The Eagles are impressively heading to the Super Bowl by scoring 55 points, the most in NFC conference game history. This is their second Super Bowl appearance in three years with a coach nobody in the media valued, a Quarterback nobody believed in, troubled draft picks the rest of the league did not want to invest in, and a running back a fellow divisional rival didn’t value. The doubted ones and the rest of the team is heading to New Orleans! There is a lot to unfold from Philadelphia’s dominating performance over Washington.
Eagles’ Offense
This was the best game plan and play-calling by Kellen Moore and the Eagles’ offense of the season. Philadelphia racked up 459 yards with a balanced, turnover-over-free performance. Philly had 230 passing yards and 229 rushing yards. Talk about symmetry! They ran three inventive jet sweeps and scored seven rushing touchdowns on the day; every playmaker was involved in this game. Jalen and Saquon both had a hat trick on the ground. A tremendous offensive output!
Jalen Hurts threw for 246 yards and one TD. Hurts also ran for 16 yards and three touchdowns. Jalen protected the ball well and avoided pressure (10) by only being sacked twice. He looked confident and decisive in the pocket. He made a beautiful 31-yard pass on 4th down to A.J. and got the ball down the field vertically all day. Jalen called the protection, audibled seven times, and quieted the “he can’t read a defense” haters. This may have been Jalen’s best game of the season!
Saquon Barkley started the party with an explosive 60-yard touchdown run on the Eagle’s first drive. It took all of 18 seconds to score. He added another first-quarter touchdown on a 4-yard run to give the Eagles a 14-3 lead at the close of the first 15 minutes. Barkley carried the ball 15 times for 118 yards and had a hat trick (3 touchdowns) by adding his third in the fourth quarter to add to the route. Saquon is heading to his first Super Bowl on his birthday, 2/9/25, needing only 30 rushing yards to break the single-season rushing yard record (for both regular and postseason)currently held by Terrell Davis. He is the real league MVP.
Will Shipley had four carries in relief of Barkley in the fourth quarter and was explosive from the start with a 57-yard run. He scored a TD on his last carry, and the first person in the endzone to celebrate with him was the ultimate team player, Saquon Barkley. Shipley has not played as often as a few of the other 2024 draft picks, but he showed how promising he can be as RB-2 next season.
A.J. Brown listened to everyone’s criticism the past few weeks, and instead of being reactive, he stayed focused and continued grinding towards the ultimate goal. He took a big step towards fulfilling that dream by helping the Eagles get to the Super Bowl with his 6-catch-96-yard- one touchdown performance. He also hauled in a huge fourth-down conversion. Brown has two weeks to get more rest and finish the task at hand by helping to bring home another Lombardi trophy. He showed off his “Inner Excellence” versus the Commanders.
DeVonta Smith caught all four of his targets for 45 yards. Smitty was active in blocking downfield during the game and will be ready when his number is called in the Super Dome in two weeks.
Dallas Goedert was virtually unstoppable in this game. He hauled in 7 catches for 85 hard-fought yards. Goedert has been a vital part of the Eagle’s success this postseason, and his return from injury has been a game-changer in what the team can do offensively. His two rushing carries on jet sweeps were creative, and unexpected. The fans had been calling for these types of plays, and the Birds delivered. Dallas will have one more game to shine this season down in Louisiana.
Cam Jurgens was limited by an injured back all week. The plan was for Jurgens not to play, but when his replacement (Landon Dickerson) left the game injured for the second half, he sprang into duty and battled as hard as anyone on the field during 27 effective snaps. Beef Jurgy is a gladiator and he was emotional in describing his feelings after the game.
Landon Dickerson started the game at center for the first time in his NFL career. He was effective on the field (39 snaps) and did not allow any pressures. He left the game with an injured knee in the second quarter and missed the second half. He stated he would be okay for the Super Bowl, and his presence will be huge with the offensive line down in New Orleans.
Eagles’ Defense
This team can win any game with the defense performing at this level. They created four turnovers and held Washinton to only 7 of 17 third-down conversions. Jayden Daniels’ mobility has been problematic for opposing defenses all season. Still, the Eagles shut him down the entire fourth quarter and stifled any chance the Commanders had of rallying a comeback.
