Preview: Eagles battle the 12s as they try to clinch the NFC East

By: Jesse Larch, Sports Talk Philly editor 

With a win on Sunday night against the Seattle Seahawks the Eagles will clinch their 10th NFC East division title in franchise history and first since 2013. 

The Seahawks (7-4) are coming off of a 24-13 victory over the San Francisco 49ers while the Eagles blew out the Chicago Bears by a score of 31-3.   The latest NFL betting odds for the season reflect the strength of both teams.

Mismatch in the Trenches

The Eagles boast arguably the best front four in football with their rotation of Vinny Curry, Brandon Graham, Tim Jernigan, Fletcher Cox, Chris Long, Derek Barnett, Beau Allen, and Destiny Vaeao. 

That rotation has combined to form the most dominant rushing defense in the NFL this season.

The Seahawks offensive line has led the fifth worst rushing attack in the NFL, meaning that like many of the Eagles' opponents this season they will likely have to forego the run. 

While the Seahawks offensive line is porous and the Eagles defensive line is elite, getting after the quarterback will be another story on Sunday, however. 

Stop Russell Wilson…If You Can

Having an irrelevant rushing attack is something that the Seahawks have grown used to this season. What has made it possible for Seattle to stay in playoff contention is the play of their quarterback Russell Wilson. 

Wilson has the third most passing yards in the NFL (3,029) and the third most passing touchdowns in the league with 23 of them. 

What make Wilson especially difficult to stop is his elusiveness. Wilson is one of the hardest quarterback to stop in the league, and probably the best one at throwing on the run. When you attack Wilson he rises to the occasion, like he did last season when the Eagles visited Seattle. 

Wilson threw for 272 yards, threw for a touchdown, and even caught a pass and ran it in for a touchdown against the Eagles last season. He had no turnovers, a hallmark of his game. 

As good as the Eagles defense has been this year, they will need to take extra care to stop Russell Wilson. 

Expect a Rough Start

The Seahawks defense is lacking key personnel, but the scheme is still an effective one. That combined with the Eagles penchant for starting slow after time changes and days off this season could mean that they Eagles will be sluggish out of the gates once more.

The Eagles battled to a one score victory over the Los Angeles Chargers in their first visit to the west coast this season. After a layoff against the Carolina Panthers on Thursday Night Football, the Eagles started very slowly against the Washington Redskins on Monday Night Football. The Eagles even started slow in their last Sunday night tilt against the Dallas Cowboys coming out of the bye week. 

If there has been any weakness for the Eagles this season, it his been when their weekly rhythm is disrupted. With the time zone change the Eagles will have to adjust yet again after their rhythm has been thrown out of whack. 

Injury Report

LB Joe Walker is the only name on the Eagles injury report this week. He missed practice all week so expect a bigger workload for Najee Goode, and maybe even some snaps for the recently signed Dannell Ellerbe. 

The Seahawks will be without S Kam Chancellor, G Oday Aboushi, and LB Josh Forrest. DE Dion Jordan and DT Nazair Jones are doubtful. 

Five Seahawks are questionable: TE Jimmy Graham, S Earl Thomas, LB Bobby Wagner, LT Duane Brown, and LB D.J. Alexander. All five are unlikely to miss the contest. 

Broadcast Information

Time: 8:30 p.m.

Television: NBC| Play-by-Play by Al Michaels with color commentary by Chris Collinsworth and sideline reports from Michelle Tafoya

Radio: 94.1 FM WIP | Play-by-Play by Merrill Reese with color commentary by Mike Quick and sideline reports from Howard Eskin

Online: NFL Game Pass