The Philadelphia Eagles didn’t look like a powerhouse Sunday, but did just enough to advance to the divisional round for the second time in three years.
In a grudge match, the second-seeded Eagles handled the Green Bay Packers, who entered the game without receiver Christian Watson and then lost a pair of wideouts in Romeo Doubs and Jayden Reed during the proceedings.
With the 22–10 victory, Philadelphia will play either the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Los Angeles Rams or Minnesota Vikings.
But before we start thinking of those potential matchups, let’s look at the key points from Sunday’s tilt.
The Eagles have a championship-caliber defense once again
After watching the unit melt down last season under a pair of coordinators in Sean Desai and Matt Patricia, things have improved dramatically with veteran coach Vic Fangio. In the regular season, the Eagles ranked first in yardage and second in points allowed per game.
Against the Packers, Philadelphia didn’t allow Jordan Love much time in the pocket, consistently harassing him while forcing a pair of first-half interceptions and three total. On the ground, Josh Jacobs rushed for 81 yards on 18 carries with a touchdown, but his output was largely muted by nobody else providing much in the way of big plays.
If the Eagles can continue to get these results from the defense, they’ll be a real threat to advance to their second Super Bowl in the Nick Sirianni era.
Green Bay needs much, much more from Love in 2025
Yes, the Packers were playing with a banged-up offensive line that saw Elgton Jenkins go out on the first drive. And, yes, they were playing without a trio of receivers sidelined for varying amounts of time Sunday. But Love was paid to be a superstar quarterback, and he failed throughout the year.
Dealing with injuries at times, Love struggled to get in rhythm. All told, he threw for 3,389 yards with 25 touchdown passes against 11 interceptions in 15 games, barely getting Green Bay into the playoffs. Once there, Love was needed to provide a capable complement to the hard-charging running of Jacobs. Instead, he was a detriment.
Love is still relatively young, having started for just two seasons. His future is bright, and there’s no reason for the Packers to regret giving him a four-year, $220 million extension this past offseason. But Love can justify the contract by playing better football in the long term.
Speaking of quarterbacks, where was Jalen Hurts?
Philadelphia was the lowest-volume passing team in the league during the regular season, attempting only 448 passes. Not much changed in the wild-card round, with Hurts throwing only 21 times.
Still, in the playoffs, Hurts will have to air it out more with quality teams being able to make life tougher on first-team All-Pro running back Saquon Barkley. And on Sunday, with Barkley rushing only for 119 yards on 25 carries, Hurts could have eased the defensive burden by making a few plays. Instead, he was mostly ineffective, going for 131 passing yards on 6.2 yards per attempt.
Should the Eagles play a more high-octane game in the divisional or championship game rounds in the coming weeks, Hurts will be tasked with being more explosive, whether that means finding A.J. Brown or DeVonta Smith on a deep shot or two. If he can’t do it, teams will be able to jam the line of scrimmage and take their chances against an offense that should be more multi-dimensional.
Home teams winning big so far in the wild-card round
Every year, it’s reasonable to expect some road teams to return home with a victory. Yet, recent history shows we shouldn’t expect so much from the lower seeds.
Through four games, home teams have won all four games by an average of 17.5 points. Last season, the Packers were coincidentally the only road team to win, beating the second-seeded Dallas Cowboys. The year before, both the New York Giants and Dallas won away from their buildings. And in 2021, only the San Francisco 49ers were a road winner.
In short, over the past three postseasons, home teams are 18–4 in the wild-card round (with two games to play).
Green Bay needs to make a few moves this offseason
With Matt LaFleur at the controls, the Packers are always going to be an intriguing team, even without an elite roster. But this offseason could provide them with a moment to make a move.
Green Bay has $51.3 million in projected cap space, 10th-most in football. The Packers also have a fairly light number of impact free agents, headlined by corner Eric Stokes. If general manager Brian Gutekunst wants to be aggressive, he certainly can be.
The Packers should consider targeting corners, with Stokes potentially gone and Jaire Alexander having played just 34 games over the past four seasons. They also could invest in receivers, adding a top-tier weapon to complement guys such as Reed, Watson and Doubs.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Wild-Card Rapid Reaction: Eagles Survive Packers Behind Championship-Caliber Defense.