Eagles-49ers Game Preview: Who Will Win in the Wild Card Round?

Following a roller coaster of a season, the playoffs are finally here. The Philadelphia Eagles will host the San Francisco 49ers to open the postseason on Sunday. Despite all of Philadelphia’s offensive struggles during the regular season, they have a chance to prove their doubters wrong in the Wild Card Round.

Similar to the Eagles, the 49ers have also dealt with inconsistency and injuries this season. Yet while Philadelphia is getting healthy at the right time, San Francisco could be without several key players on the road in Philadelphia. Can the 49ers overcome all of their injuries and upset the Eagles on Sunday? We’ll see.

Here’s my full game preview for a must-win matchup in the Wild Card Round.

Three Storylines To Follow

Can Eagles Take Advantage of San Francisco’s Banged Up Defense?

The Eagles hosted the Chicago Bears in Week 13, who were missing several key players at linebacker. While it seemed like Philadelphia would be able to target Chicago’s weakness at linebacker, Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo was unable to do so. Can Patullo redeem himself against the 49ers on Sunday?

San Francisco will definitely be without Fred Warner and Tatum Bathune. It also seems like the 49ers will be without Dee Winters. San Francisco could be forced to start multiple backup linebackers, including 33-year-old veteran Eric Kendricks, who has only played in three games this season.

The Eagles certainly have the personnel to expose San Francisco’s injuries at linebacker, yet it’s up to Patullo to actually make the right calls. Philadelphia should use Dallas Goedert and Saquon Barkley as pass catchers and have Jalen Hurts utilize his legs as a runner to test San Francisco’s backup linebackers.

Vic Fangio’s Plan To Hide Potential Weaknesses

The Eagles have one of the best defenses in the NFL. Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is widely regarded as one of the best defensive signal callers around the league. Yet 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan is still one of the best offensive minds in the NFL and he’ll look to target Philadelphia’s weak points.

The 49ers utilize a ton of heavy personnel with multiple tight ends and fullback Kyle Juszczyk, along with pre-snap motion and shifts to put the defense in conflict. Fangio’s defense will have to remain disciplined and he’ll have to have a good plan in place to protect players like Adoree’ Jackson, Marcus Epps and Nakobe Dean.

I’d expect Shanahan to try his best to target all three of those players in coverage. The Eagles have primarily lined up Jackson on the field side of the formation, which could make it easy for Shanahan to dial up plays to attack him. It’ll be interesting to see if Fangio breaks any of his tendencies to throw off Shanahan.

Can Eagles Contain Brock Purdy?

Philadelphia’s defense was able to handle one of the best mobile quarterbacks in Josh Allen just two weeks ago. Yet they’ll have to replicate that success against 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, who has excelled at extending plays with his legs this season.

According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Purdy has the second longest time to throw among quarterbacks this season at 3.17 seconds. Only Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has a higher time to throw this season at 3.2 seconds.

The Eagles defense has struggled against mobile quarterbacks at times this season. Most recently, Philadelphia allowed Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert to run for 66 rushing yards in Week 14. The Eagles can’t make the same mistakes against Purdy and must remained disciplined with their pass rushing lanes and sticky in coverage.

Two Underrated Players To Watch For

Marcus Epps

Once the Eagles lost starting rookie safety Andrew Mukuba due to injury, many wondered who would fill the void at the position. Marcus Epps has filled in admirably and has started in place of Mukuba since Week 14. While the veteran has provided a calming presence during Mukuba’s absence, he has potentially exposed in coverage by the Bills in Week 17.

According to Pro Football Focus, Epps allowed four receptions on four targets for 58 yards against the Bills. I’d expect Kyle Shanahan to try and get both Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle matched up with Epps in coverage. If he can hold his own against the pass, while continuing his solid play against the run, that would be massive for the Eagles.

Upton Stout

Prior to the 2025 NFL Draft, I labeled Upton Stout as one of “my guys” in the draft class. While Stout was drafted a bit earlier than I expected, it’s clear that the 49ers had a plan in place for his unique skillset. At just 5’9”, 182 lbs., Stout plays bigger than his measurables and impacts the game for San Francisco.

Stout has carved out a significant role at slot cornerback and has continued to improve throughout his rookie season. The 49ers aren’t afraid to utilize Stout as a pass rusher at defensive back, which is something that the Eagles have struggled to diagnose at times this season. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Stout make a few impact plays on Sunday.

One Key Matchup To Monitor

Jalen Hurts vs. Robert Saleh

Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts has matched up with 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh just once before. Hurts led the 5-0 Eagles into MetLife Stadium to visit Saleh and the 2-3 Jets. Philadelphia was 6.5-point favorites and many thought it would be another easy win for the Eagles.

Yet Saleh’s team shocked the world and Hurts struggled mightily as the Jets won, 20-14. Up until that point, it was just the second time in Hurts’ career that he threw three interceptions. Now over two years later, Hurts will have a chance to get revenge against Saleh.

While all of the statistics and advanced metrics say that Saleh’s defense has struggled this season, Hurts and the Eagles can’t take them lightly again. Former Eagles edge rusher Bryce Huff will certainly look to replicate his impressive performance that he had against Philadelphia in 2023, when he recorded eight total pressures.

If Hurts can avoid turnovers, unlike two years ago, the Eagles should have success against Saleh’s defense. San Francisco is simply too depleted by injuries and Philadelphia is only getting healthier. It’s going to be interesting to see how both Hurts and Saleh perform in their first meeting since the upset in 2023.

Underdog Pick’Em Plays for Eagles-49ers

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Final Score Predictions

Josh’s Pick: Eagles 29, 49ers 24

We’ve reached the point of the season where it no longer matters how it gets done. The only thing that matters is if it gets done. And Jalen Hurts has a 5-0 record at home in the playoffs. So despite the inconsistency and struggles from the offense, I’ll take the Birds to get enough scoring and ride their defense to close out a stressful game at The Linc.

Anthony’s Pick: Eagles 27, 49ers 17

The 49ers were scorching hot before being shutdown by the Seahawks in Week 18. Now San Francisco has come crashing back down to earth and Philadelphia’s defense is just as stout as Seattle’s unit. The Eagles offense could look drastically different following a week off and the return of Lane Johnson. It will be a confidence boosting win that many fans in Philadelphia have been asking for.