By: PE.com Staff
The last time the Eagles traveled to New Orleans, the teams were playing for a spot in the NFC Championship Game. This time around, the Eagles will look to play the role of spoiler as the Saints need a win to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Saints still boast one of the most explosive passing attacks in the NFL, led by quarterback Drew Brees. On defense, the Saints' revamped secondary has fallen well short of expectations. The Eagles will get the chance to showcase some of their young talent as they begin to prepare for next season, but to exact a little revenge along the way doesn't hurt.
Here is our final look at the Eagles-Saints matchup, in this week's Countdown To Kickoff ...
BREAKING NEWS
While his numbers were nothing spectacular, Donovan McNabb's performance last week against Dallas was one of his best of the season for one very important reason: He did not panic under pressure, resulting in zero turnovers against one of the league's most aggressive defenses.
McNabb also ran the ball exceptionally well, gaining 53 yards on nine scrambles. With Dallas playing a lot of man-to-man coverage, McNabb saw gaps and he took off and ran. The 53 yards were part of a ground game that gained 134 yards and averaged five yards per attempt.
The Saints are likely to try the same approach – blitzing McNabb, that is – so he will have to be just as decisive and quick with his moves as last week. New Orleans has the league's 30th-ranked pass defense and has some holes in the secondary and underneath. But New Orleans also has speed on defense and can get after a quarterback.
Given the week McNabb has had -- due mostly to the off-the-field, he-said/she-said episode involving FOX sideline reporter Pam Oliver and the comments she made during last week's game in Dallas -- getting back on the field is probably great therapy for McNabb. He has once again been the center of attention for something off the playing field.
Starting his 13th game of the season, McNabb appears to be very close to 100 percent physically. It has been just over one full year since he had surgery to repair his torn ACL, and he has great mobility and speed. McNabb seems to be doing fine moving around in and out of the pocket.
What he needs to do is stay cool in the raucous environment of the Louisiana Superdome. The Eagles practiced indoors on Friday and pumped in crowd noise. The team will use a lot of the silent count this week to counter the noise. McNabb has to be focused and prepared to score a lot of points. This one could be a high-scoring affair. The Eagles have been inconsistent offensively this season, particularly in the red zone.
It's a big week for McNabb and the offense. While the Eagles aren't going to the playoffs, they are taking the approach that they have to win the game. McNabb won't have tight end L.J. Smith or right guard Shawn Andrews, but Correll Buckhalter is back as the reserve behind Brian Westbrook.
Look for McNabb to come out active, aggressive and fast. He wants to get the Eagles offense on the board early and turn the Saints into a one-dimensional offensive attack.
FROM THE COACH'S DESK
Who is Brent Celek? That's one of the many questions the Eagles will try to answer in the final two weeks of the regular season.
The Eagles want to learn a little more about rookie TE Brent Celek
Offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said Thursday that Celek will start Sunday against the Saints. The team's fifth-round draft pick is third among rookie tight ends in both receptions and receiving yards this season with 11 receptions for 125 yards. The two ahead of him in the stats department are Chicago's Greg Olsen and Oakland's Zach Miller, who were selected in the first and second rounds, respectively.
With L.J. Smith scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent, these next two games are very important for the Eagles to determine how Celek will fit into the fold next season and beyond. More importantly, will the Eagles have to utilize a high draft pick on a tight end, acquire one through free agency or re-sign Smith? The production from the tight end position has been down this season. A position that is vital to the Eagles offense, Smith, Celek and Matt Schobel have combined for 43 receptions, 461 yards and two touchdowns. In fact, Celek's numbers are better than Schobel's (10 rec., 100 yards and one TD).
Smith's individual numbers last season - 50 grabs, 611 yards and five touchdowns - were better than this year's trio combined. In 2005, he had a career-high 61 receptions and 682 yards. Don't forget the fact that Smith has turned into a more-than-capable blocker, which was visible in the postseason run a year ago. Smith, however, has been plagued by injuries throughout this season.
