Scouting the Saints 2015 schedule: Week 5 vs. Philadelphia Eagles

The Saints face the Philadelphia Eagles in the Philadelphia on Sunday, October 11th. The last time the Saints traveled to Philly, they walked away with a first round play-off victory. The make-up of both teams have changed since then.

Series Match-up All-Time

Saints  13 - Eagles 16

Last 5 Games

(2013-2014) Saints 26, Eagles 24 (P)

(2012-2013) Saints 28, Eagles 13

(2009-2010) Saints 48, Eagles 22

(2007-2008) Eagles 38, Saints 23

(2006-2007)Saints 27, Eagles 24 (P)

Sean Payton has definitely tipped the fortunes of this series into the Saints favor. Since his arrival, the Saints are 4-1 against the Eagles with 2 wins coming in the playoffs, the biggest coming en route to a Superbowl title!

2014-2015 Eagles Totals

(Saints #1 total offense, #31 total defense according to ESPN)

Total Offense # 5

Passing/YPG # 6

Rushing/YPG # 9

Total Defense # 28

Passing/YPG # 31

Rushing/YPG # 15

Projected Rosters

Key Eagles

Offense

Jordan Matthews - Matthews is a solid young player who will be critical to the Eagles offensive success. After a productive rookie season, Matthews is set to break-out as the top target in Chip Kelly's offense. The success of the Eagles quarterback will be heavily staked in performance of the young wide receiver.

DeMarco Murray - In 2014, Murray piled up over 1,800 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns while topping 100 yards in 12 games. This is 2015 and Murray is now an Eagle. Critics and fans alike have said that Murray was the beneficiary of a high quality offensive line and nothing else. It is critical that he prove them wrong and demonstrate an ability to produce on the ground, even behind the Eagles average offensive line.

The QB Position - Sam Bradford is the starting quarterback, right now. Unfortunately, Bradford has struggled to stay on the field for full seasons due to injury. Waiting in the wings again for the Eagles will be a rejuvenated Mark Sanchez. After starting QB Nick Foles went down to injury in 2014, Sanchez stepped in and performed well in relief duty. Matt Barkley sits at 3rd behind Sanchez and Tim Tebow is on the preseason roster, but he and/or Barkley could be gone by the week 5 match-up with the Saints.

Defense

Byron Maxwell and Walter Thurmond - The Seattle Seahawks pieced together a strong secondary in 2012 & 2013, two of those pieces are now in Philly. Thurmond is expected to play safety alongside Malcolm Jenkins, while Maxwell will lock up a starting CB job. The Eagles have a decent front seven, so it's reasonable to believe the Eagles secondary will be good enough to improve on the 31st pass defense ranking. With at least 3 physical players on the back-end, the Eagles could be tough on many QBs in 2015.

TL;DR

Oregon Ducks East is getting into full swing in Philly, but will the offense be able to win shootouts on a weekly basis? Though the Eagles made moves to improve their secondary, pass defense is not just coverage, it also requires pass rush. It is reasonable to believe that only a slight improvement in the area won't be enough to ramp up the defense and will keep the Eagles firmly in second place in their division behind the Cowboys. In addition, the Saints will have Philly's number and pull off a road win in this one.

Feedback on depth chart and other bits of information to include in this series is appreciated.