Could history repeat itself for the Eagles?

Last Sunday night, the Philadelphia Eagles lost to the Arizona Cardinals 40-17, falling to 6-7 on the season, and leaving them fighting for their playoff lives. With the loss, the Eagles are now in a must-win situation against Washington on Saturday night. If the Eagles lose, their season will be officially over, and fans will be waiting until next year.

This is not the first time during the Chip Kelly Era where we have seen the Eagles collapse in the month of December. A perfect example of this happened last season. The Eagles, who were 9-3 at the time, had the playoffs in their sights after coming off two dominating wins against Tennessee Titans (43-24) and Dallas Cowboys (33-10) on Thanksgiving.

But once December hit, the Eagles struggled. In Week 14, the Eagles were dominated at home by Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks, losing 24-14. The Eagles’ offense could not get anything started as quarterback Mark Sanchez only had 96 passing yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. The Seahawks’ defense also kept running back LeSean McCoy in check, holding him to 50 yards on 17 carries. On the other side, the Eagles’ defense got worn down by Wilson and running back Marshawn Lynch in the running game.

The next week, the Eagles were once again at home on primetime, taking on the Dallas Cowboys in a must-win scenario. Just like this past Sunday’s game, the Eagles did not rise to the occasion at all.

Tony Romo and Dez Bryant torched the Eagles’ defense to the tune of a 38-27 victory. That was the infamous game where the Cowboys ran the same three passing plays for a touchdown on cornerback Bradley Fletcher. Bryant finished with six receptions for 114 yards and three touchdowns, while the Eagles’ offense turned over the ball three times. Not a recipe for success at all.

That would be the second loss in a row. Third loss happened in Week 16 on the road against Washington, where DeSean Jackson and company ended the Eagles playoff hopes on national television, winning 27-24.

Now, fast forward to this season and it looks like the same scenario could be presenting itself once again. Unlike the 2014 season, where the Eagles went into December with a two-game winning streak, they started off this month with two victories over the New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills.

But once again, the inconsistent play reared its ugly head last Sunday. It also looks like it may be the beginning of the end for the Eagles with cornerbacks Byron Maxwell and Eric Rowe, and nose tackle Bennie Logan possibly not playing on Saturday night.

Can the Eagles stave off elimination against Washington? Yes. Remember in Week 4 at FedEx Field, the Eagles had the win in hand until the 6:05 mark in fourth quarter, where quarterback Kirk Cousins and Washington’s offense put together a 15-play, 90-yard drive, capped off by a game winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Pierre Garcon. But outside of that loss, there are two reasons why they can win.

The first reason why the Eagles can win on Saturday night is that Washington is 1-5 on the road this season. In their five road losses, Washington’s defense is giving up 156.8 yards on the ground, and 259.8 yards in the air per game.

The second reason is that Cousins is not good on the road as he has thrown six touchdowns and nine interceptions with a 64.0 completion percentage. It’s pretty much day and night for Cousins, when playing on the road or at home.

With all that being said, it is still going to be a tough game for the hurting Eagles to win. They must start out fast to have a chance. If they can at least get out to a quick 10-0 lead, then fans could be looking towards a possible win and you’re in scenario in Week 17 against the New York Giants. But, if they so happen to lose on Saturday night, history will once again repeat itself in the month of December for Kelly and the Eagles.