The Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA - Somehow, with a 13-4 record and on the verge of their third straight NFC championship game, the Philadelphia Eagles have convinced themselves they are not getting enough respect.

Yep, the team with the NFL's best record this decade feels underappreciated. Disrespected. Dissed.

Sounds like a defensive mechanism, or a means of motivation for Sunday's meeting with the surprising Carolina Panthers (13-5). Regardless, the Eagles don't feel they receive due credit, particularly from their opponent.

"I think it started first off from the head coach," cornerback Bobby Taylor said of Panthers coach John Fox, "when he said Green Bay is going to beat us and they are going to be hosting the NFC championship. He was wrong about that."

Actually, Taylor is a little off on his facts, but no matter. Fox said after the Panthers' 29-23 double-overtime victory at St. Louis that a Packers win against the Eagles would benefit Carolina by allowing it to stay home for the conference title game.

"There have been some other things that have been said," added Taylor. "I don't necessarily want to bring it up right now, but we know all about that. We don't need that as far as fuel to our fire because I, me personally, I already had a certain anger as far as the way I wanted to try to approach whoever we play. ... But coming from the head coach, and then particular players saying different things - if that can't get you ready to play, you don't need to be there Sunday."

Fox claims ignorance about any predictions and senses there are some outside forces at work.

"I'm not sure where that quote came from," he said. "My team is aware that it could be somewhat fabricated. I don't know if their team is aware of that. But our approach is it's just words, and it will be answered Sunday."

Answered with action, not verbiage. Still, it is odd that the more-experienced Eagles, who already beat Carolina this season in Charlotte and are favored to reach their first Super Bowl since the 1980 season, are annoyed, even angered, by what might have been said by the other side.

At this time of year, aren't there enough distractions for a playoff team, particularly one that got this far in 2002 and '03, only to lose? Isn't there enough hype in Philadelphia, a city desperate for a championship in any sport - the last came from 76ers in the 1982-83 season?

Plus, after Rush Limbaugh's comments about Donovan McNabb and the way the star quarterback responded with class on and off the field, taking the Eagles on a nine-game winning streak, the team often has been venerated, not dismissed.

At least McNabb seems to be dismissing the issue.

"There are players who are still upset about the comment," McNabb admitted. "I can't let that bother me. I have a game to play, and a dream to fulfill."

As do the Panthers. Despite having an inferior record to the Eagles this season and being in only the second year of Fox's rebuilding job, they aren't claiming to be unappreciated.

Instead, they sense they can do something singular. Safety Mike Minter points to the 2002 finale as proof.

"We went down to New Orleans and New Orleans had to win the football game to go to the playoffs," he said. "We went down there and we took them out. Them needing to win, we got that playoff atmosphere that week, and so I knew at that point this team is very special and we were going to do something special the following season."

Which would be now. Nothing could be more special than a Super Bowl.

Getting there means beating the Eagles. The disrespected Eagles.

Carolina Panthers at Philadelphia Eagles

Records: Panthers 13-5, Eagles 13-4.

Time: 6:45 p.m.

Surface: Grass. Sheridan's line: Eagles by 4.

Line: Eagles by 4.

Game-time forecast: Mid-to-low 20s.

Record vs. common opponents: Panthers 8-2, Eagles 7-2.

Marquee value: It's a rematch of the Nov. 30 meeting in Charlotte, won 25-16 by the Eagles. Philadelphia is coming off an overtime victory over Green Bay and, led by quarterback Donovan McNabb, who ran for 107 yards last week against the Packers, clearly has the NFC's hottest and most proficient team. But the Panthers - who stunned host St. Louis last Saturday with a 69-yard TD catch by Steve Smith on the first play of the second overtime - have become something of a chic pick to reach the Super Bowl.

What Carolina needs to do to win: Hope running back Stephen Davis isn't rendered as little more than a fooling-nobody decoy because of his thigh injury, or if he is, hope backup DeShaun Foster is able to pick up the slack as he did against the Rams with 95 yards on 21 carries. One part of the Panthers' formula for success is a strong running game that loosens passing lanes. The other is a strong, attack-minded defense that must adjust to the Eagles' running back-by-committee philosophy and prevent Philadelphia from catching it in over-pursuit.

What Philadelphia needs to do to win: Let McNabb do his thing, which means all the things he already does so well - reading defenses, detecting flaws and the like - as well as giving him the green light to thwart an otherwise all-bases-covered pass rush by taking off on unexpected runs. That's something the Packers were unable to cope with, as he ran for 107 yards on 11 attempts. Expect the Eagles defense to come up with some twists to help avoid the isolated breakdowns that enabled Davis to rush for 115 yards and quarterback Jake Delhomme to throw for 216 yards and two TDs.

Carolina season ends if: Davis is hobbled to the point of ineffectiveness and Foster becomes an easily read target, which, in conjunction, would limit Delhomme's ability to effectively pick his spots. Although the Panthers nicely weathered the intense noise level of the Edward Jones Dome last weekend, they will greet a Philadelphia crowd that surely will be at its most vocal, not to mention its most nasty.

Philadelphia's season ends if: It lets the demons of two consecutive losses in this championship game the last two seasons crawl into, and take residence in, the psyches of the players. They have had to deal with questions about those failures all week. The Eagles also are facing an offense with a penchant for coming up with unexpected plays at seemingly all the right times. The best example of that was Smith's game-winning catch against the Rams.

Rising stock: Foster, who demonstrated to a national audience last weekend what his teammates and coaches have known all season. Though Foster doesn't have the sheer power of Davis, he nonetheless has enough moves and speed to allow the Panthers to maintain their running game even if the marquee guy is physically less than able.

Falling stock: Rush Limbaugh, who looks sillier by the week following his early-season comments that McNabb's 0-2 start was indicative of the fact that McNabb's prowess was more a creation of the politically correct media bent on touting a black quarterback than anything else. Other than that, 13-year NFL veteran offensive guard Kevin Donnalley of the Panthers cannot afford a repeat of last weekend's problems, when he was called for several drive-hindering penalties.

Matchup to watch: How the Eagles secondary responds to the Panthers' most dangerous receiving threat, Smith. Also, how will the Panthers defense, particularly such pass-rushers as Julius Peppers, respond to the multifaceted weaponry of McNabb.

Key injuries: Panthers: Questionable: RB Stephen Davis (quadriceps). Eagles: Probable: RB Correll Buckhalter (knee), DE Jerome McDougle (arm), CB Troy Vincent (hip) and DE Brandon Whiting (knee).

Stats the difference: Peruse the numbers from the first meeting, when the Panthers' top offensive players - Delhomme (216 passing yards, two TDs, no interceptions), Davis (115 rushing yards) and Smith (80 receiving yards) - found relatively little resistance but still couldn't push Carolina over the top.

Who will win: Few teams in the league truly believed in themselves more than the Panthers, but the Eagles' resolve is strengthened by their numbing setbacks the last two seasons. Expect Philadelphia's mind-set to be nearly as nasty as that of its fans, and look for the Eagles to finally reach the Roman numeral Promised Land (XXXVIII) with a 24-17 win.

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