Super Bowl LII: Three Reasons The Philadelphia Eagles Will Upset The New England Patriots
When the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England Patriots face off in Super Bowl LII, there will be plenty at stake. The Patriots will be on a mission to erase away the stink of a midseason report of distrust and in-team fighting. The Eagles are looking to win their first-ever Super Bowl without their top players and give the City Of Brotherly Love a reason to poke their chest out more. Who will win Super Bowl LII remains to be seen but here are three reasons why the Philadelphia Eagles will win.
Defense: The Patriots are good. There’s no denying that fact, however, the Eagles defense has gone pretty much unnoticed until their NFC Championship Game against the Minnesota Vikings. But look back at their season and you will see how the foundation was built that drove them to Super Bowl LII.
The Eagles do one thing and they do it well. Their goal is to attack the quarterback and no matter who’s behind center for the opposing team, somehow, someway, they will get to him. Nevermind the season stats, those mean nothing when it’s a one and done game. It’s what they have done in the playoffs that count. The Eagles have faced the high-flying Atlanta Falcons, the same team who scared the living s*** out of New England in last year’s Super Bowl before their defense just gave the game away. The Eagles shut down Matt Ryan and Julio Jones most of the game and made them look like the Cleveland Browns.
As for the Vikings, the game started off good with an early touchdown, however, that was all they would get even in garbage time. Now comes Tom Brady and the Pats who have struggled this postseason against defenses with a great pass rush and secondaries built to hit. If the Eagles can get to Brady and make him hit the turf, they will win. No matter how accurate Brady is, he’s still not as limber and young as Jared Goff or Case Keenum. The Pats are not a strong running team which will force Brady to air it out, and that falls right into the Eagles’ plan.
The Philadelphia Eagles Are On A Mission For Respect
No pressure: It’s safe to say that the Eagles have no pressure on them. Yes, winning their first-ever Super Bowl would mean plenty but will fans be that hard on them if they lose without Carson Wentz? It’s hard enough to beat any team but to win A Super Bowl against the Patriots with your backup would shock even the biggest Eagles’ fan.
The pressure is on Tom Brady and the Patriots not to lose to Nick Foles. Yes, Eli Manning managed to beat these Pats twice but he’s not Foles. The Patriots beat MVP Matt Ryan last year but how will the Patriots feel losing to a team that has never won and playing without a few starters on both sides of the ball? There’s no pressure on the Eagles. They can enter the game and play carefree football. However, the Pats will have that in the back of their mind what a loss to a not-at-full-strength team will do to their legacy.
A Team: It’s cliche as hell but the Philadelphia Eagles are a team. The Patriots have been the blueprint for success with interchangeable parts but this Eagles team they will face are on a mission. This is not one of history or recognition, but one of redemption and honor. When Wentz went down, the Eagles’ bandwagon got lighter. As Foles struggled, the bandwagon got lighter. However, through all that, the Eagles found comfort in each other as much of the NFL fan base, including their own, turned the other way. It’s nothing scarier than facing a team with nothing to lose and one that has banded together to prove everyone wrong. The Patriots are coming unglued at the seams lately while the Eagles are just hitting their stride.
Mark has been covering Sports and Entertainment for the past six years. His work has been featured on Bleacher Report, ESPN, Fox Sports, Teen Vogue, and many other websites.
