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NFL playoffs: 25 things to know about the Bears, the Eagles' first-round opponent

Chicago is rolling and its defense is the biggest reason. The Bears coordinator is a former assistant for the Philadelphia Stars.

Khalil Mack (left) has been a disruptive force for the Bears after being traded before the season began.
Khalil Mack (left) has been a disruptive force for the Bears after being traded before the season began.Read moreTony Avelar / AP

Last year, the Eagles were underdogs at home in the postseason.

This year, they will be underdogs on the road for as long as they are alive. In the wild-card round, they will visit Chicago. If they win, they’ll visit New Orleans and be bigger underdogs,

But that’s getting ahead of ourselves. Here are 25 things to know about the Bears, who will host the Eagles at 4:40 p.m. Sunday (NBC10).

1. The Bears defense led the league in takeaways with 36. They had 27 interceptions and nine fumble recoveries. They had more interceptions than TD passes allowed (22). Yo.

2. Khalil Mack tore a patellar tendon in high school and played only one full season of varsity football. As a result, he wasn’t widely recruited and ended up at the University at Buffalo.

3. The only other University at Buffalo player ever named to a Pro Bowl was Gerry Philbin, a former Jets defensive end whose position coach in college was Buddy Ryan.

4. Mack, who majored in psychology, was the fifth overall pick in 2013. The first four picks were Jadeveon Clowney, Greg Robinson (ugh), Blake Bortles (double ugh), and Sammy Watkins.

» DAVID MURPHY: The Eagles secondary needs to have its Nick Foles moment

5. The Eagles are 1-2 in playoff games in Chicago. They beat the Bears after the 2001 season and lost to them in the Fog Bowl on New Year’s Eve 1988. They also lost to the Chicago Cardinals in the 1947 championship game. The Cardinals franchise hasn’t won a title since, the longest drought in the NFL.

6. Bears Pro Bowl safety Eddie Jackson has not practiced since injuring his ankle in Week 15, but the coaching staff is optimistic he’ll be ready for Sunday. He tore his ACL in spring drills after his freshman year at Alabama and broke his leg in the middle of his senior season and fell to the fourth round in 2017.

7. Jackson is a big-play machine. He had a 76-yard pick-six and a 75-yard fumble return against Carolina last season to become the first player with two defensive touchdowns of 75 or more yards in one game. He’s just the second player in history with five defensive touchdowns in his first two seasons (Erik McMillan, Jets, 1988-89).

8. Besides Mack and Jackson, the Bears’ other Pro Bowlers are defensive tackle Akiem Hicks, cornerback Kyle Fuller, and Tarik Cohen, who made the team as a return specialist but who also is extremely dangerous as a receiver when he plays running back.

9. Chicago has won four in a row and nine of 10. The Bears were 2-1 against teams that made it to the playoffs, beating Seattle and the Rams and losing to New England.

10. They’ve given up an average of 14.9 points in that run, which includes an inexplicable overtime loss to the Giants.

11. The Eagles went 3-3 against playoff teams, with wins over Indianapolis, Houston, and the Rams. They lost to Dallas twice and New Orleans.

» MARCUS HAYES: Doug Pederson is the last man hired, the last man standing

12. Bears kicker Cody Parkey set the NFL record for points by a rookie in 2014 while with the Eagles. He might be better known, however, for missing four kicks in Week 10 against the Lions. All four hit the uprights, which is darn near impossible.

13. Parkey missed an extra point Sunday at Minnesota. His kick hit the right upright.

14. The first professional job Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio ever had was in 1984 with the Philadelphia Stars of the USFL. He was 25 years old and was a part-time defensive assistant under Jim Mora as the Stars won the first of two consecutive titles.

15. Chicago offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich succeeded Chip Kelly at Oregon when Chipper took the Eagles job in 2013.

16. Sixteen Bears scored touchdowns this season, tied with the Saints for most in the NFL. The Eagles had 11 players score.

17. Bears coach Matt Nagy was an Eagles assistant from 2008 to 2012. He and Doug Pederson also were on Andy Reid’s staff in Kansas City, and he succeeded Pederson as K.C.’s offensive coordinator in 2016 when Pederson became Eagles head coach.

» READ MORE: Carson Wentz likely won’t play in the postseason, so why isn’t he on the IR?

18. Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky had four 300-yard passing games this year, tying a Bears single-season record. Come pick up a Gale Sayers jersey if you knew that Brian Hoyer (2016), Jay Cutler (2014) and Bill Wade (1962) also had four 300-yard games in a season for the Bears.

19. Bears tight end Trey Burton set career highs with 54 receptions for 569 yards and six TDs. Of course, he’s better known around here for throwing the Philly Special touchdown pass to Nick Foles in the Super Bowl.

20. Other Bears players who have won Super Bowls: backup quarterback Chase Daniel (with New Orleans), cornerback Prince Amukamara (Giants), and linebacker Danny Trevathan (Denver). Daniel spent the 2016 season as a backup to rookie Carson Wentz for the Eagles.

» BOB FORD: In the playoffs, there’s a hard road ahead for the Eagles

21. Amukamara has one interception in 10 games against the Eagles, nine of which were when he was with the Giants. It was in 2011 when, as a rookie, he picked off a Vince Young pass intended for DeSean Jackson.

22. He’s not in Fletcher Cox’s company, but Bears defensive tackle Akiem Hicks had 7 1/2 sacks this season. In a Week 11 win over Minnesota, Hicks had five tackles for losses.

» READ MORE: Matt Nagy’s offense is another offshoot of the Andy Reid tree

23. The Bears' offensive line allowed Trubisky to be sacked just 24 times in 14 games. Nick Foles has been dropped nine times in five games.

24. Trubisky was nicknamed “Favre” while in high school for his propensity to throw dangerous (reckless?) passes.

25. He started just one season at the University of North Carolina, leading the Tar Heels to an 8-5 record and a loss to Stanford in the 2016 Sun Bowl. Trubisky hasn’t won a postseason game since high school.