Can Celek have that kind of bump in production if he is the guy? Even in his rookie year, Smith had 27 catches for 321 yards and a touchdown. Mornhinweg believes that Celek has a bright future ahead of him. His amazing 29-yard catch last Sunday to help seal the win over Dallas is evidence of that. But over the next two weeks, the coaches will watch Celek closely to see if he has the potential to be a No. 1 tight end for the Eagles.
KEEP AN EYE ON ... QB DREW BREES
The Saints are 7-3 since their 0-4 start and have quarterback Drew Brees to thank for their success. The seven-year veteran started for the NFC in the 2007 Pro Bowl and has thrown for 3,819 yards and 25 touchdowns this year. Brees has been especially good in the red zone, completing 72.6 percent of his passes for 278 yards and 21 touchdowns and maintained a quarterback rating of 118.0.
Armed with wide receivers Marques Colston, David Patten and tight end Eric Johnson, Brees is also menace outside the red zone, having completed 43 passes of over 20 yards and seven passes of over 40 yards this season. Brees is deadly accurate and demonstrated his prowess against Arizona last week. Not only did he complete 26-of-30 passes (86.7 percent) in the Saints' 31-24 victory, but he also maintained a passer rating of over 100 for the fourth straight game.
The key is to generate pressure on Brees, who has the vision to find a receiver as quickly as any quarterback in the league. In the two meetings against Philadelphia last season, Brees was only sacked three times and that was thanks in large part to his ability to just drop back and throw immediately.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Saints WR David Patten: Patten has been a productive receiver in a number of different places, and this season he has clearly developed some chemistry with Drew Brees. Patten only has 44 catches but he has become a solid deep threat to complement Marques Colston. He's made the most of his catches, averaging almost 16 yards per grab.
Saints LB Scott Fujita: Fujita has never gotten the credit he deserves, and he is a player that does all of the little things well. He leads the Saints in tackles with 106, and can make plays all over the field. The Saints defense has been a big disappointment this season, and they will look to their leader for a big play.
Eagles WR/TE Michael Gasperson: Gasperson has been waiting a long time for this opportunity, and after three years worth of hard work on the practice squad, he is finally going to get it. How many opportunities he will get is unknown, but Sunday will be his big chance to make an impression for next season - possibly at two positions.
Eagles SS Quintin Mikell: Mikell has had a nice season in relief of both Brian Dawkins and Sean Considine, but the last two games could help decide what his role will be next season. He has made some big plays this season and will need to be on his game against a potent Saints offense.
FIRST AND LONG
- Andy Reid is 43-28 on the road and 10-6 against the NFC South overall.
- Eagles RB Brian Westbrook is only 111 scrimmage yards and six receptions away from breaking the franchise single season records in both categories. Westbrook leads the league in scrimmage yards with 1,896 and leads all NFL RBs with 83 catches.
- The Eagles ground attack averages 4.6 yds./carry, ranking them 2nd in the NFL. New Orleans' defense, meanwhile, has allowed only two 100-yard rushers in 2007.
- The Saints are ranked first in the NFL in red zone touchdown percentage. In 44 trips inside the opponent's 20-yard line, the Saints have scored 32 TDs for a 72.7 percent effectiveness rate. Meanwhile, Philadelphia has been especially stingy in the red zone in 2007, allowing only 18 TDs in 47 possessions (38.3%), ranking them second in the NFL and first in the NFC.
- Since 1999, the Eagles have faced 106 first-and-goal situations from at-or-inside their own 5-yard line, allowing only 65 TDs (61.3%) and 27 FGs. During that span, they have allowed the lowest TD% and fewest points per trip (5.06) in the NFL.
- The Saints offensive line has surrendered an NFL low 12 sacks in 2007. Eagles DE Trent Cole currently ranks third in the NFL with 12.5 sacks, and leads the team with four forced fumble and 10 tackles for loss.
- The Saints have successfully converted 93-of-188 third down attempts. Their 49.5 percent efficiency is ranked first in the NFL.
- New Orleans' defense has been impressive against fourth down attempts, stopping opponents on 10 of 17 occasions, the sixth-best fourth down percentage in the NFC and eighth-best in the NFL (41.2%).
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