LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) -- A legend was born in the City of Brotherly Love last winter as backup quarterback Nick Foles led his underdog Eagles to their first Super Bowl championship. It defined a legacy that will long live in Philadelphia.
Foles lifted the Eagles and their city with some postseason heroics, including a 373-yard, three-touchdown performance that earned him recognition as MVP of Super Bowl LII. But this is a different team coming from Philadelphia to Chicago for a meeting with the Bears a year later.
The Eagles (9-7) will need Foles to be special at Soldier Field on Sunday, because nothing has come easy for them this season.
"This year I think it's a little bit different for us because we've had to grind," coach Doug Pederson said by teleconference. "We've had to really play the last month and a half of the season as playoff-type games, which is a little different for us than a year ago. We're learning how to finish games. We're learning how to compete and be competitive each week."
There's a great respect for the Eagles inside Halas Hall as the Bears (12-4) prepare for their wild-card foe. Coach Matt Nagy recalls watching the Super Bowl last February inside an empty Lake Forest tavern and marveling at what his longtime friend Pederson had pulled off.
Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky recognizes the threat of four-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Fletcher Cox. Cornerback Kyle Fuller knows the danger of former teammate Alshon Jeffery, now a top receiving target for the Eagles. Guard Kyle Long pointed to the tough matchup he faces across the line of scrimmage in a familiar face, his brother Chris Long.
But there's also a firm confidence for the Bears that so long as they play their game, it will be them moving deeper into the playoffs and the Eagles going back to Philadelphia with an unfulfilling ending this time.
"They are dynamic," defensive lineman Akiem Hicks said. "They throw a lot of looks at you. They have a good ground game. They're the Super Bowl reigning champs and you can see that when they step on the field."
With the Bears offense aiming for efficiency from Trubisky and his arsenal, the defense has its sights set on the 29-year-old Foles and stifling the Eagles offense like it has so many others before.
Foles has completed 72.3 percent of his passes this season, throwing for 1,413 yards, seven touchdowns and four interceptions. When starter Carson Wentz was ruled out with a fracture in his back in December, Foles entered the fold and led his Eagles to three straight victories and a playoff berth.
The success of Foles is no fluke, which is something the Bears certainly realize. He has hit 14 times on completions for 20 yards or more. On third downs this season, he's 40-of-51 for 425 yards, two touchdowns, one interception and 21 first downs. Foles isn't afraid to be aggressive, and Pederson has all the faith in using that to his team's advantage.
Zach Ertz leads the Eagles with 116 catches for 1,163 yards, but Foles has spread the football plenty, also mixing it to receivers Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor and Golden Tate and running back Darren Sproles.
"If there's a chance that he can throw a deep ball and he sees, it he will throw it," Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said. "That's his mentality. That's Doug's mentality. So, they will do it. And a big part off this game will be how we defend the deep balls."
Bears safety Adrian Amos will be among the most important players on his team's defense in countering with Foles.
"They got a lot of weapons," Amos said. "They got a lot of people to throw to. They got running backs, good tight end, good receivers. Foles is good at finding the right guys, spreading the ball around."
The Bears have seen offenses like this one. They held the dynamic Rams out of the end zone during a win at Soldier Field on Dec. 9 and flustered Aaron Rodgers and the Packers a week later. Fangio has downplayed the notion that high-powered offenses run this league, and his defense has done its part to prove it can handle whatever it faces.
While Foles and the Eagles enter the playoffs in a groove of having won five of their last six games, the Bears are even hotter after taking nine of their last 10 contests. They hold great respect for what Foles and the Eagles have accomplished and know well the challenge at hand Sunday.
The Bears hope to form their own legacy in the next month, because they aren't just happy to be here in the playoffs.
"We earned it because we fought for every piece of what we have today," Hicks said. "And we're not going to give it up easy."
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago's sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.
