The Eagles have lost two games in a row and they need to right the ship this weekend in Philadelphia against the 49ers.  The 49ers are off to a good start because of their defense so far this year.  Here is a look at the matchups this Sunday:

When the Eagles have the ball:  The Eagles are in for a challenge this weekend against the Niners.  As much of the headlines as Michael Vick gets for his passing, the Eagles still are running the ball more than they are throwing it.  Lesean McCoy (345 yards rushing, 6.1 yards per carry) and Michael Vick (153 yards rushing , 6.4 yards per carry) are off to great starts running the ball, but something is going to have to give this Sunday, as the Niners are only allowing 62.7 yards rushing per game and 2.9 yards per carry.  Michael Vick isn’t likely to be himself in this game with his badly bruised right hand, as I don’t think he will be running much in this game.  The 49ers have 7 sacks this year, so Michael Vick would be smart to get rid of the ball sooner in this game, so that he won’t take as many hits.  He is going to need Jeremy Maclin, Desean Jackson and Jason Avant to catch more short passes in this game and make things happen after the catch.

When the 49ers have the ball:  The 49ers have been the most conservative team in the NFL so far this year and they are only averaging 213.7 yards per game (69.7 rushing, 144.0 passing).  Frank Gore has an ankle injury, so he might not play or have a smaller workload if he does give it a go.  Rookie Kendall Hunter’s workload is likely to increase whether or not Gore plays.  The Eagles are giving up 131.3 yards rushing per game and 4.9 yards per carry so far this year, so expect the Niners to run more than pass the ball.  Alex Smith has already been sacked 11 times this year, while the Eagles have sacked the QB 12 times.  That means that the Niners are likely going to throw the short stuff to TEs Vernon Davis and Delanie Walker a lot in this game.  The Niners aren’t going to challenge the Eagles’ corners as they have a lousy WRing corps.

PREDICTION:  EAGLES 20, 49ERS 17

28-year old DE Trent Cole, 31-year old DE Jason Babin and 30-year old DT Cullen Jenkins of the Eagles are getting a good rush on opposing QBs as they have 11 of the Eagles’ 12 sacks so far this year!  Trent Cole has played in all 3 games for the Eagles so far this year and he has 14 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 3 sacks and 1 pass defensed.  Jason Babin is bringing the heat from the other side of the D as he has 9 tackles, 4 sacks and 1 tackle for a loss so far this year.  DT Cullen Jenkins is having an awesome start to the 2011 season as he has 9 tackles, 4 sacks and 2 tackles for a loss so far this year.  Opposing QBs can just sit in the pocket with this trio chasing them and the Eagles hope they can keep up the good work going forward.

The Giants beat up on the Eagles in Philly yesterday!  Michael Vick broke his right hand in this game and he tried to come back but couldn’t take the pain.  He completed 16 of 23 passes for 176 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT.  He also carried the ball 7 times for 31 yards (4.4 ypc) in this game.  Vick fumbled the ball 3 times in this game too but he didn’t lose any of them.  Mike Kafka replaced him and he was terrible as he completed 4 of 7 passes for 35 yards with 0 TD passes and 2 INTs.  Lesean McCoy did his best to help the Eagles win yesterday.  He carried the ball 24 times for 128 yards (5.3 ypc) with 1 TD carry and he also caught 3 passes for 13 yards (4.3 avg) in this game.  WRs Jeremy Maclin (5 rec, 69 yards) and Jason Avant (4 rec, 33 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Eagles yesterday.  The Eagles finished up with 177 yards rushing on 40 carries (4.4 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 30 passes (66.7%) for 199 yards in this game as they had possession of the ball for 36:51.

The defense got pushed around in this game, especially the supposedly vaunted secondary as Eli Manning threw 4 TD passes yesterday.  DE Trent Cole led the way for the Eagles in this game with 5 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit.  CB Asante Samuel (4 tackles), LB Jamar Chaney (4 tackles) and DE Jason Babin (3 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit) also pitched in.  The Giants finished up with 102 yards rushing on 25 carries (4.1 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 23 passes (69.6%) for 232 yards.  The Eagles are now a very disappointing 1-2 on the year.

