After a less-than-thrilling wild-card round, the NFC’s divisional round already appears to be much better.
The No. 2 Philadelphia Eagles have arguably the most complete roster in football.
After a 1-4 start, the Los Angeles Rams have completely turned things around and have the most proven playoff quarterback of the four NFC teams to advance to the league’s final eight.
We give you one key question facing each team heading into Sunday’s game.
No. 4 Los Angeles Rams @ No. 2 Philadelphia Eagles | Sunday 3 p.m. ET
It’s hard not to look at the Week 12 game between these two teams and think a blowout might be brewing.
The Eagles convincingly handled the Rams in L.A. 37-20, and looked like they could do whatever they wanted to on either side of the ball.
But a lot can change in eight weeks and it’s hard to beat a team twice, especially when that team is coached by Sean McVay.
The Rams’ young defence played the game of their life on Monday against the Vikings, and Stafford looked to have some juice back after getting Week 18 off.
Add in the fact that Nakobe Dean and Brandon Graham — two of the Eagles’ best defensive players in that Week 12 game — will unfortunately be unavailable due to injuries, and suddenly the likelihood of another blowout drops significantly.
The Eagles have all the talent in the world and there is a reason they’re a popular Super Bowl pick. But Stafford and McVay know a thing or two about winning in the playoffs, and the Eagles are going to have to earn this one.
One key question for the Eagles: If the Rams gameplan around Barkley, can Hurts make enough plays?
Since their Week 12 matchup, Rams defensive co-ordinator has almost certainly had a few Saquon Barkley nightmares.
Barkley finished with a franchise record 255 rushing yards and two touchdowns against Shula’s defence and added another 47 yards receiving.
It’s no real secret that the Rams’ defensive gameplan will revolve around stopping No. 26. Whether that means bringing blitzes or playing with a safety down in the box, the Rams are going to do their best to contain Barkley.
That puts the pressure on QB Jalen Hurts and the Eagles’ 29th-ranked passing attack.
Granted, a lot of the reason for the Eagles’ lack of passing threat was that Barkley was just so good, they didn’t need to throw the ball.
But even in their wild-card win over the Green Bay Packers, Hurts finished with just 131 passing yards while No. 1 receiver A.J. Brown (one catch for 10 yards) spent more time reading on the sidelines than he did with the football in his hands.
The Rams are going to dare Hurts to beat them on Sunday. He has the talent and supporting cast to do it, now it’s just about executing.
One key question for the Rams: Can Rams’ O-line win in the day?
It’s expected to be snowy and cold in Philadelphia at kickoff, which hasn’t always been kind to McVay and Stafford.
McVay is 4-4 in his career in the rain and snow, while Stafford is just 1-8.
But the Rams put a significant amount of money into their offensive line this off-season, and now it’s time for that investment to come through.
One of the main reasons for the Rams’ 1-4 start was because of injuries to their big boys up front. Starting right tackle Rob Havenstein was also unavailable for Week 12’s game against the Eagles where Philadelphia sacked Stafford five times, but the Rams have their top five guys ready to go Sunday.
The Eagles’ No. 1 ranked defence doesn’t typically like to blitz, and instead opts to play drop seven into coverage, and rely on a four-man pressure to get home.
If the Rams can run the ball to stay ahead of the chains and give the veteran Stafford time to dissect the defence, this game should be a one-score game in the fourth quarter.
Which as a playoff underdog on the road, is all you can really ask for.
