December 22, 2025
Bill Streicher/Imagn Images
The Eagles' most likely Wild Card Round opponent is the San Francisco 49ers.
Now that the Philadelphia Eagles have clinched the NFC East, let's take a look at their potential first-round playoff opponents, and rank them from easiest to hardest.
The Eagles will very likely be the 3 seed in the NFC, with a small chance of being the 2 seed, and extremely unlikely odds that they'll either be the 1 seed or the 4 seed. Per Inpredictable, the following is the likelihood of each:
• 1 seed: <1%
• 2 seed: 13%
• 3 seed: 86%
• 4 seed: 1%
If the Eagles are the 3 seed, they will play the 6 seed. If they earn the 2 seed, they'll play the 7 seed. Got it? Cool. For each of the teams below, we'll also show the likelihood each team has for each seed, again via Inpredictable. These will be in order from easiest to most difficult opponent.
• 2 seed: 9%
• 3 seed: 5%
• 6 seed: 17%
• 7 seed: 62%
The Eagles have played the Packers three times since 2024, and won all three:
• Week 1, 2024 (in Brazil): 34-29
• Wild Card Round, 2024 (In Philly): 22-10
• Week 10, 2025 (in Green Bay): 10-7
Vic Fangio seems to have a bead on Matt LaFleur's offense and Jordan Love's tendencies, as the Eagles' defense has shut down the Packers' offense in each of the last two meetings.
But more importantly, the Packers are limping to the finish line, as they have suffered a laundry list of devastating injuries. Gone for the season are superstar pass rusher Micah Parsons, emerging star TE Tucker Kraft, veteran starting C Elgton Jenkins, and starting DT Devonte Wyatt. And then beyond the season-ending injuries, important players like RB Josh Jacobs and RT Zach Tom are banged up, and likely aren't going to heal up all that much by the time the playoffs come around.
They're simply too handicapped to make any real noise in the postseason.
• 7 seed: 6%
The Eagles had one of their more impressive defensive performances of the season when they took down the Lions 16-9 in Week 11.
The Lions have explosive playmakers on offense, but their offensive line has not been the dominant unit it was a year ago, and like the Packers above, they have a lot of injured players. They have three starters in their secondary on IR, in S Brian Branch, S Kerby Joseph, and CB Terrion Arnold, and can't stop the pass.
Unfortunately for the Eagles, the Lions are a longshot to make the playoffs after losing to the Steelers Week 16. The only way the Eagles will face them is if the Eagles are a surprise 2 seed, and the Lions get a miracle playoff berth.
• 1 seed: 19%
• 2 seed: 1%
• 5 seed: 12%
• 6 seed: 51%
• 7 seed: 17%
The 49ers are a rare team on this list that the Eagles haven't faced this season. They are the Birds' most likely first-round playoff opponent, with a 51 percent chance of being the 6 seed.
The Niners have played an easy schedule this season, as seven of their wins have come against objectively bad teams in the Saints, Cardinals (twice), Falcons, Giants, Browns, and Titans. If the season ended today, all of those teams would be picking 11th or higher in the draft. Of course, the Niners can't control who they play, and credit them for taking care of business against teams they should beat.
However, like the Packers and Lions above, the Niners have suffered major injuries, especially on the defensive side of the ball, as LB Fred Warner, DE Joey Bosa, and rookie first-round DE Mykel Williams are all done for the season. The Niners have no pass rush, as they have 16 sacks as a team this season. The next-closest team has 25. Their sack leader is Bryce Huff, a player the Eagles probably wouldn't even want on their roster if the Niners offered him up for free.
Offensively, the 49ers have been forced to put an extremely heavy workload on the shoulders of Christian McCaffrey, who has 345 touches with three games to play. He's on pace for 419 touches during the regular season.
The one area where the Niners have been stellar this season has been on special teams, which would have to be concerning for the Eagles.
MORE: Jake Elliott is struggling, and the Eagles' confidence in him might be shaken
• 1 seed: 11%
• 2 seed: 68%
• 3 seed: 8%
• 6 seed: 1%
• 7 seed: 13%
The Eagles played one of their two worst games of the season against the Bears Week 13, when Chicago racked up 281 (!) rushing yards at the Linc in a Black Friday stomping of the Birds. But, clearly, this Bears roster is not on the level of teams like the Seahawks and Rams below.
Caleb Williams has had moments of brilliance this season, but ultimately remains an inconsistent work in progress. It's worth noting that quarterbacks starting their first playoff game typically don't fare well.
What the Bears do exceedingly well is win the turnover battle. They are +21 on the season, by far the best in the NFL. Their defense is opportunistic, and the offense does a good job of avoiding huge mistakes.
• 1 seed: 51%
• 2 seed: 3%
• 5 seed: 27%
• 6 seed: 19%
The Seahawks are the most likely 1 seed in the NFC after beating the Rams in the game of the year last Thursday night. Their defense is fast and physical, and they have had their share of games this season in which they have thoroughly dominated and embarrassed opposing offenses.
They also have a physical offense. They are the third-most run-heavy team in the NFL, which is a little bit of a rarity for a team that does not employ a quarterback known for his running ability. They like to pound opposing defenses with the duo of Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet.
The passing attack is basically Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who has had an all-world season with 104 catches for 1637 yards and 10 TDs. The next-closer receiver (Cooper Kupp) has just 558 receiving yards. The Eagles seemingly match up well against the Seahawks' passing attack, as they employ an All-Pro level corner in Quinyon Mitchell, who would almost certainly trail Smith-Njigba. It's also worth noting that getting the pass rush after Sam Darnold in the cold has to be a scenario Fangio wouldn't mind scheming up.
• 1 seed: 19%
• 2 seed: 7%
• 5 seed: 60%
• 6 seed: 12%
• 7 seed: 1%
And finally, there's the Rams, who the Eagles smoked during the regular season in 2024, and then beat in nail-biters in the Divisional Round of the 2024-2025 playoffs as well as in Week 3 this season.
In my view, the Rams are the best team in the NFL. They have an MVP-caliber quarterback in Matthew Stafford, one of the best WR duos in the NFL in Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, a really good one-two punch at running back in Kyren Williams and Blake Corum, and one of the NFL's best pass rushes that can get home without the need to blitz.
The matchup between these two teams that would favor the Eagles would be A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith against the Rams' scrawny corners. The Rams have also had horrendous special teams play this season, which has cost them several games, including the Eagles game Week 3.
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