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Mouton: What to watch for in Saints vs Eagles

The Eagles are significantly better on both sides of the ball than in November.

There are so many things different about this Eagles team heading into Sunday afternoon's playoff game then the one the Saints beat 48-7 back in November.

While Nick Foles is getting most of the attention, the biggest difference is the Eagles' secondary. Banged up all year, Philadelphia's back defense has started to play much better. Cornerback Cre'Von LeBlan, picked up in November, was significantly better in their wildcard win against the Bears last Sunday. 

The Eagles also have Darren Sproles back in the mix. He is a difference-maker on offense. He didn't play against the Saints in their first meeting, and Foles does a great job of running the short passing game with him. He received the ball 15 times in Philadelphia's win over the Chicago on Sunday. 

Philadelphia is also a better team with Foles at the helm. He distributes the ball well, he uses all of the Eagles' weapons —  and they have a lot of weapons. Nelson Agholor, Alshon Jeffery and Zach Ertz (as good a tight end as anyone in football) and Dallas Goedert  out of South Dakota are all dangerous.

Foles has been better with getting the ball out quicker, getting sacked less than Wentz as the Eagles offensive line has also shown improvements. 

On defense, Timmy Jernigan is also back at tackle. The Eagles had zero sacks and one quarterback hit against the Saints their first meeting. Against the bears, however, they racked up two sacks and five quarterback hits. 

Saints Coach Sean Payton said on Monday that the Eagles are now rushing the passer extremely well.

So, is it enough to make up the 41 point difference in game one? We'll see on Sunday. 

Still, the Saints' opponent is significantly better on both sides of the ball than fans saw in November. 

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