Sean Selby

The Phillies manager, Gene Mauch from long ago once said, “Losing streaks are funny. If you lose at the beginning, it’s a bad start. If you lose in the middle of a season, you’re in a slump. If you lose at the end, you’re choking.”

I am going to be perfectly blunt. I hate this team right now.

They have a chance to fix that against the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay on Monday night.

Never in my 42 years have I ever turned off an Eagles game as early as I did last week when they let the Giants embarrass them. Never have I ever felt so unexcited about a playoff appearance as I do about this team.

I have done my best to tune out all of the extra drama and theoretical nonsense that is circulating this team and it’s future regarding the coach that is being drummed up by the fan base. It’s hard to ignore. If the Eagles do in fact lay down and get embarrassed in the playoffs by a not-so-great Buccaneers team, then the people can march to the NovaCare complex with pitchforks and yell for Sirianni’s head. I don’t think it’s going to go down like that, though.

I would really like to think that this team will at least rub the sleepies out of their eyes and play a competitive game on Monday Night. Despite Jalen Hurts having issues with his dislocated finger and AJ Brown out, the Eagles offense should still be able to generate enough to put a few touchdowns on the board. They will be going against the 3rd most blitzing team in TB, something to keep in mind. This would be a perfect D’Andre Swift game. The last 100 yard rushing game he had was actually against these Bucs way back in Week 3. Despite their flaws and horrific play calling, that’s not my biggest concern with this game or team.

The defense, as we all know, has been historically bad over the past 2 months. What the cause is is anyone’s guess. Is it the coordinator(s), is it the scheme not fitting the personnel, or did this team just get exposed by the 49ers earlier this season? Whatever the cause, everyone and their mothers have had their way with the defense, on all three levels, the line, linebackers, and secondary. No one has been safe. This week, they will be assigned the task of slowing down Mike Evans and running back Rasheed White. I think the only way they can gain some momentum and turn things around is if they can generate some early turnovers. Otherwise, this is going to be a game where the team comes up short once again.

Based on recent events, and my overall gut feeling, I think the latter is what occurs and the Eagles will be sent home.

Bucs 26, Eagles 20

Patrick Mulranen

The Eagles are favored to win this game and, on paper, they should beat the Buccaneers. But everything about the Eagles’ last month-plus says otherwise. With the uncertainty around Jalen Hurts’ finger and A.J. Brown’s knee and mysterious social media activity, along with the Eagles’ inability to do anything right on defense, especially in the secondary, this matchup does not bode well for the Birds.

Tampa Bay has won five of its last six games and, despite just a 9-0 win last week over Carolina, the Buccaneers are coming into the playoffs on a hot streak, which is the total opposite of the Eagles. Tampa has good receivers in Chris Godwin and Mike Evans. Even if Baker Mayfield (foot) is ruled out or is limited, it dosen’t matter. If the Eagles had trouble stopping the Giants offense, how are they stopping Tampa’s? Clearly, there are issues all over the place. It stinks because the Eagles have the better roster, but there is just too much concern and unpredictability. 

The Eagles are in the midst of an historic collapse, and the players know it. They can talk all they want and say the right things, but talk is cheap. They have been saying they will get it right the past few weeks, yet nothing has been corrected. It has only gotten worse. They are struggling on offense and defense, even though defense is still the main issue, in my opinion. Still, Hurts has not been great with the blitz lately, and Tampa blitzes the third-most in the NFL. 

The Eagles have lost five of their last six, and their season will more than likely end Monday night. As a fan, I would love to see them win. I really hope they do. But as an unbiased writer, I have to go with my gut. As painful as it is to say it, and even more so because the Eagles were 10-1 and in great position just in early December, but Tampa will advance in the playoffs and the Eagles will enter an offseason with many questions and decisions to make. 

Bucs 27, Eagles 17

Mike Sliwinski

I was shocked to see the Eagles come into Monday’s road playoff game as a 3 point favorite. It has stayed that way as well. The Eagles have not played well in weeks. They lost 5 of 6 and their only win was to a 6 win team playing out the string, In a game they barely won, and that same Giants team thoroughly dominated them the last week of the season.

Speaking of last week’s game. Under normal circumstances, I would have dismissed it being that it was a meaningless game. Dallas wasn’t losing to Washington so the only thing to play for was momentum, which they very much needed with the way they were playing. They very much did not get that.

Turning our attention to their opponent, the Bucs. They finished the season with a 9 and 8 record. Two games worse than the Eagles. They still get the home game by way of winning the worst division in football. They did so by beating the worst team in all of football by single digits and did not score into double digits at all. They in fact did not score a TD that game. However, in the polar opposite trend as the Eagles, since December, they WON 5 of 6.

On offense Baker Mayfield leads the way for Tampa. He had a bit of a career resurgence but is banged up. White has had a solid year as their bell cow RB. Evans is having another very good year as he builds on his borderline hall of fame career. Godwin has had a decent career opposite Evans for quite a few years himself. It’s not a dominant offense but a good one and going against the Eagles defense that somehow lost the ability to generate a pass rush and stop the run. Hopefully the line has another gear they were holding back on until the playoffs, but this is unlikely. The secondary does get back big play Slay and gives them flexibility to move Maddox to safety and perhaps hide Bradbury a bit in the slot. In theory things could improve there.

Defensively the Bucs have only given up 325 points on the season. With the Birds giving up 428 its over 100 points less and 3rd lowest in conference. Again going against inept offenses in their division helped with that but still it’s a good defense. The Eagles offense does not look dynamic, looks predictable and likely will not have their best play maker in AJ Brown for the game. Establishing and sticking with the run would be advisable.

All that said on paper, the Eagles have the most talent and are the best team. The playoffs are a complete reset and a chance for the Birds to start fresh. Anything is possible here and you could make a lot of arguments for why they should and can win. But in watching this team the past month and a half, they don’t pass the eye test. They are playing like a bottom 10 team and I just don’t see a flip being switched to change that right now. I don’t think the game is all that close.

Bucs 24 Eagles 14