After securing a victory in a must-win matchup with the Buffalo Bills last weekend, the Philadelphia Eagles now head back home to face the Chicago Bears in what may truly be this season's first “loser leaves town” game. As of now, the Eagles are favored by five points.
While 2019 has been an up-and-down season for Eagles fans, they should be happy to see their favorite team knock off the Bears on Sunday, essentially taking the Bears out of playoff contention.
Let's dive in and take a look at four reasons the Eagles will defeat the Bears this week.
4. The Eagles have owned the Bears in recent years
The players in the Eagles locker room will be feeling very confident heading into this game, mostly because it has been a while since Philadelphia has lost to Chicago in a professional football game.
The Eagles last beat the Bears in a regular season game in 2017, demolishing the Bears 31-3. And Chicago fans probably still have nightmares thinking about their 16-15 playoff loss to the Eagles last season, which featured the famous “double-doink” from Cody Parkey.
Confidence goes a long way in the NFL, which is something the Eagles have when facing the Bears. They haven't lost to the Monsters of the Midway since 2011, when “Moves like Jagger” by Maroon 5 was the number one song in America.
I was in middle school the last time the Bears beat the Eagles, and now I am 20. That pre-game speech is going to be rousing in the Eagles locker room, pumping up the team to keep the trend of owning the Bears going.
3. The Chicago offensive line has been injured and atrocious
It doesn't help the Bears that their big men up front have not been at 100 percent health this season. Former Pro Bowl guard Kyle Long was put on IR earlier this season, keeping him out for the rest of the year and putting his football career in jeopardy.
He isn't the only Bears offensive linemen dealing with injuries, as tackle Jason Peters missed practice earlier this week to nurse a knee injury.
The Bears that have been on the field haven't been world beaters either, as according to Football Outsiders, they rank 29th in the league among offensive lines, giving up sacks at an adjusted rate of 9.6 percent of drop-backs.
With this depleted unit struggling all season, expect Philadelphia pass rushers like Brandon Graham, Fletcher Cox and Derek Barnett to have a field day on Sunday, pressuring quarterback Mitch Trubisky to make a lot of mistakes.
2. Trubisky's confidence is at an all-time low
Speaking of Trubisky, his confidence level this season has been sinking as the Bears have continued to struggle this season.
Even though head coach Matt Nagy is trying to get that confidence up, Trubisky's belief in himself can't just rise overnight, especially considering that there's a case to be made that he has statistically been one of the worst starting quarterbacks in the NFL this season.
Traveling to a harsh environment like Philadelphia, where fans will be booing him more than normal, won't help with Trubisky's self-esteem. While Bears fans are hoping for a rare quality performance, a clunker of a day with a lot of missed throws and a few picks seems to be much more likely.
1. Jordan Howard will have a great performance in this “revenge game”
Earlier this week, Philadelphia head coach Doug Pederson praised veteran running back and former Chicago Bear Jordan Howard for the role he has played on this team as a leader.
“This guy, he’s just a humble guy, he’s a hungry guy,” Pederson said to Alexis Chassen of SB Nation. “He wants to perform, he wants to help us win and he really fit well into that running back room.”
While rookie running back Miles Sanders had a career day this past Sunday, Howard should expect to see a lot of carries against his former team. He knows a lot of these Bears defenders well, as he had to practice against them for three seasons.
Howard is more than a veteran leader on this Philadelphia team. He's a talented ball carrier who earned a Pro Bowl invite in his rookie season. With his home crowd cheering behind him, expect Howard to eclipse the 100-yard mark in rushing yards, while potentially finding the end zone a few times.
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