QB Drew Brees has done an outstanding job using his supporting cast on offense. Six players have caught at least 20 passes and four have at least 600 receiving yards. Both RB Reggie Bush and WR Marques Colston were outstanding this season, as they combined for 158 catches for 1,782 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Look for head coach Sean Payton to spread the field, creating mismatches by moving Bush around in the formation. The Saints will continue to attack through the air to set up the run. Also, look for Payton to isolate on LC Roderick Hood, who will replace the injured Lito Sheppard, and attack backup corners Joselio Hanson and William James in heavy pass down situations.
? Eagles' defensive coordinator Jim Johnson will attack the Saints' passing game. Look for Johnson to rely heavily on his pressure packages with multiple zone fires, along with playing a lot of single safety and zero coverage schemes on the backend. Johnson loves to overload one side, while bringing pressure off the opposite side to confuse the protection calls.
The key for the Eagles will be their ability to time up blitzes. Also, look for the Eagles to be very physical on the outside perimeter, disrupting the timing and rhythm of the Saints' quick-controlled passing game. Brees' ability to make all throws in the passing game will put a lot of pressure on the Eagles' secondary. His ability to sight adjust off the Eagles' pressure packages that could result in explosive plays on the backend.
? Offensively, first down will be a key element on how they attack the Eagles' defense. Payton is a big believer that you must convert positive yardage on first down to set up more manageable second- and third-down situations, keeping the defense honest when attacking.
Look for Johnson to pin his ears back and attack in any long-yardage situations based on down and distance. The key for the Saints will be Brees' ability to make the right protection calls, along with attacking the weakness of the Eagles' pass defense.
? Expect offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweig to continue to be balanced on offense by relying on RB Brian Westbrook to take pressure off QB Jeff Garcia.
The Eagles will continue to use more two-back personnel groupings to attack a suspect Saints' run defense. The defense has been inconsistent all season against the run, giving up big plays. However, the Saints were pretty effective the last time these two teams met, limiting Westbrook to 72 yards on 16 carries.
? Defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs will look to attack with his multiple 43 schemes to try to disrupt the flow of the Eagles' rushing attack. The Eagles have a big and physical offensive line that will look to wear down the Saints' undersized defensive line. The Eagles have been very effective all season on first down and have a very explosive offensive team. It will take a huge effort from the Saints' defense to control this Eagles' offense.
? The Saints' offense will rely on the combination of Deuce McAlister and Reggie Bush against an Eagles' run defense that is still weak against the run. In the first meeting between these two teams, the Saints dominated the time-of-possession by attacking with their short, controlled passing attack to set up the run. However, look for Payton to run the ball on first down, while mixing in some play action to attack vertically down the field, exploiting the Eagles' safeties.
? This game will come down to whichever quarterback makes the least amount of mistakes. Brees put up MVP numbers in 2006, while Garcia is playing with a lot of confidence. Brees finished the season with 356 completions on 554 attempts for 4,418 yards. His completion percentage was 64.3, with 26 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions. He finished with a quarterback rating of 96.2 and was sacked 18 times.
Garcia is 6-1 since taking over as the starting QB for the injured Donovan McNabb. He finished the season with a quarterback rating of 95.8 and has thrown just two interceptions in seven starts, which has been a key element in the Eagles' success.
Special Teams
The hidden yardage will be critical in the outcome of this game. Philadelphia PK David Akers converted 18 of 23 field goal attempts, with a long of 47 yards. P Dirk Johnson finished the season ranked 24th in the NFL, with an average of 42.6. The return game is led by return specialist Reno Mahe.
Mahe finished the season with a 9.4 average on punt returns, and a 22.2 average on kickoff returns. However, starting RB Brian Westbrook also will contribute as a punt returner in certain situations to try to create field position. Westbrook has the game changing speed to be explosive in the return game, much like Saints' backup PR Reggie Bush. The Eagles' coverage units will need a big day in containing Michael Lewis and Bush.
Saints' punter Steve Weatherford finished the season ranked 15th in the league in punting, with an average of 43.8. He placed 19 punts inside the 20. Backup PK Billy Cundiff was re-signed this week to handle the kickoffs, while John Carney finished the season 23 of 25 on field goal attempts, with a long of 51 yards.
Their kickoff coverage team finished 23rd in the NFL, while their kickoff return team ranked 14th, with an average starting field position of 27.0. On the season, the Saints averaged 7.3 yards on punt returns and 23.0 yards on kickoff returns, with one touchdown on a 65-yard punt return by Reggie Bush. Lewis handles both kickoff and punt returns.
Matchups
? Philadelphia SS Brian Dawkins against New Orleans QB Drew Brees
? Philadelphia RB Brian Westbrook against New Orleans SLB Scott Fujita
? New Orleans RBs Deuce McAlister and Reggie Bush against the Philadelphia front seven
? New Orleans RDE Will Smith against Eagles LT William Thomas
? Philadelphia RDE Darren Howard against New Orleans LT Jammal Brown
Scouts' Edge
This should be a great game to watch on Saturday night. The Saints have been the Cinderella team of the NFL in 2006, while the Eagles have won six consecutive games. Look for Saints head coach Sean Payton to continue to rely on the pass to set up the run. Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson must find a way to slow this high-powered Saints' offense.
The key to the Eagles' success lately has been their ability to run the ball, taking pressure off QB Jeff Garcia. Saints' defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs will try to force the Eagles to be a one-dimensional team through the air. However, QB Drew Brees has been unbelievable and will be the difference, as the Saints will advance to the NFC Championship game next weekend.
