The Philadelphia Eagles were able to regain first place in the NFC East this year thanks to help from the rest of the teams in the division, but an injury at quarterback could derail their reign. The Eagles moved ahead of Dallas with their win over Houston and the Cowboys loss over Arizona. With Mark Sanchez starting for the injured Nick Foles, will the Eagles stay on top for long as they face the Carolina Panthers on Monday Night Football?
Foles is out for the next month after breaking his collarbone in Week 9. Sanchez took over and immediately tossed a 52-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Maclin while going on to finish the game 15 of 22 for 202 yards and two touchdowns along with two interceptions. Now, Sanchez will start for Philadelphia for the first time since 2012 when he was with the New York Jets.
The start marks a comeback tour for Sanchez. He spent all of last season out after getting injured in a Jets' preseason game. He was then released and signed by the Eagles as a backup quarterback. Sanchez was aiming to get better in hopes of returning as a starter in 2015 and now he gets a chance to prove himself on Monday Night Football. The Eagles have the offensive weapons to help Sanchez out. The team ranks fourth in the league in points and total yards per game, something they hope to maintain.
The Panthers are looking for their defense to make a statement as they have been vulnerable over the past few weeks. The team has allowed at least 30.7 points per game since Week 3, ranking 31st in the league. They are also allowing 134.8 rushing yards from opponents in their past four games. That could spell trouble as the Eagles have both LeSean McCoy and Darren Sproles working in tandem.
The Panthers get back two offensive linemen that should help Cam Newton get a little better. The Panthers fell out of first place in the NFC South after losing to the New Orleans Saints and are in need of a bounce-back game this week. Newton had a career-worst day against the Saints, going just 10 of 28 for 151 yards and one interception.
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