The Eagles are looking to rebound from last weekend’s tough defeat at the hands of the Falcons.  They better be ready for a fight with the division rival New York Giants paying them a visit this weekend.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Eagles have the ball:  I don’t look for the Eagles to change anything they do against the Giants this weekend.  Michael Vick was back at practice today and it looks like he will be ready to play this Sunday.  Vick completed 45 of 73 passes (61.6%) for 500 yards with 3 TD passes and 1 INT against the Giants last year.  He also carried the ball 24 times for 164 yards (6.8 ypc) with 2 TD runs against the Giants.  The Giants are going to be blitzing a lot from the edges to try to keep Vick in the pocket.  Still, the Giants are giving up 283.0 yards passing per game so far this year, so look for Vick to be able to get the ball to Jeremy Maclin and Desean Jackson quite a bit this Sunday.  The Eagles want to get out to a quick lead in an effort to get the Giants to quit running the ball, which is the Eagles’ weakness on D.  The Giants are only giving up 66.5 yards rushing per game and 3.0 yards per carry, so Lesean McCoy and Michael Vick will likely have to fight for every yard they get this Sunday.

When the Giants have the ball:  The Eagles have to find a way to stop Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs, as the Giants are going to try to be bullies this weekend.  The Eagles are giving up 146.0 yards rushing per game and 5.3 yards per carry, so the Giants are going to pound away at them with the running game.  If the Eagles bring their safeties closer to the line, that is when Eli Manning will go over the top with play action passes deep to Mario Manningham and Hakeem Nicks.  The Eagles have 9 sacks already this year and Manning has been sacked 7 times, so look for the Eagles to blitz a lot this Sunday and force Manning into making some big mistakes.

PREDICTION:  EAGLES 34, GIANTS 17

23-year old RB Lesean McCoy is off to an outstanding start for the Eagles so far this year.  He has played in both of the Eagles games so far this year and he has carried the ball 33 times for 217 yards (6.6 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  McCoy has also caught 6 passes for 36 yards (6.0 avg) with 1 TD grab this year.  If Michael Vick isn’t ready to play by this weekend, look for McCoy to get the ball a lot more than he has in the first two weeks.

31-year old QB Michael Vick got handed a concussion by his old team (the Falcons) in last Sunday Night’s game.  Therefore he is iffy for this weekend’s tilt against the Giants.  Vick has played in both of the Eagles games so far this year and he has completed 33 of 60 passes (55%) for 429 yards with 4 TD passes and 1 INT (93.0 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 17 times for 122 yards (7.2 ypc) so far this year.  With Vince Young still nowhere near to 100% with an ankle injury, 24-year old Mike Kafka will start against the Giants if Michael Vick isn’t cleared to play.  Kafka made his NFL debut against the Falcons last Sunday Night and he completed 7 of 9 passes (77.8%) for 72 yards without a TD pass or INT (100.0 QB Rating).  Kafka also carried the ball 1 time for 2 yards against the Falcons.  Head Coach Andy Reid has a lot of confidence in Kafka, but he’s still hoping that Vick will be ready to go this Sunday.

The Eagles have lost 33-year old DE Juqua Parker for the next few weeks due to a high ankle sprain.  Parker has played in 2 games for the Eagles so far this year and he has 2 tackles, 1 pass defensed and a fumble recovery that he returned 56 yards for a TD.  Parker has 30 sacks in his first 7 years with the Eagles.  He is a rotational lineman but the Eagles are still going to miss his pass rush ability.

