For the second time in the Jordan Love era in as many years, the Packers are back in the playoffs. The Green Bay Packers will play the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card Playoffs at 3:30 p.m. CST at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. This is the third time the Packers and Eagles have met in the postseason, with the most recent being in 2010, when a Packers victory led them to a Super Bowl 45 victory. Before that meeting, the previous matchups were in 2003 and 1960, with the 1960 meeting being the NFL Championship where the Eagles were victorious and Packers' coach Vince Lombardi vowed to his team that they would never again lose a championship. And they didn't under his guidance. Back to 2025, we go. The 11-6 Packers are coming off a bit of a frustrating 24-22 loss to the Chicago Bears, which has left them looking to redeem themselves with this playoff matchup. The Eagles, at 14-3 are coming off a 20-13 victory against the lowly New York Giants where the Eagles rested many starters and still came out with the win. 

The last time these two teams met was the season opener in Sao Paulo, Brazil which saw the Eagles come away victorious 34-29. The Packers got out to a 6-0 lead in the first quarter, but failure to get in the endzone off two Eagles turnovers and a missed field goal would cost the Packers in the long run. Jordan Love went 17/34 for 260 yards, two touchdowns, and an INT. Jayden Reed would have a monster game catching four passes for 138 yards and a touchdown as well as running one in from 33 yards out. The Packers did a good job of containing the running threat of Jalen Hurts but Saquon Barkley picked up the slack running for 109 yards and two touchdowns alongside catching two passes for 23 yards and a touchdown. It was a back-and-forth battle where the Packers' defense seemed to be just getting its legs underneath it for the first time in the season. On the final drive, Jordan Love was hit and sustained a lower leg injury that held him out of the next two games and also sort of hobbled him for a few games afterward. 

Last week was just plain ugly for several reasons. The Packers just seemed to be playing the game too conservatively not to mention the injuries sustained to Christian Watson and Jordan Love. Watson is out for the season and while Love escaped with just a minor injury it will be something to watch in today's game. Obviously, given the fact that the loss was against the Chicago Bears, it will not be one the fanbase will be able to forget for a while. But the Packers themselves may be wise to have dementia over Sunday's game and just put it out of their minds and focus on today's matchup. 

In their initial meeting, some aspects went well, some not so well. One thing is for sure, though: the Packers are a bit of a different football team than they were in week 1, and they'll try to use that to their advantage today. 

What to see on Offense

Last week against Chicago, Christian Watson put his team over his health. He saw Romeo Doubs was out with an illness and decided he was good enough to go. In hindsight, it may not have been the best idea as he ended up tearing his ACL, but that's the kind of stuff that makes me respect him just a little bit more. Like him or not, Christian Watson is a team player, hopefully, today, the Packers are ready to honor his absence with a heck of a game on offense. Outside of Watson, any available starters should be all set to go. QB Sean Clifford was signed to the active roster from the practice squad, but this is purely an emergency move and not an indication of the status of Jordan Love or Malik Willis who both ended up banged up after the Bears game. This is a pretty typical playoff move regardless of QB injury status so it shouldn't be read into more than that. 

Regardless of which QB lines up to take the snap today, it's going to be a tough task to take on. The Eagles' pass defense ranks first in the league only allowing 174.2 yards passing per game. Led by corners Darius Slay, Quinyon Mitchell, and Cooper DeJean, the Packers receivers are going to have to be at the top of their route running game to get open today. Behind them is Reed Blankenship and Chauncey Gardner-Johnson. Gardner-Johnson leads the team with six interceptions followed by Blankenship with four. Oddly enough, as good as Philly's corners have been this season, the aforementioned three have zero interceptions to their combined credit this year. Let's not give them their first. By my evaluation I've attributed a lot of the drops had by the Packers' receiving corp to not finishing routes. These receivers are going to need to finish routes today to be effective. 

In the absence of Christian Watson the Packers' receivers are certainly missing that big play threat. Watson's speed and ability to easily draw the safety is unmatched. However, Bo Melton may be able to contribute to these efforts a little bit. I'm not saying expect Melton to draw the safety and open up the passing game underneath or go off for 150 yards catching. Still, Melton could find himself in position for a few big receptions if the Eagles don't respect the big play potential. 

Before they throw the ball, however, they're going to need to protect Jordan Love. The Eagles had 41 sacks this season, eight secured by Josh Sweat and 6.5 from Nolan Smith. I normally turn into a broken record in this paragraph as I have been very satisfied with the Packers' pass protection this season, but tack on Jalen Carter on the defensive line, and I'm just going to hope Jordan Love can stay upright for more than 2-3 plays at a time.

On to the running game. Josh Jacobs has had the best season for a Packers running back since Ahman Green in 2003. Jacobs has been good, but against the Eagles, they may need luck on their side. Philly ranks 10th in the league in rush yards allowed with 99.4. Zach Baun has had an outstanding season, hitting 93 tackles, while fellow Nakobe Dean follows up in second with 80. The Packers have done a great job of running the football this season regardless of the opposition. I will be hoping for a few big runs early from the Packers in order to open up the offense today. Extra effort to contain a running attack may help open up the play action where Jordan Love could run the fake and hit a receiver a little further down field. 

Overall I think the Packers offense will have to be on their A-game. Protect Love, get Jacobs going, and incorporate any receiver on the roster to win this one. 