Prediction: Saints 28, Eagles 24
Look for head coach Sean Payton to spread the field, creating mismatches by moving Bush around in the formation. The Saints will continue to attack through the air to set up the run. Also, look for Payton to isolate on LC Roderick Hood, who will replace the injured Lito Sheppard, and attack backup corners Joselio Hanson and William James in heavy pass down situations.
? Eagles' defensive coordinator Jim Johnson will attack the Saints' passing game. Look for Johnson to rely heavily on his pressure packages with multiple zone fires, along with playing a lot of single safety and zero coverage schemes on the backend. Johnson loves to overload one side, while bringing pressure off the opposite side to confuse the protection calls.
The key for the Eagles will be their ability to time up blitzes. Also, look for the Eagles to be very physical on the outside perimeter, disrupting the timing and rhythm of the Saints' quick-controlled passing game. Brees' ability to make all throws in the passing game will put a lot of pressure on the Eagles' secondary. His ability to sight adjust off the Eagles' pressure packages that could result in explosive plays on the backend.
? Offensively, first down will be a key element on how they attack the Eagles' defense. Payton is a big believer that you must convert positive yardage on first down to set up more manageable second- and third-down situations, keeping the defense honest when attacking.
Look for Johnson to pin his ears back and attack in any long-yardage situations based on down and distance. The key for the Saints will be Brees' ability to make the right protection calls, along with attacking the weakness of the Eagles' pass defense.
? Expect offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweig to continue to be balanced on offense by relying on RB Brian Westbrook to take pressure off QB Jeff Garcia.
The Eagles will continue to use more two-back personnel groupings to attack a suspect Saints' run defense. The defense has been inconsistent all season against the run, giving up big plays. However, the Saints were pretty effective the last time these two teams met, limiting Westbrook to 72 yards on 16 carries.
? Defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs will look to attack with his multiple 43 schemes to try to disrupt the flow of the Eagles' rushing attack. The Eagles have a big and physical offensive line that will look to wear down the Saints' undersized defensive line. The Eagles have been very effective all season on first down and have a very explosive offensive team. It will take a huge effort from the Saints' defense to control this Eagles' offense.
? The Saints' offense will rely on the combination of Deuce McAlister and Reggie Bush against an Eagles' run defense that is still weak against the run. In the first meeting between these two teams, the Saints dominated the time-of-possession by attacking with their short, controlled passing attack to set up the run. However, look for Payton to run the ball on first down, while mixing in some play action to attack vertically down the field, exploiting the Eagles' safeties.
? This game will come down to whichever quarterback makes the least amount of mistakes. Brees put up MVP numbers in 2006, while Garcia is playing with a lot of confidence. Brees finished the season with 356 completions on 554 attempts for 4,418 yards. His completion percentage was 64.3, with 26 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions. He finished with a quarterback rating of 96.2 and was sacked 18 times.
Garcia is 6-1 since taking over as the starting QB for the injured Donovan McNabb. He finished the season with a quarterback rating of 95.8 and has thrown just two interceptions in seven starts, which has been a key element in the Eagles' success.
Special Teams
The hidden yardage will be critical in the outcome of this game. Philadelphia PK David Akers converted 18 of 23 field goal attempts, with a long of 47 yards. P Dirk Johnson finished the season ranked 24th in the NFL, with an average of 42.6. The return game is led by return specialist Reno Mahe.
Mahe finished the season with a 9.4 average on punt returns, and a 22.2 average on kickoff returns. However, starting RB Brian Westbrook also will contribute as a punt returner in certain situations to try to create field position. Westbrook has the game changing speed to be explosive in the return game, much like Saints' backup PR Reggie Bush. The Eagles' coverage units will need a big day in containing Michael Lewis and Bush.
Saints' punter Steve Weatherford finished the season ranked 15th in the league in punting, with an average of 43.8. He placed 19 punts inside the 20. Backup PK Billy Cundiff was re-signed this week to handle the kickoffs, while John Carney finished the season 23 of 25 on field goal attempts, with a long of 51 yards.
Their kickoff coverage team finished 23rd in the NFL, while their kickoff return team ranked 14th, with an average starting field position of 27.0. On the season, the Saints averaged 7.3 yards on punt returns and 23.0 yards on kickoff returns, with one touchdown on a 65-yard punt return by Reggie Bush. Lewis handles both kickoff and punt returns.
Matchups
? Philadelphia SS Brian Dawkins against New Orleans QB Drew Brees
? Philadelphia RB Brian Westbrook against New Orleans SLB Scott Fujita
? New Orleans RBs Deuce McAlister and Reggie Bush against the Philadelphia front seven
? New Orleans RDE Will Smith against Eagles LT William Thomas
? Philadelphia RDE Darren Howard against New Orleans LT Jammal Brown
Scouts' Edge
This should be a great game to watch on Saturday night. The Saints have been the Cinderella team of the NFL in 2006, while the Eagles have won six consecutive games. Look for Saints head coach Sean Payton to continue to rely on the pass to set up the run. Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson must find a way to slow this high-powered Saints' offense.
The key to the Eagles' success lately has been their ability to run the ball, taking pressure off QB Jeff Garcia. Saints' defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs will try to force the Eagles to be a one-dimensional team through the air. However, QB Drew Brees has been unbelievable and will be the difference, as the Saints will advance to the NFC Championship game next weekend.
Prediction: Saints 28, Eagles 24
