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Week 6 in the NFL and coming to town is a desperate 1-3 Detroit Lions team coming off the bye week who can’t afford to suffer another loss if they want to return to the playoffs this season. The Eagles are sort of in desperate mode a bit themselves sitting at 3-2 and holding onto a slim lead in the NFC East. The Eagles under head coach Andy Reid are 6-7 in games heading into the bye week and if they drop this week’s game they are starring at a .500 record with a week off.

Game Notes

-Line: Eagles -4.5

Injury Report:

-Eagles: None

-Lions:

Reid vs. Lions- 3-0(1-0 at Home) record

Overall Series: 16-12-2

Streak: Eagles won five straight dating back to 1995 NFC Wild Card game.

Last Meeting: September 19^th 2010, Eagles 35 Lions 32

-In QB Michael Vick’s first start in midnight green and the offense lived on the big play threat. Vick completed 62% of his passes for 284yds and 2 scores. And RB Lesean McCoy tallied the century mark for the first time in his career while adding three scores. It was a hard fought battle to the end as the Lions scored 17 unanswered points after the Eagles took the early 7-0 lead to take a 10 point lead heading into the half. But TD passes to WR Jeremy Maclin and WR Desean Jackson gave the Eagles the lead and they never looked back!

2012 Tale of the Tape

DET                                                                    PHI

Keys to the Game

-Vick! Hang Onto The Ball!: QB Michael Vick doing a better job making good decisions with the football but that is only one part of it. He coughed up the ball twice last week giving his grand total 11 turnovers this season. This Eagles offense can explode this week against a subpar Lions D if Vick can learn to tuck away and not fumble it every time he is knocked around.

-Control The Tempo: The Eagles have been inconsistent establishing a drive, but when they punch it in they know how to sustain one. More than half of their scores are capped off by a 10+ play drive. Eagles need to do what they are doing and chip away with a mix of pass and run. They need to put the ball in RB Lesean McCoy’s hands and allow him to take over the game. It allows the offense to get in a rhythm and control the clock. Because even though the Lions offense is struggling this season, they are still dangerous and score on you any minute. You can’t put the ball in QB Matthew Stafford and WR Calvin Johnson’s hands!

-Get To The Quarterback: Two straight weeks the Eagles face a mediocre offensive line, and the pass rush can’t register a sack. This week they go up against a decent offensive line whose has done a good job giving QB Matthew Stafford time to throw the ball. He has been sacked though 9 times in four games. They need not to only get pressure on him and not give him a clean pocket to step up in.

When Eagles Have The Ball….. This week could be the week the offense explodes! We really haven’t seen the best from QB Michael Vick and this unit and the matchups are in their favor. The Lions pass rush has been inefficient this season only getting to the quarterback nine times this season. Teams have found a way to control their front four which was a strength on this team. And they have a secondary that Eagles can really exploit with all the speed they have at the wide receiver position.

Lions are also giving up the 7^th most points in the NFL and really I don’t see Detroit really stopping Philly offensively. The only one that is going to stop the Eagles is the Eagles. Vick needs to hang onto the football because if you don’t, this Lions team will find a way to take advantage of their miscues. But the Eagles really can’t make Vick the focal point even with the mismatch against their secondary. They need to allow RB Lesean McCoy to get his touches and establish the tempo allowing the offense to get in a rhythm.

But really you get in any type of rhythm you want and put up all the yards you want. But if you aren’t punching it in the end zone none of that really matters. This offense needs to do a better job in the red zone and not settle for field goals. That won’t get the job done and can’t win by getting 3 points constantly. Their red zone efficiency has been dreadfrul this season and really need to start picking it up and this is the week to do it! And one player to keep an eye is TE Brent Celek.

He has been one of Vick's favorite targets this season and the Lions defense are one of the worst teams containing the tight end. He can be the guy to really jump start this offense and have a big day in the passing game.

Eagles On Defense…. The main focal point this week has to be doing a better job getting after the quarterback. Two straight weeks without a sack and they need to find a way to get pressure on the quarterback. Whether it is blitzing, the overloading one side, the front four, whatever! They can’t continue to allow opponents to stand in the pocket and execute the short vertical passing game. They need to disrupt their opponent’s rhythm because they are finding ways to pick them apart. And this week they go up against one of the best one-two combination in the NFL with QB Matthew Stafford and WR Calvin Johnson.

They haven’t been able to click so much this season but Johnson still averaging over 100yds a game and is still a factor in the passing game. His physical play and body size make him a prime target. Eagles should shadow CB Nnamdi Asomugha on CJ. This is what Asomugha is best at shutting down the big physical receiver so let him go out there and earn that money but word is they probably will have DRC focus more on CJ since he is playing the best football in the secondary. The main thing is not allowing the Lions to exploit the mismatch CJ has against nickel CB Brandon Boykins.

The Eagles shouldn’t have to worry much on defending the run and I expect a better showing from LB Demeco Ryans and LB Mychal Kendricks who struggled last week getting off blocks and controlling TE Heath Miller. This week TE Brandon Pettigrew is banged up but is expected to play. They do get back LB Akeem Jordan who will play a major role in special teams but this is a team and a unit that is getting healthy at just the right time.

But again the key is getting to Stafford and don’t let him get comfortable back there. You give him the time despite his struggles this season with only 3 TDs to 4 Ints, he still knows how to get the ball to his weapons. This is an offense who is 3^rd best in the NFL in yards put up so they know how to move the football up and down the football field. Get pressure, force three and outs and don’t allow them to get in a rhythm and control the tempo of the football game. And hopefully force the Lions to make mistakes like they have all season long and get some takeaways to set up the offense in good position.

Prediction: Eagles Win 34-21…. Eagles take advantage of this weak defense and allow the big play to come alive in the passing game. I expect big days from WR Desean Jackson and RB Lesean McCoy to help this Philly offense finally put up an offensive explosion we haven’t seen yet this season. I feel this defense has troubles controlling Calvin Johnson but they contain him enough to not let him be a huge factor. I know the Lions are desperate and coming off the bye week, but on the road against an angry Eagles team isn't going to go well. Eagles go into the bye week on a high note at 4-2 and think about how lucky they really are to be in the position that they are in.