PHILADELPHIA -- The Eagles are well aware of the physical brand of football the Lions play and intend to "fight fire with fire" Sunday night, defensive tackle Jordan Davis says.
"Being physical as well," Davis said Friday on the messaging from the coaches. "We never want to shy away from that. We never want to shy away from a physical team. We always want to meet physicality with physicality."
The 7-2 Eagles and 6-3 Lions will square off in a game that could shape the race for the No. 1 seed in the NFC. The Lions (33-10) and Eagles (32-11) rank first and second in the NFL in wins since the start of the 2023 season, but this is the first time they have met during that span.
Eagles coach Nick Sirianni and Lions coach Dan Campbell were both hired in 2021. They have faced off just twice, with Philadelphia winning both games: Week 8 in 2021 (44-6) and Week 1 in 2022 (38-35).
"Got a lot of respect for how he runs his program and the respect that I can see his guys have for him," Sirianni said of Campbell. "The way they play physical, the way they play tough, the way they play with effort, the way they play with fundamentals, I see a lot of similar things that are happening in their program that happen in our program."
Both teams have a smashmouth, ground-heavy approach on offense. Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio called Detroit's front "the best O-line in the league."
The Eagles are stout in the trenches as well and appear close to getting center Cam Jurgens back from a knee injury. He practiced all week and has no injury designation but would not say he was definitely playing Sunday.
Asked what perspective he has gained while sidelined, Jurgens said, "I'm happy we're winning. Seems like there's a lot of negativity going around there [on the outside]," likely referencing the conversation around wide receiver A.J. Brown's frustrations and the inconsistencies on offense.
Internally, Jurgens said, it's been "business as normal."
"I think guys are doing a really good job of staying together and just being good teammates, being there for each other," he said.