Are the Eagles beyond taking bad teams lightly? originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
They were at home. It was late in the season. They still had everything to play for. They were 12-point favorites. A three-win opponent was up next.
Sound familiar?
It should.
Because that’s not just Eagles-Panthers Sunday. It’s Eagles-Cardinals in 2023.
And we all know what happened then.
“Oh, for sure, you can’t take anything lightly,” A.J. Brown said at his locker on Thursday. “We can look back on last year. We lost to Arizona, they weren’t doing too good last year and we lost.
“You treat everybody the same, you prepare the same, you put in the work the same, so, no, we’re not taking anybody lightly.”
That 35-31 loss to Jonathan Gannon and the Cards last year on New Year’s Eve was the low point of the Eagles’ late-season collapse. The Eagles led by 15 points early in the second half before getting outscored 29-10 over the last 23 ½ minutes by a team that finished 4-13.
It was the first time the Eagles lost as a favorite of 12 or more points in 12 years, since a 21-17 loss also to the Cards in 2011. They followed it up by losing 27-10 as 4 ½-point favorites to the Giants on the final day of the season, a game that the backups finished after the Cowboys built up a big lead over Washington, locking the Eagles into the No. 5 seed.
The Eagles have taken care of business this year against second-division teams, beating the Saints, Browns, Giants, Bengals, Jaguars and Cowboys by an average of 27-13.
Last time the Eagles didn’t lose a game all year to a losing team was 2017. They’ve only had three other seasons with a perfect record vs. losing teams since 1970 – 1992, 2000 and 2004.
“We try to remember last year,” Lane Johnson said. “We were in a good position as well. And the games didn’t go the way we wanted to.
“So I let that be a reminder of what can happen if you let your guard down. Don’t just think you can go out and beat any team without putting the work in and knowing your assignments.”
For the record, the Panthers are 2-18 the last 20 times they’ve been double-digit underdogs. Their most recent win was over the Bucs in 2022.
The Steelers – who are 9-3 – are up next, so this has all the makings of a classic trap game.
So far, this 2024 Eagles team has seemed extremely focused when it comes to game day. Whether they’re playing a playoff-bound team like the Packers, Ravens or Commanders or a last-place team like the Browns, Jaguars or Giants.
The Panthers are 3-9 and ranked in the bottom three in both offense and defense. The Eagles are actually 12 1/2-point favorites Sunday.
“Somebody asked me last week, ‘Is there a little bit more that we’re playing the Ravens?’” Nick Sirianni said. “I think that would be malpractice by us as coaches and as players, if we were up for some games and not up for some games.
“We know that this is a talented (Panthers) team that’s continuing to play good football. You can look at their last four games. If you take anybody lightly in this league, it will humble you fast.
“This is a good team that has our attention, and our job each and every week is to be focused on the job at hand and lock in every single week. That’s our standard, that’s our culture, and that’s what we do each and every week. Put our heads down and work and control the things we can control.”
Brown was asked about the prospect of chasing the No. 1 seed and playing two playoff games at home.
His answer shouldn’t be surprising.
“The only home games we have right now are the four coming up,” he said. “That’s the only thing we need to worry about. And we focus on Carolina. And we let all that take care of itself. We’re just try to keep doing what we’re doing, put our head down, and just go to work.”
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