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Vikings at Eagles 2018 NFL Playoffs: Picks, how to watch, stream NFC Championship

Since January 1967, there have been a total of 51 Super Bowls played, and the Vikings and Eagles have combined to win exactly zero of those. 

The first step toward ending that drought will take place on Sunday when the two teams meet in Philadelphia with a trip to Super Bowl LII on the line. Although the Vikings pulled off a miracle win in the divisional round, the true miracle would be if they actually won in the NFC Championship. 

The game against the Eagles will mark the sixth time since 1977 that Minnesota has advanced this far in the postseason, and Vikings fans will be hoping that this week's game doesn't turn out like the team's five previous trips. Not only have the Vikings gone 0-5 in their past five trips to the NFC title game, but they've suffered some heartbreaking losses. Three of the five losses came by one score, and two of the five losses came in overtime. Brett Favre's interception in January 2010 and Gary Anderson's missed field goal in January 1999 are two of the reason why the Vikings have one of the most tortured fan bases in the NFL

Of course, fans in Philly also know what it's like to be a tortured fan base. The Eagles have been to the NFC title game five times since 2000 and they only made it to the Super Bowl once in that span. 

It's almost feels like fate brought these two teams together for this one game. Not only do we have the miracle-makers from Minnesota, but we have the underdogs from Philly -- two teams connected by their star-crossed starting quarterbacks who were teammates less than two years ago. 

Below, you'll find how you can watch Sunday's game.

Remember: You can stream the AFC Championship Game between the Patriots and Jaguars live right here on CBSSports.com.  

How to watch Vikings vs. Eagles

Date: Sunday, Jan. 21
Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
Location: Lincoln Financial Field -- Philadelphia
Channel: Fox (check local listings)
Stream: fuboTV (Try for free)

Will Foles be able to do anything against the Vikings' defense?

Despite the fact that they're the top seed in the NFC, the Eagles will be going into Sunday's game as the underdog, and a big part of that is because of Nick Foles. Although Foles was efficient in Philly's 15-10 divisional playoff win over the Faclons last week, the vaunted defense of the Vikings will be a much bigger test.  

"I think the big thing with them, they've been together for a while, the players have played together," Foles said of the Vikings this week. "They play fast. You don't see them bust coverages. They communicate back and forth really well and they are on the same page. It's hard to key in on one thing or the other. First off, they have a lot of talent. They have a lot of talented guys, whether it's the corners, the secondary, D-Line, linebackers, there's lot of speed. I've been really impressed with watching them on tape."

One thing the Vikings do well is stop the run. The Vikings surrendered just 83.6 yards per game on the ground in 2017, which ranked second in the NFL, and that number is a big reason why the Eagles might have to rely on Foles this week. If Jay Ajayi and LeGarrette Blount can't find room to run, it's going to be up to Foles to keep the Eagles offense moving. 

Can Keenum be productive against the Eagles defense?

The fact that two former Rams quarterbacks are facing off against each other in the NFC title game is so odd, Case Keenum felt the need to joke about it this week. 

"I know this is what all you guys predicted back in the day was a Foles versus Keenum NFC Championship, so good job to all you guys that predicted that," Keenum said Wednesday. 

After throwing the biggest touchdown pass of his life in the Vikings' miracle win over the Saints, Keenum is going to have to come up big again if the Vikings are going to advance to the Super Bowl for the first time in 41 years. The Vikings will be going up against an Eagles defense that's built to stop the run. During the 2017 season, the Eagles ranked No. 1 in the NFL, surrendering just 79.2 yards per game. However, if Philly had one weakness during the regular season, it was stopping the pass. 

Of course, calling it a weakness might not even be fair because it definitely didn't look like a weakness in a divisional round where the Falcons only totaled 195 yards passing. The fact of the matter is that if Keenum has a big game, the Vikings are probably going to win. During the regular season, the Vikings went 8-1 when he threw for 225 yards or more, but just 4-2 when he didn't. 

Finally, one thing to keep and eye on in this game is how the Vikings react to playing outdoors. They've only played outdoors once since Dec. 11 and they didn't even get to practice outside this week because coach Mike Zimmer didn't like the look of the team's outdoor field. 

"The (outdoor practice) field wasn't in good enough shape," Zimmer said, via the St. Paul Pioneer Press.  

That might not sound like a big deal, but another indoor team (the Falcons) definitely had trouble last week playing on the slippery surface at Lincoln Financial Field. The surface was so bad that the Eagles have brought a new one in for Sunday's game. 

However, there's no guarantee that surface will be any better.  

Who will win?

For the second week in a row the Eagles are an underdog at home. Although they knocked off the Falcons in the divisional round, CBSSports.com senior NFL writer Pete Prisco doesn't see Philly advancing to Super Bowl LII. 

The Eagles did a nice job last week of scheming Nick Foles into a successful passing day. That won't happen here. The Vikings defense is much better than the Falcons, and that will show up. Vikings quarterback Case Keenum seems to be the charmed passer this season, and I think he continues his success here in a 21-16 Vikings win. 

To check out the NFC and AFC Championship picks from our entire NFL team, be sure to click here.

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