Nick Foles and his spectacular season are just one of the many reasons next week’s wild card game is a must see. Credit: Getty Images
The Philadelphia Eagles will host the Saints Saturday evening at 8:10 p.m. and in typical Eagles fashion will bring several interesting story lines along with them.
The bitter cold
It’s no secret New Orleans doesn’t like playing in cold weather. After a 17-13 loss to the Seahawks in November, the Saints’ record in cold weather (under 40 degrees at kickoff) stood at 2-6, dating back to 2006. And the Saints’ two wins came against 4-12 teams. With a late kickoff, Philadelphians can expect temperatures in the 20’s Saturday night. (Snow is possible Friday.)
Saint supremacy
New Orleans has won four of the last five meetings between the two teams, including a 2007 divisional playoff win in the Super Dome. The Eagles’ lone win in that span was a 38-23 regular season win that same season. Three of the four Saints’ victories came at home.
Dueling Chaparrals
Don’t know what a Chaparral is? Ask Nick Foles and Drew Brees. Separated by a decade, the two quarterbacks happen to be alums from the same high school, Westlake High School in Austin, Texas.
Record setting offense
The Saints have been frequent offensive record setters for many years in the NFC, but Chip Kelly’s Eagles squad can give many of Sean Payton’s teams from past seasons a run for their money. Running back LeSean McCoy set an Eagles best mark in rushing yards and yards from scrimmage. This in addition to several team yardage marks including tops in the NFC in yards from scrimmage, yards per game and yards per play.
