The point spread is trending in the wrong direction for the Eagles. PointsBet opened the Birds as 6-point underdogs; however, that line has now climbed to 7.
San Francisco is 2-1 overall and against the spread this season. It has lost three straight against the spread (ATS) at home while also not covering six of its last seven home games when favored by seven points or more.
The Eagles are 0-3 against the spread and 0-2-1 straight up this season in what was supposed to be the easy portion of their schedule.
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Perhaps playing in San Francisco (technically Santa Clara now) isn’t necessarily a bad thing for the Eagles. According to Rotoworld, the Eagles are 7-2 ATS and 6-3 straight up at the 49ers in the last nine meetings. Philly’s last trip to the Bay Area occurred back in 2014.
Perhaps the 7-point line is partly because of the play of Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, who owns the worst passer rating (63.9) among starters. Wentz also doesn’t know who he’ll be throwing to come Sunday night. Greg Ward Jr. was the only receiver on the 53-man roster out on the practice field Thursday.
Wentz will be facing a 49ers defense (third in total defense) that hasn’t allowed a quarterback to throw for more than 230 yards in a game this season. Wentz’s odds to throw for 250-plus yards are at -114 ($10 bet to win $8.77). His six interceptions are tied with Minnesota’s Kirk Cousins for most in the NFL. The Eagles are +128 ($10 bet to win $12.80) to throw the first interception of the game and +184 ($10 bet to win $18.40) to throw the most interceptions in the game.
San Francisco has a litany of injuries, too, but one big weapon is expected back. Two-time Pro Bowl tight end George Kittle should return after missing the last two weeks because of a knee injury. In the season opener, Kittle racked up 44 receiving yards. He’s currently listed at -334 ($33.40 bet to win $10) to record 50-plus receiving yards. All signs point to no Jimmy Garoppolo again for a second straight week for San Francisco. However, backup quarterback Nick Mullens filled in admirably last week en route to a 36-9 thrashing of the Giants.
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The last time the Eagles went winless in their first four games occurred in 1999 when now head coach Doug Pederson was under center. Seven-time Grammy Award winner Prince said he wanted to party like it’s 1999. Safe to say Eagles fans would disagree unless you are looking at the schedule from a betting perspective. In 1999, the Eagles went 5-11 overall but 10-6 ATS.