The Eagles are going to lose by 85 points against New Zealand’s B team and shouldn’t even both and the sellout at Soldier Field is all smoke and mirrors and you should worry about the players getting pissed off because they don’t get a slice, and USA Rugby sold the farm to The Legacy Agency and won’t get much money anyway.

Now that I’ve got your attention, let’s talk about those things.

The USA might lose big, but I don’t think they will. I think they have everything to gain from putting on a heartfelt performance. The crowd - you - needs to get behind them and they have to play well - no stupid stuff, no dropped balls, no forcing passes that get intercepted and returned 90 meters - and if that happens they will be in the game.

They also need the referee, Craig Joubert, to give them a fair shake, something the Eagles don’t always get. If the rucks and the scrums are refereed with an even hand, the USA has a better chance.

Against … New Zealand B? I hate it when people start downgrading the team the USA is playing. How is it a B side? Because Richie McCaw isn’t playing?

Is it because they’re inexperienced? The New Zealand pack has 149 caps, USA pack 173. The New Zealand backs have 177 caps, the USA backs 156. The New Zealand bench has 389 caps, USA 103.

So, no, it’s not that.

Is it that they’re not professionals? Well every player on the All Blacks squad is a Super Rugby player, while the USA starting 15 has nine pros and six amateurs.

It must be, then, that it’s not the starting lineup we’re used to, right?

Only a few of the players slated for Saturday played Australia two weeks ago. Although, you’ve be hard-pressed to argue that Aaron Cruden isn’t actually the #1 choice at first-five-eighth (flyhalf), or that Charlie Faumina isn’t poised to be a big star, or that Jeremy Thrush, IRB U19 Player of the Year in 2004 isn’t experienced, or that Sam Cane isn’t as good as any of the other loosies.

I could go on. But I will mention two things and then stop on this topic: 1) Many players on supposed “weaker” teams from Ireland, Wales, etc. that played the Eagles have become international stars within a year of being relegated to scrub status. Johnny Sexton, Tommy Bowe, Alex Corbisiero all became British Lions soon after playing the USA. That happens a lot. 2) It’s not like the 1st 15 players on New Zealand are great and the rest of the players suck bilgewater. How do you think some of these All Blacks got great? By training against their competition.

OK, a third point. New Zealand already put these guys on the field. They don’t just hand out All Blacks shirts to be charitable. Even the guys with not many caps made their debuts against teams like South Africa, Australia, Argentina, and England. You think the All Blacks were going to phone it in then by running in no-good players?

So let’s put that to bed. It’s not New Zealand’s B team. It may not be their very best team, but put this lineup against the guys not playing and see how it ends up.

Let’s instead look to the fact that an international rugby game featuring the USA sold out Soldier Field. I never thought that would happen. It’s a wonderful thing that it did happen. Will USA Rugby make $4 million off the event? No. They won’t. They have to spend a lot of money to have security and concessions for 60,000. They have to pay for the All Blacks being in town. They have to pay the promoters. But, USA Rugby will make money, and more money than they’ve ever made from a test match.

Do the players get a piece? Yes, actually, they do. Under a new payment plan agreed between USA Rugby and the Athletes Advisory Council, players are now paid a per diem based on their caps. So a new player just starting out gets paid less than a guy with 40 caps who has been there year after year. But more importantly for this discussion, in addition the players get a bonus on home games based on how much money the event makes. This ties in their pay directly to the size of an event, and gives the players themselves incentive to promote the game.

So, while it’s not time to be blindly pollyanna about everything, this is a time to celebrate. More people are talking about rugby in America. America has shown that it can support having a big-name team come to town. Rugby is in USA Today and the New York Times and the Chicago Tribune all on the same day. When was the last time that happened? We’re in the big leagues.

But … the big leagues expect you to show up more than once. And the big leagues don’t have a mercy rule. The Eagles are in the big leagues now, too. They have the ability to stand toe-to-toe with this amazing group of professional athletes in black. But they have to do it.

Which leads me to that bit I said at the beginning about they shouldn’t even bother. The Eagles are rugby players. True rugby players don’t back down from a challenge. True rugby players embrace the difficult. There’s not a player on that team who would turn down this chance to play New Zealand. There are hundreds of other players wishing they were there, too.

“We know it’s going to be a tough day at the office,” USA captain Todd Clever told me a little while ago. “The guys in the squad, and the guys we have had in the past, are up for this. But we’re going to accept the challenge and leave everything out there.”

Isn't that why we have a national team?

So all good here. Go Eagles.