This was probably not on the top of Carson Wentz's Christmas "Wish List."
After playing for weeks with little in the way of offensive weapons, the Eagles QB will go into one more crucial Sunday afternoon contest without his favorite target. Tight end Zach Ertz is out after suffering a fractured rib and banged-up back in the Birds' huge win over the Cowboys.
The task remains the same for Wentz. He must one more time put this ailing team on his back and will them to a win when the Eagles roll up the Jersey Turnpike to face the Giants at the Meadowlands Sunday afternoon at 4:25.
The job is simple: Win and In.
If the Birds beat the Giants, they are the NFC East champs and will host a playoff game at the Linc. Incredibly, if they manage to lose - and anyone who watched that fiasco vs. the Dolphins a few weeks back would be a fool to rule that out - they still are not eliminated. If the Cowboys also lose their finale against the Redskins, the Eagles will still take the NFC East. The Cowboys will be playing at the same time.
The recipe for the Eagles Sunday should look familiar. The team did get some good news on the injury front, with the expected return of running back Jordan Howard. But he hasn't played in six weeks and in the interim rookie Miles Sanders has taken over as the lead Eagles back. Look for big doses of Sanders - both running and receiving - and for Wentz to continue to do something he did a lot last week.
He will continue to throw to his tight end, only his target will be Dallas Goedert, who shined in the win over the Cowboys.
On defense, the Eagles have to protect against getting burned by big plays while continuing to contain Saquon Barkley and harassing rookie QB Daniel Jones. This game should resemble the Dallas game for the Birds' defense. Much as they had to be sure they did not allow Zeke Elliott to beat them, they must do the same this week vs. Barkley.
But the bottom line in this game once again belongs to Wentz, who has gone a long way toward chasing away some of the demons that have haunted him the last few weeks - including the ghost of Nick Foles. Wentz has been clutch for three straight weeks, doing what great quarterbacks do - putting the team on his back and willing them to win.
Now he needs to do it one more time.
I say he's up to the task.
THE PICK: Make it Eagles 23, Giants 13. This has been a bizarre year for Eagles fans, who have watched as one player after another has gone down to injury. Even after all that, the Birds' fate is in their own hands. Win and they're in.
LAST WEEK: Lost in much of the focus on another strong game from Carson Wentz is the job the Eagles defense did vs. the Cowboys. They neutralized Zeke Elliott and did not allow the Cowboys to score a TD. A repeat performance vs. Barkley and the Giants would go a long way toward cementing the NFC East for Philly. I didn't see the Birds beating the Cowboys, but even with the loss I'm still well on the plus side for the year at 9-6.
GAME BY GAME: Eagles 32, Redskins 27. (My Pick: Eagles 27, Redskins 13)
Falcons 24, Eagles 20. (My Pick: Falcons 29, Eagles 27)
Lions 27, Eagles 24: (My Pick: Eagles 26, Lions 23)
Eagles 34, Packers 27 (My Pick: Packers 33, Eagles 23)
Eagles 31, Jets 6 (My Pick: Eagles 31, Jets 13)
Vikings 38, Eagles 20 (My Pick: Vikings 27, Eagles 26)
Cowboys 37, Eagles 10 (My Pick: Eagles 24, Cowboys 23)
Eagles 31, Bills 13 (My Pick: Bills 23, Eagles 17)
Eagles 22, Bears 14 (My Pick: Eagles 23, Bears 16)
Patriots 17, Eagles 10 (My Pick: Patriots 31, Eagles 17)
Seahawks 17, Eagles 9 (My Pick: Seahawks 26, Eagles 17)
Dolphins 37, Eagles 31 (My Pick: Eagles 29, Dolphins)
Eagles 23, Giants 17 (My Pick: Eagles 26, Giants 23)
Eagles 37, Redskins 27 (My Pick: Eagles 19, Redskins 13)
Eagles 17, Cowboys 9 (My Pick: Cowboys 27, Eagles 17)
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