The Philadelphia Eagles (14-3) host the Green Bay Packers (11-6) in the NFC wild-card round on Sunday (4:30 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app) in what will be the fourth time that the two teams square off in postseason play.
Green Bay is 29-19 all time against Philadelphia, but the latter is 2-1 in their postseason matchups.
At present, the two teams feature a plethora of high-caliber players.
Here are the 10 best players in the upcoming Packers-Eagles clash.
10. DT Jalen Carter
Philadelphia has drafted a bevy of defensive linemen and linebackers from Georgia of late, and Carter has played up to his billing of the No. 9 pick in the 2023 draft. After registering six sacks and two forced fumbles in his rookie season (2023), Carter totaled 4.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, six passes defended and 42 combined tackles this season, earning a Pro Bowl nod. According to PFF, Carter has an 81.5 pass rush grade this season, which ranks seventh among interior defensive linemen. Carter is part of an Eagles defense that was first in the NFL in total yards surrendered (278.4) and second in points surrendered (17.8) in the regular season.
9. DL Rashan Gary
Gary has been a quality and reliable force for the Packers’ defense over his six-year career, which has been spent entirely in Green Bay. This season, Gary, who’s starting for a Green Bay defense that’s sixth in total yards surrendered (315.6) and points surrendered (19.9), earned his first career Pro Bowl nod, totaling 7.5 sacks, 47 combined tackles, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. Gary previously totaled nine-plus sacks in 2021 and 2023.
8. OT Lane Johnson
Johnson has been a pillar for Philadelphia’s offensive line. A two-time All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowler (three of those Pro Bowl honors have come since 2022), Johnson has been the Eagles’ right tackle, barring injury, since his 2013 rookie season. According to PFF, Johnson boasts an 88.1 pass block grade this season, which is sixth among offensive tackles and eighth among offensive linemen as a whole. He also hasn’t surrendered a sack in 937 blocking snaps. Johnson, who started on the team’s Super Bowl LII offense, is tied for 12th in Eagles history with 158 games played.
7. S Xavier McKinney
After spending the first four seasons of his NFL career with the New York Giants (2020-23), McKinney put together his most productive season in his debut year with the Packers. McKinney, a first-time Pro Bowler, has totaled a career-high eight interceptions this season — which he has returned for 128 yards — while also tallying one fumble recovery, 11 passes defended and 88 combined tackles. The first-year Packer boasts a 90.0 coverage grade, which ranks third among safeties, according to PFF. McKinney registered five interceptions in his first complete NFL season (2021) and has averaged four interceptions per season since 2021.
6. OT Jordan Mailata
Once a seventh-round draft pick, Mailata took the Eagles’ left tackle reins over on a full-time basis in 2021 and ran with it. Barring injury, Mailata has been Philadelphia’s blind side since 2021. He ranks second in the NFL with a 93.7 pass block grade this season, according to PFF. Furthermore, Mailata has merely surrendered one sack in 801 blocking snaps. Mailata, 27, signed a three-year extension in 2023 that keeps him in Philadelphia through 2028.
5. RB Josh Jacobs
Jacobs, the human battering ram, has been plug-and-play for the Packers, who signed him to a four-year deal in the offseason. This season, Jacobs has rushed for 1,329 yards and 15 touchdowns on 4.4 yards per carry. He has also reeled in 36 receptions for 342 yards and one touchdown. A one-time All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowler, Jacobs has rushed for 1,000-plus yards in four of his six seasons and 10-plus touchdowns in three seasons. He led the NFL with 1,653 rushing yards in 2022 with the Las Vegas Raiders.
4. QB Jordan Love
Love sat behind Aaron Rodgers for three seasons and then hit the ground running when he was named Green Bay’s starting quarterback in 2023. Over the past two seasons (2023-24), Love has averaged 3,774 passing yards, 29 passing touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a 96.3 passer rating per season, while completing 63.7% of his passes; he missed two games this season due to a knee injury. Love led Green Bay to a road playoff win against the Dallas Cowboys in the wild-card round last season, throwing for 272 yards and three touchdowns, completing 76.2% of his passes and posting a 157.2 passer rating.
3. QB Jalen Hurts
Hurts is the heart and soul of the Eagles and one of the most physical signal-callers the sport has to offer. Adept at executing quarterback sneaks as well as any player in the NFL, Hurts has averaged 695 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns per season since 2021; he’s already second in Eagles history with 55 career rushing touchdowns. Hurts, a two-time Pro Bowler, posted a career-high 103.7 passer rating this season and has posted a combined 97.2 passer rating since 2022. Philadelphia reached Super Bowl LVII with Hurts under center in 2022, with the quarterback throwing for 304 yards and rushing for 70 yards and three touchdowns against the Kansas City Chiefs in the championship game.
2. WR A.J. Brown
The Eagles acquired Brown in a 2022 draft-night trade with the Tennessee Titans, and he has been everything they could’ve asked for. A three-time Pro Bowler, Brown has been Philadelphia’s No. 1 pass-catcher since the trade, averaging 87 receptions for 1,344 yards and eight touchdowns per season. In his first season with the Eagles (2022), Brown totaled a career-high 1,496 receiving yards and then a career-high 106 receptions in 2023. He’s already 14th in franchise history with 4,031 receiving yards in just three seasons.
1. RB Saquon Barkley
After a 2023 season that saw him rush for just 3.9 yards per carry with the Giants, with whom the running back spent the first six seasons of his career (2018-23), Barkley put together one of the best seasons for a running back in NFL history in what was his first with the Eagles. Rushing for a league-high 2,005 yards and a career-high 13 touchdowns on a career-high 5.8 yards per carry, Barkley became just the ninth player in NFL history to surpass 2,000 rushing yards in a single season. Barkley also racked up 33 receptions for 278 yards and two touchdowns. A three-time Pro Bowler, Barkley has totaled 1,000-plus rushing yards in four of his seven seasons in the sport and totaled 10-plus rushing touchdowns in three seasons. He figures to be a finalist for the 2024 NFL MVP Award.
Honorable mentions:
Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
National Football League
Green Bay Packers
Philadelphia Eagles
Get more from National Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
