Nick Piccone
The 10-1 Eagles are just rolling. They’ve gotten some breaks along the way, but it’s the good teams that can take advantage of those breaks and really throttle their opponents.
That’s exactly what the Eagles have done this season, especially over their last three games. They’ve beaten the Denver Broncos, Dallas Cowboys and Chicago Bears by 28 points. But their next two games will prove the toughest two-week stretch this team has faced thus far. Heading to Seattle to play the Seahawks on Sunday Night Football, and then the following week playing the Rams in L.A.
To the predictions:
Candis McLean (11-0, @CandisRMcLean):
The 12th man, Russell Wilson, Earl Thomas, a Super Bowl winning team will all be pieces brewing this pot of a matchup this week. Throw in Marcus Smith & Byron Maxwell’s revenge for fun if you’re bored enough. The Seahawks will need all the buzz they can muster when the square up to the hottest team in football this Sunday. It’s obvious the Legion of Boom has become the Legion of Busts over the last few weeks with key injuries in the defensive line and secondary. If the Eagles can leave the turnover bug on the east cost they should win this game against a truly hobbled opponent
Eagles 33-14.
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Dave Uram (10-1, @MrUram):
“The Other Shoe” will drop for the Eagles just this one week. Despite posing less of a threat than previous years with notable injuries, Seattle still brings a Top 10 defense and offense. It will be really hard for them to lose three straight at CenturyLink Field. They will squeak out a very tight affair, and send shockwaves throughout the NFL. The Eagles will respond big though next week with a blowout at the L.A. Rams, which should be turned into Lincoln Financial Field West. Sunday will be a blip on the radar.
Seahawks 24-23.
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Caleb Weiler (0-0, @TheBitter_Caleb):
The Eagles are flying high right into their most difficult test of the year. An away game against the Seattle Seahawks will be no easy task, but this Eagles team has shown again and again that they are up for a fight. The Seahawks are without a serious running threat and two of their best defensive players in Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor, but they still have the ultimate weapon: Russell Wilson. Wilson will definitely give the Eagles’ No. 1 run defense some fits with his feet, but in the end, the Birds will prevail in a tight game due to their high-powered offense taking advantage of a depleted Seahawks defense.
Eagles 27-21.
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Anthony Mazziotti (6-0, @AntMazziotti):
The Eagles will get their 11th win of the season against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night.
The Seahawks defense is not what it used to be with both Sherman and Chancellor out and the Eagles should take advantage of that in both the running and passing game. The defense should be able to do what they do best: shut down the run game and force Seattle to be one dimensional. I predict that the 12th Man™ will not be a factor and the Birds get a win on the road to solidify their place as a top seed in the NFC.
Eagles 27-17.
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Tony Cutillo (9-2, @TCutillo23):
As the weeks go on, it gets tougher and tougher to envision a letdown. In a league built around parity, the Eagles are doing their best to show they are on another level. All we hear from the prognosticators and the some of the local media is how these next two games are the measuring stick. The Seahawks are up first for the taking in another prime time game under the national spotlight.
We will be treated by the typical Al Michaels misfire and the Chris Collingsworth man love for the player who exceeds expectations in his own version of “The Next Man Up” policy. If that wasn’t enough, Eagles fans get to hear more Dan Patrick jokes that are supposed to be funny, Herm Edwards tiptoe the line of neutrality and Rodney Harrison put his signature “I’ll say what I want” attitude on everything football related. All this makes you thank the football gods for this team that much more. The Eagles will show that the Legion of Boom has now been taken over by “The Green Legion” as they take one step closer to the ultimate prize!
Eagles 27-17.
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Adrian Fedkiw (11-0, @AdrianFedkiw):
If the Eagles want to contain Russell Wilson, the front seven will have to maintain gap integrity and if they keep him in the pocket they should be successful. The Seahawks haven’t been able to run the ball all year. With Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor’s absence in the secondary, I think the Eagles take advantage and win it.
Eagles 26-20.
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Sean Brace (10-0, @Sean_Brace):
Let’s keep it simple again. The Eagles are balling and no matter the opponent, a great team will compete. It doesn’t matter the location, day of the week or time of year, the Eagles are a great and will be ready for the back-to-back weeks on the west coast. First up, the Seahawks, and with no Richard Sherman or Kam Chancellor, Carson Wentz is going to carve their secondary up! Give me the Birds!
Eagles 34-20.
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Nick Piccone (11-0, @nickpiccone):
As you can see with the above predictions, there’s a common theme here: Russell Wilson is the Seahawks’ best player and without Sherman and Chancellor, their defense isn’t that great. Those seem to be the reasons everyone’s picking the Eagles to win.
Now, I’m picking the Eagles to win, too. But for a completely different reason. The Seahawks are very good and have had good depth these past few seasons. Despite their injuries, they’re still 7-4. And they’ve lost their last two home games to the Washington Redskins and Atlanta Falcons. Losing three in a row at home? Like Uram said above, that’s pretty tough. However, this Eagles team, with much less talent, went up to Seattle last season and played a pretty good game overall. They also lost Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles in the first half in that game, so the outcome could have been very different.
They’ve already been battle tested in Seattle. They’re prepared. They’re ready. They know what they need to do, and with this group, I’d say a little revenge is on their mind. Give me the Birds by a touchdown.
Eagles 24-17.
You can follow Nick Piccone on Twitter (@nickpiccone) and e-mail him at [email protected]. Subscribe to his podcast on iTunes here and listen live on WildfireRadio.com every Friday at 2pm. Click here to read his pro wrestling articles on PhillyVoice. Follow Philly Influencer on Twitter (@PHL_Influencer), Facebook and Instagram.