Kicking off at 4:30 p.m. ET, the Philadelphia Eagles will host the Green Bay Packers in the second matchup on the Sunday slate.
Green Bay enters with an 11-6 record and holds the seventh seed in the NFC. It ranks eighth in scoring, sixth in total yards, sixth in points allowed, and fifth in yards conceded. This is the second matchup between these two teams as they faced off in the opening week of the playoffs in Brazil in what was the second game of the entire NFL season. Philadelphia produced a 34-29 victory but both these teams look vastly different from the opening week.
Philadelphia ended the regular season with a 14-3 record and is the second seed in the NFC. It ranks seventh in scoring, eighth in total yards, second in points allowed, and have given up the fewest yards in the NFL this season. The defensive growth throughout the season has been notable for the Eagles and they also were able to rest all their starters last week with their seeding in place.
The Eagles enter this game as 4.5-point favorites and -230 on the Moneyline. The Packers are +190 underdogs on the Moneyline on DraftKings Sportsbook and the game total is set at 45.5 points. With the stage set, here are my favorite prop bets for the Wild Card weekend matchup.
Jalen Hurts Anytime TD (-115)
Jalen Hurts anytime touchdown is among the best value bets in all of sports. While tush-push opportunities steal the spotlight, Hurts is also plenty capable of taking off on a scramble or taking a designed run across the goal line from a few yards out. The dual-threat nature of Hurts’ game is part of what makes him so special and expect the Eagles to lean on this heavily. Hurts missed the final two weeks of the season with a concussion but has been fully cleared and will have no restrictions in this game.
Hurts recorded 14 rushing touchdowns this season and reached pay dirt with his legs in ten of the 15 games he has played. Even with Saquon Barkley on the roster and with 2,005 rushing yards to his name, the Pro Bowl quarterback leads the Eagles in rushing touchdowns. Hurts also was tied for second in the NFL in rushing touchdowns last year with 15 on the season and scoring on the ground in 11 of the 17 games.
Green Bay has a respectable defense but the Eagles offense is too talented to fully be shut down. Hurts will be looked at as the number-one scoring option to score whenever the Eagles are in the red zone. Count on Philadelphia giving him a few carries in the red zone and take advantage of the -115 odds for Hurts to reach the end zone.
Saquon Barkley 100+ Rushing Yards (-130)
After a complete collapse in the second half of last season and a first-round playoff exit, Saquon Barkley has been exactly what the Philadelphia Eagles needed. Led by their dominant offensive line, the Eagles have leaned on their identity as a run-first football team. Barkley has also benefitted greatly from the offensive line as he became just the ninth running back in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season.
Green Bay ranks seventh in rushing yards allowed and third in net yards per rush attempt so it will not be an easy path for Barkley. But the three-time Pro Bowl running back ran for 109 yards against the Packers in the opening-week matchup. This also was only his ninth-highest rushing total in a game this year with Barkley averaging 125.3 rushing yards per game.
The Eagles elected to prevent Barkley from chasing the all-time rushing record as he rested last week against his former team with the playoffs in mind. He will now be fully unleashed with everything at stake. Barkley has rushed for over 100 yards in 11 of the 16 games he has played this season. Even with all the talent on the Eagles Barkley has been their clearcut top player and will be given plenty of opportunity. Count on him reaching 100 yards once again in this matchup.
Jordan Love Under 216.5 Passing Yards (-110)
The Green Bay Packers will be leaning on Jordan Love heavily as he prepares for his third career postseason start. Love has averaged 225.9 passing yards per game and threw for 260 yards in the opening-week matchup with the Eagles. However, Philadelphia has shown some notable defensive improvement as the season has progressed and settled into Vic Fangio’s new system. They are allowing just 174.2 passing yards per game, the best mark in the league.
Love has been held to under 216.5 passing yards in just six games this season. However, he only eclipsed this number once over the final five weeks of the season. He also left the final game of the season with an elbow injury which the Packers have been slightly guarded about. In addition, the Packers passing game took a hit last week as Christian Watson suffered an ACL tear. While wide receiver depth is a strength of the Packers, this is still a significant shakeup to their offensive approach.
With a strong defense, injuries playing a factor, and Love struggling down the stretch of the season, expect yards to be hard to come by in this matchup. Philadelphia struggles more against the run than the pass and expect this to be the area the Packers primarily attack. Count on him being held to under 216.5 passing yards in the third playoff game of his career.
Saquon Barkley to Have 20+ Rushing Yards in Each Quarter (+300)
Located in the player specials section on DraftKings Sportsbook, I like Saquon Barkley to be involved throughout this matchup. While Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith are plenty dangerous in their own rights, the Eagles are a run-first football team and will set the tone as such.
Expect Barkley to be fed throughout this matchup and be the foundation of the Eagles’ offense from start to finish in this game. This is a bet that applies based on any game script as Barkley will be looked at as the primary vehicle to generate offense with the game on the line and also the main method of chewing out the clock if the Eagles take a lead.
While this inherently carries some additional risk as he must reach 20 yards in all four quarters, reaching 80 yards feels all but a guarantee for Barkley. He holds -300 odds of 80 rushing yards and averaged 125.3 rushing yards per game. Expect the star running back to bring it in the most meaningful playoff matchup of his career and for Barkley to leave no doubt from start to finish in this game tallying 20+ yards in each quarter.
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All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is seanbarnard) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
