Daily Norseman
The Minnesota Vikings return home to the friendly confines of U.S. Bank Stadium for the first time in nearly a month to face a dangerous and desperate Philadelphia Eagles team on Sunday.
Let’s dive into it.
Vikings vs Eagles: The History
The Viking-Eagles rivalry has been defined by its competitive balance. The teams have met 27 times in the regular season since 1962, with the Vikings holding a 15-12 edge. When you include the playoffs, that flips to a 16-15 Eagles advantage. Let’s not discuss the last playoff game.
More recently, the Eagles have led 6-4 over the last 10 regular-season games, including two in a row in Philly. The last time the Vikings hosted the Eagles at home during the 2019 season, it was a reasonably comfortable 38-20 win for the good guys. Oh, the quarterback for the Eagles that day? Carson Wentz.
Scouting the Eagles
At 4-2 and sitting atop the NFC East, things “should” be all sunshine and rainbows for the defending Super Bowl champs, but there are some issues. Similar to last year’s 4-2 start, there are rumors of some internal strife, unhappiness, and general drama. In the end, it meant absolutely nothing. Just noise. They went on to win 10 of their final 11 regular-season games and a Super Bowl thrashing of the mighty Kansas City Chiefs.
If I had to guess, this year it will mean…absolutely nothing. The Broncos boast arguably the best defense in the NFL; they’re likely heading back to the playoffs. No shame there, even if Sean Payton is (still) the worst. The loss to the Giants was bad, but I’d argue it was an aberration. Wins against the Chiefs, Rams, and Buccaneers this season are more than enough to support that assertion. As we can attest, divisional games (especially on the road) can be weird and often where conventional wisdom goes missing. See our history at Soldier Field, for example.
That is not to say there aren’t concerns. On offense, their brilliant red zone efficiency (#1 touchdown conversion rate in the NFL) has them ranked 15th in points per game (23.7), but it also masks some deeper issues. They’re 30th in total yards per game (274.5), 29th in passing (178.7), 25th in rushing (95.3), and 28th in yards per carry (3.5). Their offensive line has also allowed 18 sacks this year. I must be honest, these numbers shocked me. Now, they have played some very stingy defenses so far, but even so, I’d have expected those numbers to be at least…average…after six weeks.
Defensively, things are a bit rosier. As with the offense, some fine red zone work (eighth in defensive touchdown rate allowed) has covered up some areas for improvement. The Eagles are 17th in points allowed per game (23.8) but 21st in total yards (342.8). This includes being 12th in against the pass (208.5), but just 26th against the run (134.3). They do rank in the top ten in EPA per-pass play allowed (-0.12), but it’s not because...
