• Carolina at Philadelphia
Sunday, Jamuary 18, 6:45 p.m. ET on FOX
Quick… besides Peyton Manning, who is the highest rated passer in this year’s post-season play?
Believe it or not, it’s the Carolina Panthers’ Jake Delhomme!
The Ragin’ Cajun has taken advantage of a strong ground game that has opened up the Panthers passing game. Teams are stacking the box to slow down running back Stephen Davis, and Dehomme has made them pay with big plays down the field.
The Panthers, who are coming off impressive wins against the Dallas Cowboys at home and the St. Louis Rams in the Edward Jones Dome, may be playing their best football of the year at this time. The running game is working well, whether it’s Davis or DeShaun Foster in the backfield, and the passing game has suddenly become more potent.
The Philadelphia Eagles find themselves in the familiar position of playing an NFC Championship game at home against one of the league’s better defenses and a conservative, but effective, offense.
The Eagles enter this contest having won 11 of their last 12 games, including a 25-16 win over the Panthers in Ericsson Stadium on November 30th. But the Panthers shot themselves in the foot that day with a series of mistakes, and the foot of John Kasay let them down as he missed three field goals and an extra point.
The key for the Eagles this time around is to stop the Panthers seventh-ranked running game, which could be a tall order for a unit that ranked 22nd against the run in 2003. Davis is questionable for Sunday’s contest, and will be a game-time decision, but even if he can’t play, Foster has shown he is capable of carrying the load. If the Eagles cannot stop the run, they become more vulnerable to the play-action that has been so successfull for the Panthers lately.
Carolina's front four is arguably the best in the game, and I expect them to shut down the Eagles running backs. But to be really successful on Sunday, they must get quarterback Donovan McNabb out of his game by keeping the pressure on him. If they allow him to roam around in the backfield, he will eventually find an open man or he’ll take off for some big gains. McNabb does a good job spreading the ball around, and the Panthers front four must force him to make quick decisions. I would expect the Panthers to mix in some blitzes to force the Eagles to keep some of their weapons in the backfield to block.
I think the Panthers will be able to move the ball on the ground against the Eagles suspect run defense, resulting in some big-play opportunities for Delhomme and his wide receivers. The Panthers defense is playing as well as any in the league and should have little problem stopping the Eagles running game. McNabb presents a problem for any defense, but I think his big plays will be limited.
The Panthers have built a successful season on pulling out the close games, and I think this one will be no different. Look for the turning point in this game to come on a big play by Carolina’s special teams.
Prediction: Carolina 24, Philadelphia 20
