NFC favorites face tough early test in youthful Eagles: Packers vs. Eagles preview.
The Green Bay Packers are the early popular pick to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl this February. The offence looks unstoppable and the defence was ranked second in the league last year. The Philadelphia Eagles have a bunch of question marks this season including the beginning of the Kevin Kolb era and a young defence. With all the hype surrounding the Packers heading into the season, an opening loss would plant some doubt in the team. A victory for the Eagles would be huge as they would knock off the early favorites early and receive a boost of confidence.
With Aaron Rodgers at their disposal, you can expect the Packers to throw the ball quite often. Rodgers is rising to the NFL’s list of elite quarterbacks and he’ll look to test a questionable Eagles secondary. Rodgers should be able to spread the ball to his various targets Greg Jennings, Donald Driver as well as his sure-handed tight ends in Jermichael Finley and Donald Lee. Rodgers is being projected as an MVP candidate this season and looked very sharp in the preseason. Now he has to show it when it matters. The veteran Driver has full faith in his young quarterback.
"He is the best, and he's proving it," said Driver. "It puts a smile on my face because I've seen the man grow from a little kid to a grown man. To do what he's done, going into his third year as the starting quarterback of the Green Bay Packers, it's a true fact of what he can do."
The Packers will look to balance their deadly passing game with a solid game by Ryan Grant. Grant should be able to have a respectable outing, as the Eagles’ focus will be on Rodgers and the receiving corps. Grant is not a dominant back but he could still be a valuable asset for Green Bay’s offence this Sunday.
Some interesting match-ups will include Jennings going up against Asante Samuel, whose history will tell you he’ll be looking for the big interception. Ellis Hobbs struggled last year in his first season as a starting cornerback and will be tested against the crafty Driver. Safety Quintin Mikell will be relied on to help the corners slow down the aerial attack.
The Eagles will try to blitz Rodgers whose most glaring weakness is hanging on to the ball too long. The offensive line was not spectacular last year but Rodgers definitely will need to make quick decisions in the heat of the pass rush. Philadelphia loves to blitz and that will be their best chance in shutting down Rodgers.
Kolb will face a tough test in his debut as the Eagles’ no.1 quarterback. He’s up against the top defence of the NFC from last season. Look for Kolb to use tight end Brent Celek a lot on check down throws and to utilize screens with running back LeSean McCoy. Normally the explosive home run threat DeSean Jackson would be Kolb’s favorite target but that will be difficult this week. Jackson will be shadowed by the 2009 Defensive Player of the Year in cornerback Charles Woodson. Woodson should be able to slow down Jackson and will receive some great help, if needed, from free safety Nick Collins.
Look for the Packers to also pressure the unproven Kolb with pass rushes off the edge from linebacker Clay Matthews. The Eagles have not shown any ability to run the football in recent years. They will hope McCoy show he can be a great back but this isn’t a good match-up for a weak running team. The Packers were second in the league against the run last season, thanks in large part to defensive end Cullen Jenkins. Jenkins should be able to contain the shifty McCoy, as should the Packers’ front seven.
All the match-ups point to a Green Bay victory; Rodgers is proven – unlike Kolb. The Packers can run the ball, the Eagles can’t. Both defences could be tough, but the Eagles defence was a letdown last year, which was never truer than their playoff loss to the Cowboys. The Packers’ defence should have a great game, but don’t forget their defensive unit were the goats in their 51-45 playoff loss to Arizona. They’ll be looking to show that game was an exception and try to take down the young Eagles. The Packers should be able to pull off the win on the road, but expect a tough game from the Eagles.
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