This is it. This is the game that will not only define the Eagles’ regular season, but define just how good the Detroit Lions are, when they visit Lincoln Financial Field Sunday night at 8 p.m.
The Lions
are coming off their best offensive performance this year, beating Washington, 44-22, fueled by a season-high 546 yards of total offense and running back Jahmyr Gibbs rushing for a season-high 142 yards on just 15 carries, averaging 9.5 yards a carry and scoring three touchdowns, two rushing.
The Lions are loaded offense, with quarterback Jared Goff, receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and tight end Sam LaPorta, who did not practice this week.
Lions’ head coach Dan Campbell took over calling the offense, and that translated into the Lions using play-action on a season-high 51% of its plays against Washington, and used motion at the snap a season-high 58% of the time.
It also freed up Gibbs.
Stopping him will be the key to the Eagles’ victory. Everything starts with Gibbs, and if the Eagles could shut him down, that would also shut off any play-action.
Gibbs is ninth in the NFL with 693 yards rushing, but fourth in the NFL averaging 5.4 yards a carry.
What has changed with Campbell taking over the play calling for Detroit?
“Well, I mean they had 550 (546) yards I think,” Eagles’ defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said. “About half of it was running and half of it was passing, so they were really good. They got a lot of talent on that side of the ball. They got the best O-line in the league, a quarterback [who] according to [Head Coach] Dan’s [Campbell] [is] playing the best that he is ever played, two good running backs, the receivers are all fast. It’s a good unit to be calling plays for.”
The four times Gibbs rushed for 90 yards or more the Lions won handily, beating Chicago (52-21), Cleveland (34-10), Tampa Bay (24-9) and Washington (44-22). IN being selected NFC Offensive Player of the Week for Week 10, Gibbs recorded 172 scrimmage yards (142 rushing, 30 receiving) and three scrimmage touchdowns (two rushing, one receiving) in at Washington. In Week 10, Gibbs led the NFC in scrimmage yards, rushing yards, rushing average (9.5 yards per attempt) and scrimmage touchdowns.
This is Gibbs’ second-career NFC Offensive Player of the Week award (Week 14, 2024). He is the second Lion to be named NFC Offensive Player of the Week award this season, joining Jared Goff (Week 2) and is the second Detroit running back to win multiple NFC Player of the Week awards, joining Pro Football Hall of Famer Barry Sanders (11-time winner).
Gibbs is the fifth Alabama running back to win multiple Offensive Player of the Week awards, joining Derrick Henry (nine-time winner), Shaun Alexander (seven-time winner), Mark Ingram (two-time winner) and Eddie Lacy (two-time winner).
At 23, Gibbs as 41 career touchdowns, which is the fifth-most touchdowns by any player before his 24th birthday in NFL history trailing only Hall of Famers in Barry Sanders (47), Randy Moss (44), Emmitt Smith (43), and Jim Brown (42).
If Gibbs gets loose, it could be a long night for the Eagles, who are coming off one of their worst offensive performances this season, a 10-point output in a 10-7 victory at Green Bay.
