Philadelphia @ New England preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 15, 2014 ) Philadelphia 35, New England 42

After seeing one streak come to an end, the New England Patriots will attempt to keep a more impressive string alive when they host the sliding Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. The Patriots' bid for a perfect season was derailed in an overtime defeat at Denver last week, but they have gone 56 consecutive regular-season games without suffering back-to-back defeats.

New England absorbed a double whammy against the Broncos, not only squandering a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter but losing star tight end Rob Gronkowski to a sprained right knee. It was the latest blow to a receiving corps that lost Julian Edelman to a broken foot in Week 10, leaving Brady without his top two targets. The Eagles have dropped three in a row, including lopsided beatings at the hands of Tampa Bay and Detroit, but remain in the hunt in the watered-down NFC East. "The good news is we're only a game back in our division," said Philadelphia quarterback Sam Bradford, who is expected to return after missing two games with a shoulder injury.

TV: 4:25 p.m. ET, FOX. LINE: Patriots -9-5. O/U: 49

ABOUT THE EAGLES (4-7): While the absence of Bradford may partially explain the three-game skid, Philadelphia's defense has been shredded for 45 points in each of the last two games by a pair of offenses that rank among the bottom half in the league. Not only have the Eagles surrendered five touchdown passes apiece to Tampa Bay's Jameis Winston and Detroit's Matthew Stafford, but starting cornerback Nolan Carroll suffered an ankle injury in last week's loss. Running back DeMarco Murray has only one 100-yard game while second-year wideout Jordan Matthews has a team-high 58 catches.

ABOUT THE PATRIOTS (10-1): New England remains in the driver's seat for the top seed in the AFC and can clinch its seventh consecutive AFC East title with a victory and a loss by the New York Jets. Brady, who has thrown for 28 scoring passes against only four interceptions, is missing 138 catches and 16 TDs with the absences of Gronkowski and Edelman. The veteran quarterback hopes third-leading receiver Danny Amendola (49 receptions) can return after sitting out last weekend's loss. Starting linebackers Dont'a Hightower and Jamie Collins were limited in practice Thursday for a defense yielding 19.3 points.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Philadelphia has lost consecutive games by at least 28 points for the first time since 1971.

2. Brady, who is 4-0 versus the Eagles, needs one TD pass to move pass Dan Marino (420) for sole possession of third place on the all-time list.

3. Bradford has eight TD passes and zero interceptions in his last four games against AFC foes.

PREDICTION: Patriots 26, Eagles 24