The slate of NFL games this Sunday is pretty impressive. There is going to be a lot of good matchups but none bigger or more fun to watch than the game between the Steelers and the Eagles. This game will feature two of the best teams in the league. But the bigger question is, who will win? Well lucky for you I, Football Einstein, have the answers.
Too much foreplay, let's get to the game between the Steelers and the Eagles, shall we? Pennsylvania hasn't seen any action this hot since Gettysburg (too soon?). The Steelers come in at 2-0 after rolling over Houston in week 1 and squeaking one out against the struggling Cleveland Browns. Philly enters with a record of 1-1. But they have played very well in both of their games so far. Week one they embarrassed the pathetic St. Louis Rams and last week they lost a great Monday night game against arguably the best team in the NFC, the Cowboys. Well, let's get down to it. The Steelers have been playing good football so far but their offense hasn't convinced me yet. Last week, they only managed to put up 10 points on the Browns. The Browns are a team that is expected to do well but only 10 points from a team that has the weapons that it does concerns me. Willie Parker has been running wild the first two games of the season but the Eagles have only been allowing 52 yards per game on the ground so far. So that should be a fun matchup to watch because it forces Ben Rothlisberger to throw the ball more to Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes against a very talented Philadelphia secondary.
There is also a good matchup on the other side of the ball. The Eagles offense is very high-powered. Donovan McNabb has been unstoppable this year, Brian Westbrook always performs at a ridiculously high level, and to make things worse for Pittsburgh, add in about 100 yards of idiotic yet amazing rookie wide out DeSean Jackson. But Pittsburgh isn't without its stars on D. Troy Polamalu is the face of that defense at safety. He'll hit you so hard it'll knock out your grandma's dentures if you try to take anything his way. They also feature linebacker James Farrior who always brings it.
Special teams are a dead heat. I can't think of too many kickers that can out-kick David Akers. But Jeff Reed could surely hold his own with anybody. Mewelde Moore is a solid guy to have back there returning kicks for Pittsburgh but DeSean Jackson returns punts for the Eagles He did that at Cal where he had 6 career punt return touchdowns. He is a very explosive player and has a chance to score anytime he touches the ball.
So now let's get down to it. I think that the Eagles are going to play very well because they have to prove that they can beat the elite NFL teams. Losing a thrilling game to the Cowboys doesn't matter. Moral victories don't show up in the win column. There are going to come out firing and it's the Eagles, come on, you know that they are going to hit the big plays and make the steel curtain look like the steel drapes. Pittsburgh is going to be tough though. Willie Parker is going to have a pretty good day but i think he's going to have some trouble breaking the big runs against the Eagles especially against strong safety Brian Dawkins. And Ward and Holmes are a very talented wide receiver combo. But playing at home, the Eagles will have the 12th man on their side which always helps and it may just decide this game. If the Eagles get up early, the fans will make it hard for the Steelers to do their thing on offense.
I expect a close, entertaining game but I think that the Eagles are going to be just a little too much for the Steelers. Here's what you've been waiting for: Eagles 24, Steelers 20
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