What to See on Defense

Although the Packers' defense has been dealing with injuries the last few games of the regular season, there is a chance they field the healthiest group they've had in a while today. The only player confirmed OUT is Zayne Anderson, who is still dealing with a concussion suffered against Minnesota two weeks ago. Otherwise, Evan Williams, TJ Slaton, Quay Walker, and Brenton Cox Jr. are listed as Questionable. All four were limited in practice, hopefully, we see them back in the lineup today. There were no practice squad elevations on defense which tells me we could see these players on the field which honestly will make a big difference for the Packers. 

There was a little trickery at play earlier this week, at least in my opinion there was regarding Philadelphia QB Jalen Hurts. He was listed as being in concussion protocol, and there were question marks of whether he'd play today or not, of course, he was cleared and he'll play, and if you ask me, he was always going to play, they just didn't want to announce it officially until late. The difference this makes though, is that Jalen Hurts, who missed the final two games of the regular season with said concussion, hasn't thrown a pass in almost a month. There could be a bit of rust to shake off early in the game and the Packers hope to take advantage of that rust early if it's there, otherwise, once it's gone, look out. 

Jalen Hurts has been blessed with a very talented support cast led by receivers AJ Brown and Devonta Smith who ended the season with 1,079 and 833 yards receiving respectively with Smith catching eight touchdowns and Brown seven. At tight end, they've got Dallas Goedert who hauled in 42 catches for 496 yards and two touchdowns. These are pretty decent numbers for a full season at these positions, and then you see that Brown and Smith missed four games and Goedert missed seven. So, that makes those numbers more impressive. Add in Saquon Barkley to the passing game who's been pretty effective as well and you've got your hands full as a defense. 

If Quay Walker and Evan Williams are back in the lineup today, my confidence will grow a little bit more in the passing game. The ability to put Javon Bullard at corner with Carrington Valentine, Keisean Nixon, and Eric Stokes, and then have Quay Walker covering the middle of the field with Evan Williams assisting up top alongside Xavier McKinney would be much better than we've seen lately. Of course, it's not ideal against this talented group, but it will be the best we can get today and that will have to be good enough. 

In the season opener, the Packers did an outstanding job of containing Jalen Hurts' running threat. As a result though, per Jeff Hafley's own admittance, the pass rush suffered even though they sacked Hurts twice. I would love to see pressure early with Hafley sending a few creative blitzes to try to rattle Hurts' rhythm given he's been out for so long. But they have to be smart about it. You don't want to just flush him out of the pocket and have him gash you with his legs. Hopefully, the Packers will be able to get some effective pressure early to force some mistakes as against this talented offense, they're going to need them. 

Onto the running game. Saquon Barkley had his Philadelphia coming-out party in Sao Paulo against the Packers in week 1. He ran for 109 yards and two touchdowns alongside catching two passes for 23 yards and a touchdown. There's no doubt he will be a concern today as he's been a God-send for Philly all year long. But one thing is different from week 1 to today, and that is the Packers' run defense. In the first few games of the season, it seemed like the defense was still getting its legs under it. They gave up 144 yards rushing total to Philadelphia in week 1. Since then the Packers' defense ranks 7th in the league against the run only allowing an average of 99.4 yards per game. They've stopped some pretty prolific rushing attacks this season. 

Saquon Barkley will still likely get his. It's doubtful the Packers hold him under only 50 yards. However, there is a chance they limit him to under 100 yards, which would undoubtedly be an accomplishment considering he averages over 125 yards per game. 

If the Packers can limit Barkley's effectiveness and get the pressure on Jalen Hurts enough to force a mistake or two, it could be a good day for the Packers' defense. 

Extra Notes

Special Teams reared its ugly head once again last week for the Packers reminding us that despite field goals no longer being an issue, Rich Bisaccia's squad isn't out of the woods just yet. It started with long snapper Matt Orzech launching a high snap at punter Daniel Whelan which he was somehow able to recover and get a punt off before disaster happened. Later on, the Bears ran a trick punt return that completely fooled the Packers as they scored a touchdown and made me wonder why the punt coverage isn't running to where the punter states he's going to aim the punt. 

The Eagles' kick and punt return teams haven't been very dynamic so hopefully, Bisaccia has his teams a little more disciplined today so they don't change that fact. 

One of the obvious differences in this game Special Teams' wise compared to week 1 is the Packers' kicker. Brayden Narveson started the season opener and was later released when the Packers got their hands on Brandon McManus. McManus as we all know was a season-saver in a way as we don't know whether or not some of the close games that were decided by a field goal would have gone in the Packers' favor had Narveson still been the kicker. 

On the Eagles' side, initially, when I recalled their kicker being Jake Elliott I was ready to mark him as reliable as that has normally been the case in his career. But not this season. Elliott has struggled a bit only making 77.9% of his attempts. Perhaps the tables may turn on the kicker situation in this match compared to week 1. 

In the End

The Eagles are certainly a juggernaut of a football team. There's a reason they're 14-3. But these are the playoffs. Your previous record means nothing other than what stadium you're playing in. The Packers have been in this situation before. Hobbled by injuries going up against a team they're expected to get dismantled by only to pull off the victory. I seem to remember that happening in the 2010 season before the Packers won Super Bowl XLV. Coincidentally, that was also against the Eagles in Philly. Any team can beat any team on any given day. 

Hopefully, today the Packers shock the world by defeating the Eagles and make their way back to Detroit to try to get a measure of revenge on the Lions. Go Pack Go.