Eagles' potential opponent set for divisional round
Eagles' potential opponent set for divisional round originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
TAMPA — We now know who the Eagles will play in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs if they’re able to beat the Buccaneers on Monday night to advance.
If the Eagles are able to advance with a win in the wild-card round — and it is a big IF based on how they’ve been playing — they’ll travel to Detroit to face the Lions next week.
Buccaneers/Eagles at Detroit will be on Sunday, Jan. 21 at 3 p.m. on NBC.
The No. 3 seeded Lions won an exciting 24-23 game over the No. 6 seeded Rams in Detroit at Ford Field on Sunday night. This is the Lions’ first playoff win since the 1991 season.
Had the Rams pulled out a win, the Eagles would have had the opportunity to host them in a divisional round game. Instead, they’ll be playing on Monday night for a chance to head to Detroit.
The potential trip to San Francisco was put on hold after the Packers upset the Cowboys 48-32 on Sunday afternoon. The No. 7 seeded Packers will travel to face the No. 1 seeded 49ers next weekend. The Eagles just needed a lower seed than them to win on Sunday to avoid facing the 49ers in the divisional round.
The Cowboys were the No. 2 seed in the NFC after a 12-5 season and an NFC East crown. But the Cowboys were crushed by the Packers on Sunday and it wasn’t nearly as close as that final score indicated. The Cowboys were down 27-0 late in the second quarter before getting a late touchdown. But they never really got it close.
Dak Prescott threw two interceptions as the Cowboys lost at AT&T Stadium, where they had won their previous 16 regular season games at home. But on Sunday, they gave up the most points in a playoff game in franchise history.
The Eagles (11-6) might have gotten an easier draw with the Buccaneers (9-8) in the first round. In fact, the Eagles are three-point road favorites in this game and Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield is listed as questionable with ribs and ankle injuries.
Of course, there’s no guarantee the Eagles beat the Buccaneers. While Tampa Bay isn’t a very good team, the Eagles haven’t been good in a long time. The Bucs won five of their final six regular season games and the Eagles lost five of their last six. They were once 10-1 and ended up with an 11-6 record.
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