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The Green Bay Packers (4-6) head to Lincoln Financial Field to take on the Philadelphia Eagles (5-5) in tonight’s Monday Night Football matchup. Both teams are fighting to stay alive in the NFC playoff picture as wild card teams.
The Eagles are currently in last place in the NFC East and have a very dismal shot at catching the red hot Dallas Cowboys (10-1) for the division crown. They come into this contest on a one-game losing streak after losing 26-15 to the Seattle Seahawks (7-3-1) on the road.
The Packers reside in third place in the NFC North as they trail the Detroit Lions (6-4) by two games. They have lost four straight games and are coming off of a 42-24 Sunday Night Football road loss to the Washington Redskins (6-4-1).
No Place Like Home
It serves the Eagles well that they are returning to Philadelphia. This season they are 4-0 at home and 2-1 against NFC North competition. That one loss was to now-division leader Detroit back in Week 5.
For the Packers, their situation is the complete opposite. They are 1-2 against NFC East
opponents with their only win coming against the current second-place New York Giants (8-3) on opening weekend. Couple that with the Pack’s 1-4 road record this year and it makes winning in Philadelphia all the more tough.
For Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers, however, a tough road crowd is nothing new. He relishes the opportunity to play in an environment like Philadelphia and emphasizes taking the crowd out of the game early.
Monday Night Track Records
Since taking over the starting quarterback job for Green Bay in 2008, Aaron Rodgers is 4-7 on Monday Night Football. On the other end, rookie Carson Wentz is a modest 1-0 on Monday Night after beating the Chicago Bears (2-9) at home in Week 3. The No. 2 overall pick in this year’s draft is more than prepared for the challenge that an injured Green Bay defensive unit brings to the table.
This will be the fourth time that Green Bay and Philadelphia meet up in a Monday Night Football contest. Their last matchup on this stage occurred in 2006 and resulted in a 31-9 Eagles victory. Though they trail the all-time series 26-16, Philadelphia has a 3-1 record against the Pack on Monday Night.
Resurgence of Christine Michael?
In Seattle, running back Christine Michael started seven games and put up 469 rushing yards and six touchdowns in that span. His reward for his effort and helping the Seahawks win five games was a release from the team after Week 9. With Thomas Rawls coming back from injury, Seattle saw no reason to keep the fourth year man out of Texas A&M around.
The news shocked everyone in the NFL world, especially Michael’s fantasy owners. Fortunately, he would get another chance when the Packers picked him up off waivers prior to their game against Washington.
Michael was inactive for that Sunday Night loss, but now he is more than ready to go as he prepares for his Packer debut. Head Coach Mike McCarthy is hoping that the signing of Michael can jump-start the Packer offense and provide some form of stability.
Injury Report
Here is the injury report for both squads. Fire here is a look at the Packers:
Questionable
Don Barclay (Shoulder) – Tackle/Guard
Micah Hyde (Shoulder) – Defensive Back
Damarious Randall (Groin) – Cornerback
Out
Kyler Fackrell (Hamstring) – Linebacker
Demetri Goodson (Knee) – Cornerback
Eddie Lacy (Ankle) – Running Back
T.J. Lang (Foot) – Guard
Blake Martinez (Knee) – Linebacker
JC Tretter (Knee) – Center/Guard
Now here are the inactive Eagles for the contest:
Out
Ryan Matthews (Knee) – Running Back
Halapoulivaati Vaital (Knee) – Tackle
Final Takeaway
Both these teams are still in the mix for a potential playoff spot as the month of December nears. A win for Philadelphia puts them above .500 and keeps them within range of Washington for the second NFC Wild Card spot. A win for Green Bay moves them to one game under .500 and still in possible contention for an NFC North division title. Kickoff is set for 8:30 p.m. and the game can be seen on ESPN.
