3. Kansas City has racked up 10 sacks across its two playoff games this year.
The Chiefs’ pass-rush has been effective so far this postseason, and if Kansas City can slow down Barkley, another big game rushing the quarterback could be the difference in the end.
Kansas City pressured Texans’ quarterback C.J. Stroud at a 54% rate (which included eight sacks) before doing so against Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen at a 43% clip (and two sacks) in the AFC Championship Game. That 43% pressure rate on Allen was the highest he faced in a single game since Week 2.
This is relevant because Eagles’ quarterback Jalen Hurts has been significantly more effective during Philadelphia’s playoff run when kept clean as opposed to when under pressure. Here’s a look at a few of those splits as compiled by Next Gen Stats:
Kept Clean: 80.9% completion percentage | 7.8 passing yards-per-attempt | 120.5 passer rating
Under Pressure: 45.5% completion percentage | 6.3 yards-per-attempt | 66.1 passer rating
Hurts has also been sacked 11 times during the Eagles’ postseason run, and if the Chiefs are to contain Philadelphia’s high-powered offense, the combination of containing Barkley and creating pressure on Hurts will likely be the formula.
4. Philadelphia yielded the fewest offensive points of any team in the NFL this year.
The Eagles’ defense has been terrific this season and ranks near the top of the league in several categories, including offensive points allowed (No. 1), net yards-per-game allowed (No. 1), passing yards allowed-per-game (No. 1), plays of 20+ yards allowed (No. 1) and third down defense (No. 3).
It’s a unit led by Defensive Coordinator and former Denver Broncos Head Coach Vic Fangio, who is known for a scheme that tests the opponent’s patience and willingness to slowly move down the field. For example, the average scoring drive against Philadelphia required 8.7 plays, which ranked eighth…
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