For the Philadelphia Eagles, the path through the NFC playoffs runs straight through their own home turf, and head coach Nick Sirianni believes that’s the one edge the San Francisco 49ers can’t counter. Ahead of Sunday’s clash, the Eagles’ coach talked about what could prove to be the difference-maker in the wild-card clash.

“Yeah, sure, you have the advantage. Everything matters, and it is a huge advantage,” Sirianni said on the 94WIP podcast. “I believe our city is more of an advantage than other cities because of the passion and how loud it can be and how hostile it’s gonna be. It’s gonna be an awesome atmosphere, we’ll feed off that atmosphere, and we know it’s gonna be difficult on the opposing side to deal with the noise.”

The Lincoln Financial Field, home to the Philadelphia Eagles, is hosting the Sunday clash. When over 67,000 fans scream their lungs out for Sirianni’s men, it is certainly a huge advantage and a confidence boost, particularly in a key playoff game.

Sirianni’s confidence is backed by the team’s formidable record at home. The Eagles not only won five of their eight home games this season but have historically been even tougher in the postseason. Since Lincoln Financial Field opened, the Eagles are 11–4 in home playoff games there (73%).

But for this particular clash, it took a wild series of games and results for the Eagles to learn that their opponent in the wild-card round would be the 49ers. Sirianni’s team lost 24-17 to the Washington Commanders, while the Rams’ victory over the Cardinals dropped the San Francisco 49ers to the No. 6 seed, setting the stage for Sunday’s showdown.

And even the 49ers tight end George Kittle subtly hinted he would have preferred not playing the Eagles at the Lincoln Financial Field Stadium. After the loss to the Seahawks, Kittle said, “Go Cardinals,” hoping that a win for the team would mean the 49ers would get the No. 5 seed and face the Panthers instead. However, fate had other plans.

But if history is anything to go by, neither the 49ers nor the Eagles has an advantage. The 49ers took the first meeting back in 1996, but the Eagles evened the series in their pivotal 2022 NFC Championship clash, adding another layer of history to this Wild Card showdown.

The 49ers have a head-to-head advantage over the Philadelphia Eagles

Both the Eagles and the 49ers had stellar seasons with more than ten wins. The Eagles won the NFC East division crown this season. On the other hand, the San Francisco-based franchise finished third in the NFC West division but registered a better win-loss record than its Sunday opponent. The 49ers wrapped up the season at 12-5, compared to the Eagles’ 11-6.

The last time these two teams met was on December 3rd, 2023. At the time, the Eagles were 10-1 and had just beaten the Buffalo Bills 37-34 in overtime. But just when it looked like the Eagles would run away with it, the 49ers turned it around and beat them 42-19.

While the Eagles hope to leverage their home crowd, they’ll have to overcome a historical disadvantage, as the 49ers hold a 20-14-1 lead in the all-time series between the two franchises.

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As Nick Sirianni highlighted, home advantage would be a key factor in this matchup. It also doesn’t help that the 49ers have injury problems, with Nick Bosa, linebacker Fred Warner, as well as Dee Winters and Tatum Bethune currently sidelined. Still, Kyle Shanahan‘s men will pose a serious challenge due to a resilient defense, consistent form, and sound strategy this season.