In mid-November of last year, the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers were at opposite ends of the NFL spectrum. By the end of the season, they were at opposite ends, but had switched positions.
The NFL is fast-paced, and those in attendance at Friday night’s historic game in Brazil can attest to that. The Eagles started 10-1 last season, won just once the rest of the season and lost their first playoff game. The Packers started 3-6 but won seven of their last 10 games, including a playoff run that saw them crush the Dallas Cowboys in the playoff opener and lead in the final two minutes against the San Francisco 49ers in what turned out to be a playoff loss.
Both teams have high expectations as they head into the new season. The Packers hope to continue their winning streak from last season, while the Eagles hope to return to Super Bowl contender status with key changes in the offseason.
It’s an intriguing matchup, the first NFL regular season game ever played in South America. It’s also the first Friday game in the NFL’s opening week since 1970. That history is nice, but the only thing that worries the two teams is that one of the NFC hopefuls is heading home with a 0-1 record.
Eagles try to come back
The Eagles’ season finish was shocking. They went from 10-1 after a Super Bowl appearance the season before to one of the worst teams in football. They lost six of their last seven games. A 32-9 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the wild card round was embarrassing. Head coach Nick Sirianni was brought back, but it seemed to be a close call. And he came back in a new role.
Sirianni turned over control of the offense to the team’s next coordinator, who eventually became Kellen Moore. Sirianni said that was his idea. Whether that’s true or not, he’s heading into this season as the CEO coach. Moore will run the offense and new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio will take over that side of the ball.
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There was other important news. Center Jason Kelce has retired, as has defensive lineman Fletcher Cox. Kelce is almost certain to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and Cox has a good chance.
Philadelphia signed running back Saquon Barkley as a free agent. ESPN reported in an explosive story about the strained relationship between Sirianni and quarterback Jalen Hurts, which will be discussed many times if the Eagles get off to a slow start.
The Eagles’ squad is still championship worthy, but starting Friday we’ll see if the stench of last season’s end has dissipated.
Packers ride the wave
Not only were the Packers good at the end of last season, they also had the youngest roster in the NFL and were, by some measures, the youngest team to ever win a playoff game since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970.
The focus was on Jordan Love. He had a slow start to the season and many questions about his suitability as the Packers’ quarterback. He was incredible in the second half of the season, throwing 16 touchdowns and one interception in the final eight games of the regular season. Then he had a near-perfect performance in the playoff win over the Cowboys. The Packers paid and signed Love for four years and $220 million.
The Packers also made changes. They switched defensive coordinators and hired Jeff Hafley from his job as head coach at Boston College. Their two biggest free agent additions were running back Josh Jacobs and safety Xavier McKinney. The Packers finished very well last season and look even better on paper this season.
Everything is a mystery until the games kick off in São Paulo, Brazil. There’s always a huge overreaction to everything that happens in Week 1, and considering how the Packers and Eagles’ seasons changed last November, both fan bases will spend the entire weekend overanalyzing everything that happens on Friday night.