The Falcons ruined Michael Vick’s return to Atlanta last night.  He completed 19 of 28 passes for 242 yards with 2 TD passes and 1 INT.  He also carried the ball 6 times for 25 yards (4.2 ypc) and he lost two fumbles before leaving the game with a concussion in the 3rd quarter.  Mike Kafka finished up the game at QB and he was solid as he completed 7 of 9 passes for 72 yards without a TD pass or INT in his regular season NFL debut.  Lesean McCoy was very effective in this game with 18 carries for 95 yards (5.3 ypc) with 2 TD runs and he also caught 4 passes for 21 yards (5.3 avg).  WR Jeremy Maclin had a monster game for the Eagles yesterday with 13 grabs for 171 yards (13.2 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  TE Brent Celek pitched in with 4 grabs for 43 yards (10.8 avg) in this game.  The Eagles finished up with 133 yards on 30 carries (4.4 ypc) and they also completed 26 of 37 passes (70.3%) for 314 yards as they had possession of the ball for 30:03.

The defense had issues last night, especially in the 4th quarter when the Falcons scored 14 unanswered points to prevail at the end of the game!  LB Jamar Chaney (9 tackles), safety Jarrad Page (9 tackles) and LB Casey Matthews (7 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss) led the way for the Eagles’ D last night.  DE Trent Cole (6 tackles, 4 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 1 pass defensed and 2 QB hits) and DT Cullen Jenkins (4 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks and 2 QB hits) both played outstanding games for the Eagles last night.  CBs Asante Samuel and Nnamdi Asogmugha pitched in with 1 interception apiece.  The Falcons finished up with 138 yards rushing on 29 carries (4.8 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 28 passes for 180 yards.  The Eagles are now 1-1 on the year.

This will be Michael Vick’s first return to Atlanta as a starting QB since his six years in which he played with the Falcons.  Hopefully Vick will remember what team he plays for now.  The Falcons are a very dangerous and hungry team after getting pushed around by the Bears last weekend.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Eagles have the ball:  The Eagles are likely not going to change one bit for the Falcons’ D tomorrow night.  Michael Vick will likely throw the ball quite a bit against a Falcons’ secondary that let Jay Cutler shred them last Sunday.  The Eagles have a nice edge at WR with Desean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin and Jason Avant against Falcons’ corners Brent Grimes and Dunta Robinson.  The Falcons’ O-Line might have a hard time keeping DEs John Abraham and Ray Edwards out of the backfield.  Something will have to give when the Falcons want to run the ball as they had 237 yards rushing (7.6 ypc) last weekend while the Falcons only gave up 88 yards rushing (3.3 ypc).  Middle linebacker Curtis Lofton is a heavy hitter and he will have his eyes on Lesean McCoy and Michael Vick (when he takes off running).

When the Falcons have the ball:  The run defense of the Eagles sucked last week as the Rams rushed for 154 yards (5.9 ypc) last week.  The Eagles’ front seven will have to step up or RB Michael Turner is going to go nuts running against them.  Turner had 100 yards rushing on only 10 carries (10.0 ypc) last weekend against the tough Bears’ D.  The Eagles should match up pretty well with Matt Ryan’s receivers.  Roddy White, Julio Jones and Tony Gonzalez will battle CBs Nnamdi Asomugha, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Asante Samuel tomorrow.  The Eagles will need to get a good pass rush after Matt Ryan, because if he has time to throw the ball he can do damage.

PREDICTION:  FALCONS 30, EAGLES 27

31-year old QB Michael Vick will be returning to the scene of the crime this weekend as his Eagles are heading to Atlanta to deal with the Falcons on Sunday Night Football.  Vick played his first six years in the NFL with the Falcons.  He was quickly replaced by Matt Ryan as the starting QB, while he was in the pokey.  Vick wasn’t very accurate in the season opener for the Eagles as he only completed 14 of 32 passes (43.8%) for 187 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs (83.7 QB Rating).  Vick also carried the ball 11 times for 97 yards (8.8 ypc) against the Rams last week.  The Eagles are going to need Vick to be in the right frame of mind this weekend if they are going to beat the Falcons in the Georgia Dome.  The crowd is going to be live in Atlanta.