The Philadelphia Eagles keep on losing key players, and yet they keep on winning. After losing their quarterbacks on offense and defense in a win against Houston, the NFC East leaders will have none other than Mark Sanchez under center to make his first start for Philadelphia against the struggling Carolina Panthers on Monday Night Football.
Can the Sanchize capitalize on this chance with his new franchise and lead them to another home win? Read on for our complete preview of this game.
For more exciting Week 10 action in the NFC, check out our preview of the latest installment in the Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears rivalry.
[sc:Football ]Carolina Panthers vs. Philadelphia Eagles Betting Preview and Prediction
Where: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
When: Monday, November 10, 8:30PM ET
Line: Carolina Panthers (+6) at Philadelphia Eagles (-6); total 48.5 – see all NFL lines
Betting on the Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers had the unenviable distinction of being the first team in the last two seasons to lose to the New Orleans Saints at home as they fell 28-10 last Thursday night. The loss dropped the plummeting Panthers to 1-5-1 (3-4 against the spread) in their last seven games, including three losses in a row.
[sc:NFL240banner ]Their slowly improving defense, which held the Seattle Seahawks to just 13 points the week before, had another decent showing as it limited the usually prolific Saints offense to 375 yards. They say that defense travels, and the Panthers will need another very strong showing from their defense against the Eagles’ prolific offense.
However, the Panthers will be happy to leave their misfiring offense at the airport. Their passing game in particular has been awful, with quarterback Cam Newton completing just 10 of his 28 pass attempts (35.7 percent), the worst completion percentage of his career, for 151 yards against a notoriously poor Saints pass defense.
Newton’s completion percentage and passing yards all dropped for the third game running, and he also extended his streak of games with at least one interception to five games.
The running game, though, is showing signs of life. The Panthers’ top two running backs – Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams – are finally back healthy, and they’ll be running behind an offensive line that will possibly get three key piece in left tackle Byron Bell (knee), left guard Amini Silatolu (calf) and right guard Trai Turner (knee) back against Philly.
Betting on the Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles have not let a spate of injuries, most notably on the offense, slow them down too much this season, and their latest game on Sunday against the Texans was no different.
Despite losing quarterback Nick Foles, linebacker DeMeco Ryans and left guard Todd Herremans to injury, the Eagles powered through for a 31-21 win, pushing them to 6-2 (both straight up and against the spread) on the season.
Mark Sanchez ably stepped up in place of Foles, who broke his collarbone late in the first quarter, to complete 15 of 22 passes for 202 yards for two touchdowns and two interceptions. Meanwhile, the return of center Jason Kelce kept the Eagles running game going to the tune of 190 yards on 40 carries.
Foles hasn’t exactly been spectacular this season (he has 13 touchdowns against 10 picks), so the drop off from him to Sanchez shouldn’t be as big. Sanchez already has the hang of connecting with star receiver Jeremy Maclin, who immediately caught a 52-yard bomb from Sanchez on his way to a second 150-plus-yard, two touchdown night in as many games.
And if the Sanchize falters, head coach Chip Kelly can just hand it off to his awesome running game, which is averaging 162 yards per game over the last month, especially against a poor Panthers run defense allowing 132 yards per game (26th in the NFL).
Ryans, who may have torn his Achilles and could be out for the season, could be a more impactful loss seeing as he’s essentially the defense’s quarterback – their signal caller and leader. But the Eagles defense may not feel his absence as much when it goes up against a Panthers offense that has scored just 19 points in the past two games.
Writer’s Prediction
Sanchez and the running game supply the points needed for another easy Eagles win and cover at home. Create a betting account and enjoy our extensive coverage of the NFL action all season long.
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