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Hunger--not home field--is the Eagles' biggest edge.(NFL)(Philadelphia Eagles)
The Eagles and Rams, the top seeds in the NFC, must be considered the favorites to represent their conference in the Super Bowl, though neither team is head and shoulders above the other--or even over the rest of the playoff field. A few things are on my mind heading into their first games:
Marc Bulger. He's the Rams' X-factor. He has had a pretty good year, though he tied for the league lead with 22 interceptions. In the biggest test of his young career, a Week 17 game at Detroit in which playoff home-field advantage was at stake, he played poorly (as did others) and the Rams lost. In the playoffs, the stage gets bigger. I can't wait to see how he responds.
Donovan McNabb. It's not fair to judge McNabb on the Eagles' failure to reach the Super Bowl last year because he had just come back from injury. Now, he's healthy and is playing his best ball of the season. This will be a better measure of his ability to win in the playoffs.
Home field. It's an advantage, but it's not a be-all and end-all. Look at Tampa Bay, which supposedly couldn't win in cold weather, yet rolled into Philly last year and upset the Eagles. And the Eagles have a better record on the road (7-1) than at home (5-3) this year. Still, I'm sure they're happy to know that if they have to play the Rams--who were undefeated at home--it'll be in Philly.
Philly's run defense. I'm the last guy who'll say that you have to stop the run to win in the playoffs, but the Eagles have a real problem here. More than just the yards, they give up way too many big plays. And it's big plays, whether on the ground or in the air, that beat you.
Brian Westbrook. If he's out for the playoffs, the Eagles are minus one of the few explosive offensive players they have.
Hunger. Philly has lost the NFC championship game the last two years. The disappointment of losing that game is indescribable. If I had to predict an NFC champ now, it'd be the Eagles. They just might want it more than everybody else.