For all of the chatter in regards to the Philadelphia Eagles’ vaunted “Tush Push”/”Brotherly Shove,” supporters and detractors alike ought to agree the short-yardage play is communal.
Maybe it’s becoming, then, that its ordinary ball provider, quarterback Jalen Hurts, went lengthy on humility Sunday after serving to steer the Eagles to their second Tremendous Bowl in three seasons.
“I’ve by no means been motivated by attaining the private issues, private targets,” Hurts stated. “All of these issues come if you put the work in, have the suitable mentality and embrace what the group’s mission is. And the mission is to win.”
All the time a succesful passer and runner throughout a resurgent season from teammate and league MVP candidate Saquon Barkley, Hurts shared the limelight and offensive load within the NFC Championship recreation. Philadelphia’s 55-23 throttling of the Washington Commanders certainly served discover to the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs {that a} bid for an unprecedented three-peat in Tremendous Bowl LIX gained’t come straightforward.
Hurts’ heroics are a significant motive why. Whereas Barkley was busy speeding for 118 yards and three touchdowns—together with a 60-yard scoring run on Philadelphia’s first play—Hurts rushed for 3 scores and handed for 246 yards and one other TD.
The Eagles scored probably the most factors in a convention championship recreation because the 1970 AFL-NFL merger, leaving a lot of the Lincoln Monetary Area trustworthy in a frenzy all afternoon.
Bedlam seemingly began, nonetheless, with Philly’s Xs and Os.
Nodding to teach Nick Sirianni’s offensive recreation plan, Hurts joked, “I assume he let me out of my straitjacket a bit of bit right now.”
Hurts sustained a knee harm throughout the Eagles’ divisional spherical win in opposition to the Los Angeles Rams, creating uncertainty about his well being. Hurts later revealed he additionally was battling sickness. He referred to as the week of follow “in some methods exhausting.”
A bye week earlier than the Feb. 9 Tremendous Bowl, Philadelphia’s second championship crack on the Chiefs in three seasons, ought to assist Hurts and the Eagles reset and refresh.
Washington now will get the possibility on the identical throughout an offseason it hoped can be two weeks shorter.
4 Commanders turnovers helped spur the Eagles’ rout, and it’s lower than favorable when a fan base can dissect which ones was the largest backbreaker. Austin Ekeler’s misplaced fumble within the third quarter with Washington driving and trailing solely by 11 would possibly carry that distinction.
Regardless, the franchise’s future is particularly engaging with the fast growth of quarterback Jayden Daniels. Whereas he fell brief within the pursuit of changing into the primary rookie signal-caller to information his staff to a Tremendous Bowl, Daniels shined all through the autumn and early winter, together with throughout a pair of playoff wins at Tampa Bay and NFC prime seed Detroit.
“We believed that we belonged right here,” Daniels stated Sunday. “It was simply one other recreation for me. That’s how I handled it.”
The Eagles might take an analogous chorus within the lead-up to Tremendous Bowl LIX, but it surely’s positive to sound like lip service. A lot of the roster was round when Kansas Metropolis rallied previous Philadelphia for a 38-35 victory in Tremendous Bowl LVII.
Barkley was with the New York Giants then, and a star flip in his first Tremendous Bowl can be a pleasant topper on his twenty eighth birthday.
Slowing Barkley might be a substantial activity for the Chiefs, who additionally know firsthand the load that Hurts brings. He accounted for 374 yards of offense and 4 TDs within the earlier Tremendous Bowl assembly.
“I don’t need anyone else main this staff at quarterback aside from him,” Sirianni stated. “He’s a winner.”
