The Buffalo Bills clinched a playoff berth last week and still have their sights set on winning the AFC East. They need to win and get some help in order to do that. First up is a Week 17 matchup with the NFC East champion Philadelphia Eagles, who rebounded from a 3-game slide to win their last two games by a combined score of 60-18.
The game takes place on Sunday, Dec. 28 at 4:25 p.m. ET from Highmark Stadium in Buffalo and can be seen on FOX.
Eagles at Bills Preview
After three tough losses the Eagles caught a break in the schedule to get well. They blasted the Raiders 31-0 in Week 15 and held off the Commanders 29-18 last week, getting a couple of payouts along the way. They also showed the offense is just fine with Jalen Hurts completing 75.6 percent of his passes with 5 TDs in that span.
The Eagles haven’t been as strong defensively as they were during last year’s Super Bowl, but they’ve played better lately. Over their last 7 games the Eagles have allowed an average of 14.8 points dropping their season average to 19.3 points per game allowed, third-best in the NFL.
They cashed the UNDER on the NFL spread six times in that span.
- Brandon Graham, who came out of retirement midway through the season, registered his third sack in 2 games at Washington. As a team the Eagles are tied for 12th with 37 sacks.
- The Eagles became the first repeat champion of the NFC East since 2004.
- Saquon Barkley rushed for 132 yards last week, the second time in three games he eclipsed the 120-yard mark. He’s currently 9th in the NFL with 1,072 rushing yards.
- Philadelphia has the NFL’s 4th ranked red zone defense allowing TDs on half of opponent drives inside the 20.
Winner of four straight, the Bills continue to put pressure on New England for the top spot in the AFC East. They got a scare last week when MVP Josh Allen was hampered by a leg injury after getting sacked, but he played through the injury in Buffalo’s 23-20 win over Cleveland. Allen was obviously affected, not accounting for a TD for only the third game this season.
James Cook III took over the offense rushing for 117 yards and 2 TDs on 17 carries. It was his ninth 100-yard game of the season taking over the NFL lead in rushing with 1,532 yards. The Bills had their fewest points in a win this season but still cashed the OVER in a third straight game.
- The Bills continue to play with fire despite winning 4 in a row and 7 of 9. Cleveland scored on its opening possession, the 7th straight game in which Buffalo’s opponent scored first.
- Buffalo is tied for 7th in the NFL with 13 interceptions and their 20 takeaways are the 8th most.
- The Bills are 6-1 at home but just 3-4 against the NFL betting spread.
- Allen has been sacked 35 times after taking only 14 sacks a season ago.
Eagles at Bills Predictions
You have to wonder about Philadelphia’s motivation for this game. They are the first team to clinch a division title and the No. 1 seed in the NFC is almost out of reach. On the opposite side the Bills can still win the AFC East and are just a game back of the AFC leaders.
Allen will play and Cooks gives the offense an added dimension leading to a cover win.
Eagles at Bills Betting Tips
- Buffalo opened as a 3-point favorite and is now listed at -1.5.
- The Bills are just 3-4 ATS in their 7 home games.
- Both teams have a negative moneyline price showing how close oddsmakers feel this game will be. Buffalo is listed at -112 with Philly at -108.
- The injury to Allen upset the total with the number dropping 3 points to 43.5.
- The OVER is 5-2 in Buffalo’s 7 home games
- The Eagles played UNDER the total in 6 of their last 7 games.
Eagles at Bills Head to Head and Key Stats
- This will be the 16th meeting between the teams and the first since 2023.
- The Eagles have dominated the series recently winning 3 straight and 5 of the last 6 games.
- Jalen Hurts got the better of Josh Allen in the most recent meeting throwing 3 TD passes and rushing for 2 scores, including the game winner in overtime, in a 37-34 victory.
- The teams have gone OVER the total in 2 straight and 3 of the last 4 matchups.