Vic Fangio has been in the NFL for 24 years and has a chance to win his first Super Bowl after leading a defense that is first in fewest yards allowed and second in total points allowed. The Eagles have forced 10 turnovers this postseason and have a chance to break the record of 12 by forcing three more in the Super Bowl. Washington only had two red zone opportunities. Fangio and his defense are on a heater!
Jalen Carter was a dominating, unstoppable force who maintained the interior lanes and caused havoc all game. As a team, the Eagles pressured Daniels into early throws on 13 of 19 his pressures. Jayden was sacked on 3 of those as well. Carter is an integral reason why the Washington offense was one-dimensional and unable to run for most of the game. Jalen is one of the best players in the NFL.
Jordan Davis had an important sack early in the game and was a freak all day. His speed was on display running down ball carriers, and he finished the contest with two tackles, one sack, 1 TFL, and one pass defense. Davis has been playing his role on the defense to perfection and his presence on the line allows everyone else around him to thrive.
Nolan Smith has had 34 pressure in the last nine games, and he feasted and disrupted again in the NFCCG. Nolan maintained the edge versus both Commanders’ running backs and Jayden Daniels. Smith finished with four tackles, one sack, and one TFL and has evolved into a top-tier defensive player this postseason. He has the most sacks (4) in a single postseason by any Eagles player in franchise history.
Jalyx Hunt played 42 snaps, a production nobody saw for the rookie heading into the season. He had five tackles and one QB hit. He will be a force off the Edge for Philadelphia for years to come.
Zack Baun led the team in tackles with 8; he had a fumble recovery and a TFL. The all-pro, defensive player of the year candidate has changed the identity and complexity of the defense. Howie and the Eagles will get him signed to a long-term deal when the season is over, but for right now, Baun gets to play in the stadium of the team that did not value or utilize his talents to win a Super Bowl title in New Orleans.
Oren Burks forced a fumble with a perfectly timed punch out that led to a turnover and a touchdown five plays later. Oren has played extremely well for the injured Nakobe Dean, and he finished the game with five tackles, a forced fumble, and a sack. The Eagles linebacking core is playing well and confident heading to New Orleans.
Quinyon Mitchell had his second interception in as many games and was locking down receivers all afternoon. Mitchell had two pass defenses, and per Next Gen stats, he lined up against Terry McLaurin on 36 of his 48 routes, and Mitchell was in press coverage on half of those snaps. Q allowed one reception for 7 yards on four targets against McLaurin. Terry was frustrated and locked up all night, as he was in the team’s first matchup earlier this year.
Cooper DeJean played well and limited targets to his part of the field. He had 2 pass breakups and 4 tackles versus the Commanders and ran for ten yards on his lone punt return. DeJean will look to celebrate his 22nd birthday in style down in the Bayou with a Lombardi trophy.
Chauncey Gardner-Johnson had 3 tackles and was a punishing force in the defensive backfield. The Eagles have made it to the Super Bowl in both seasons CJGJ has been on the roster.
Special Teams
ST (Will Shipley) forced a fumble in this game to get difference-making plays at every facet of the team.
Jake Elliott made all 7 of his points after touchdown attempts but missed a field goal in the cold, Philadelphia windy conditions. He will have no weather concerns kicking in the Dome during the Super Bowl, but Jake will have to perform better, as he also missed a FG in New Orleans earlier this season.
Braden Mann was solid as always in his two punts and almost had one downed at the 2 yards line if not for a questionable call in the endzone on the touchback. He has kept the opponent pinned deep in their territory all season long.
Looking Ahead:
The Philadelphia Eagles will head to New Orleans to play in Super Bowl 59 versus the Kansas City Chiefs on February 9th. This will be the second meeting in the big game between these two teams in three years. Everyone remembers what happened the last time the Eagles had a rematch in the Super Bowl. Fly, Eagles, Fly, and enjoy this ride over the next two weeks!
As always, Thank you for reading.
Follow me on X @PHLEagleNews
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
