Despite their flaws, the Eagles are capable of beating anybody in the postseason

Despite their flaws, the Eagles are capable of beating anybody in the postseason originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

You look around the other teams in the NFC playoff bracket and look at the Eagles and there’s only one conclusion I can draw: The Eagles are capable of beating any team in the playoffs and equally capable of losing to any team in the playoffs.

Kind of a weird place to be, but it’s true. At this point, anything is possible.

With this defense, the Eagles can shut down any offense, any quarterback. They held five of their last eight opponents to 18 points or less and over the last two months this was the best defense in the NFL.

But with this offense, it’s going to be a struggle scoring enough points to beat a good team. In their last five games against playoff teams, they scored 17, 10, 15, 19 and 13 points. So it’s hard to have faith that this unit can go out and score 27 or 30 points in a playoff game.

So that’s where we’re at. Can their defense play well enough to overcome the offense’s deficiencies? Not exactly the kind of stuff that inspires confidence going into the postseason. 

But it’s important to remember that the Eagles aren’t the only team with issues right now.

The 49ers team that comes to the Linc Sunday is 20^th in defense, 25^th in pass defense, 32^nd in sacks, 24^th in first downs allowed, 30^th in interceptions and 22^nd in takeaways. This is not an elite defense. They’re kind of a mirror image of the Eagles, with one very good side of the ball and another not so good.

And you can do this with every team in the NFC. 

The Seahawks are the No. 1 seed, but are you really worried about Sam Darnold beating you? The Packers have lost four straight games by an average of 11 ½ points. The Panthers won the South with a losing record. The Rams are good but the Eagles already beat them once, and Nick Sirianni is 4-0 vs. Sean McVay. The Bears? They just lost at home to a Lions team with nothing to play for, and they’re 2-3 since beating the Eagles. 

There isn’t one team in the NFC that scares me. There isn’t one team in the NFC that the Eagles can’t beat. Of course, there isn’t one team in the NFC that isn’t capable of beating the Eagles, either. They’re averaging 16.7 points this year against playoff teams and you’re not going to win a lot of playoff games scoring 16 or 17 points.

But there are a few things the Eagles can really lean on as the playoffs approach. A few things that should give Eagles fans a healthy dose of hope and belief.

They got to 11-6 against the NFL’s toughest schedule, and among the teams they’ve beaten are the 12-5 Bills, 12-5 Rams and 9-7-1 Packers. In addition to Highmark and Lambeau, they won at Arrowhead, Raymond James and U.S. Bank, and even though those teams faded, those are big-time wins in tough stadiums.

Then you look at this offense that has been so disappointing this year and you have to remember it isn’t talent that’s holding them back. They have two star receivers, a Super Bowl MVP quarterback, a 2,000-yard rusher, a top-10 tight end and an offensive line that should be healthy and rested by next Sunday. It’s not like they’re sputtering because they don’t have talent. They’re loaded. And if Kevin Patullo can find some elusive rhythm as a play caller, this offense has the ability to explode against anyone.

Then there’s this, and I think this is huge: This is a battle-tested team that rolled through the playoffs and won a Super Bowl 10 months ago. They know how to win, and they believe they can do it again. They have one of only five quarterbacks to reach two Super Bowls before his 27^th birthday and one of only five coaches to take his first five teams to the postseason. 

This roster is jammed with guys who’ve reached the pinnacle of the NFL and made plays on the game’s biggest stage. There’s tremendous value having guys who not only believe they can win a Super Bowl but already have and know what it takes.

We can come up with plenty of reasons the Eagles won’t go on a deep playoff run, and they’re all valid. It won’t be easy just to get past the 49ers on Sunday.

But there’s also a world of potential in that locker room, and the Eagles have shown they have the ability to beat anybody anywhere at any time. And that’s a pretty powerful thing this time of year.

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