Just a week ago, the Philadelphia Eagles were being ruthlessly clobbered by the Detroit Lions in Motor City to send them into a three-game tailspin. Who knew that the Eagles would bounce back from that loss and take down the New England Patriots on the strength of their defense!? With the NFC East title still within their sights, the Eagles look to make it two in a row this Sunday, when they welcome the Buffalo Bills. The Bills are fresh off a win over the Houston Texans which breathed life to their own playoff aspirations.
For more Week 14 game previews, you can also read our breakdown of Minnesota vs. Arizona.
[sc:Football ]
Buffalo Bills vs. Philadelphia Eagles Preview
Where: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
When: Sunday, December 13, 8:25 PM ET
Line: Buffalo Bills (-1.5) at Philadelphia Eagles (+1.5); total: 47.0 – see all NFL lines
TV Broadcast: CBS
Betting on the Buffalo Bills (6-6)
[sc:NFL240banner ]What a time for Tyrod Taylor to explode. With the Bills desperate for wins to stay in the playoff hunt, Taylor unleashed a career-defining game, passing for 211 yards and three touchdowns on 11 of 21 completions to lead Buffalo to a 30-21 win over Houston on Sunday. The Bills head to Philly next week, where they are 2-1 SU and 3-0 ATS in their last three visits.
That performance by Taylor also came at a time when the Bills’ other key offensive pieces stepped up big time. There’s Sammy Watkins, who caught three passes for 109 yards and a touchdown against the Texans. The former Clemson wideout has been making a difference of late after a slow start to the season, as he’s averaged 97.6 receiving yards over the Bills’ last five games.
LeSean McCoy, meanwhile, came up with 112 rushing yards on 21 carries on Sunday to improve his team-leading season total to 792 yards.
This trio of Taylor, Watkins, and McCoy will headline Buffalo’s offense that has reasons to be optimistic against Philadelphia’s mediocre stop unit. So far this season, the Eagles are 25th in scoring defense (24.9 points allowed per game), while ranking 21st and 28th in passing and rushing defense, respectively.
There’s certainly pressure on the Bills offense to perform this Sunday, which comes mostly from the fact that their defense hasn’t been up to par this season. Buffalo allows just 23.2 points per game, but ranks just 20th in total defense with 359.7 yards surrendered per week.
Whatever happens to Chip Kelly and his future with Philadelphia, he’ll always have that one night in Foxborough, in which he coached his troops into a 35-28 upset win over New England. That was last Sunday, when the Eagles got a massive boost from the play of their defense and special teams to stymie the defending champion Patriots.
The Eagles scored two special teams touchdowns in the game, as Najee Goode took one to the house off a blocked punt, while Malcolm Jenkins returned an interception for a 99-yard touchdown. All told, the Eagles picked Tom Brady twice and sacked him four times for a loss of 24 yards in a surprising show of might on the defensive side of the ball.
Up against Buffalo next Sunday, corner Byron Maxwell, who had interception against New England, is expected to be on fellow Clemson alum and now Buffalo star, Sammy Watkins.
Despite the victory over New England, the Eagles still can’t hide their struggles in moving the chains. While Sam Bradford returned from a two-game absence and threw for 120 yards on 14 of 24 completions, DeMarco Murray ran for only 24 yards on eight carries. Murray will have to come alive next week against Buffalo in order to free up some space for Bradford and the passing game.
Murray currently leads the Eagles with 545 rushing yards.
Philadelphia is 2-2 ATS in its last four home games.
