I'll take Arizona by eight.
Jalen Hurts gets his first opportunity on the road against Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals.
Murray, of course, was once the Heisman Trophy winner at Oklahoma and the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He was succeeded with the Sooners by Hurts, who was a grad transfer from Alabama and finished as the Heisman runner-up to Joe Burrow, this year's No. 1 overall pick.
Hurts went No. 53 to the Eagles and set off the chain of events that resulted in the rookie taking over for the struggling Carson Wentz in the Week 14 upset win over then top-seeded New Orleans Saints.
The next test is another playoff contender in the Cardinals, who have been explosive offensively in the second season of the Murray-Kliff Kingsbury marriage. The most dangerous dual-threat west of Lamar Jackson, Murray has thrown for 3,231 yards and 23 touchdowns, while rushing for an additional 712 yards and 10 more scores.
Brandon Graham raved about Murray's quickness this week and the 5-foot-10 outlier of a QB has plenty of weapons, starting with DeAndre Hopkins on the outside.
The Eagles, meanwhile, are really banged-up in the secondary after losing Rodney McLeod for the season to a torn ACL and Avonte Maddox for at least Sunday in the desert with a knee injury of his own. Darius Slay also remains in concussion protocol and the race is on to see if he will be available Sunday is on.
The Eagles played a lot of zone vs. the Saints and expect that to continue in Arizona with a heavy dose of Cover-4 and perhaps Cover-2 to keep Murray from running up the backs of defenders while also protecting the banged-up secondary.
On defense, Arizona is unique and has become linebacker heavy after losing Chandler Jones to injury. In theory, the athleticism should help curtail Hurts' own dual-threat capabilities while former Temple star and Camden native Haason Reddick has all of a sudden become a pass-rushing star, something to keep an eye on as the Eagles roll out an NFL record 13th different offensive line group in 14 games, with Matt Pryor swapping in for the injured Jack Driscoll at right tackle.
If the Eagles find a way to get this one, things will get really interesting in the home stretch when it comes to winning the NFC East but the one thing that typically defines young players in the NFL is inconsistency.
The guess here is that the Hurts sequel comes up a little short.
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