The Eagles have been criticized for slow starts this season. Getting off to a slow start against the red hot Washington Commanders in the NFC championship and their talented rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels could be disastrous.
Daniels’ late heroics produced the only loss for the Birds over the last 15 games going into Sunday’s conference championship.
On the game’s first drive, the Eagles gave up a Zane Gonzalez 34-yard field goal that capped an 18-play, 54-yard drive that featured two fourth down conversions.
It took just one play, a 60-yard bolt to the end zone by All Pro running back Saquon Barkley, to put the home team up 7-3 with 7:39 left in the first quarter.
The Eagles never looked back. The game was close for most of the first half. The Commanders were a two-point conversion from tying the score with 7:05 left in the first half.
The attempt failed and the Eagles went on to take advantage of four Washington turnovers and end up crushing the Commanders 55-23 and punch their ticket to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans February 9, 2025 against the two-time defending champion Kansas City Chiefs.
This will be the Eagles second trip to the Super Bowl in three years and a rematch between these two teams.
Jalen Hurts, who was sensational Sunday going 20 of 28 for 246 yards accounting four touchdowns (three rush, one run) was asked to look back on his first Super Bowl and talk about what lessons he is taking with him to the Big Easy.
“Hard to say right now, Hard to say right now,” Hurts said at his postgame press conference. “I just think you have to give a ton of gratitude. These are my personal testimonies, and I know my personal perspective is not always a reflection of what is most important to the team and what we're trying to do as a team because every team is different.
“So then clearly, as a team, the mission is to go take advantage of the opportunities we present ourselves with. But also I have my history and the things that I've experienced that I can use as tools to help those around me and help myself.
“And so a lot of this stuff is presented to us, and we all have that plateau to learn from all of our experiences. And a lot of guys that have not experienced some of these things got a lot of guys that, from these Georgia guys that have made a big impact on our team, to the young defensive backs that we've had.
“And not everyone was a part of that, but that's why everyone, that's why every team is different, and every year is new. So there's been a sense of togetherness for us to all come together and try to achieve the ultimate team goal. And we’ve done a great job of that to this point of being able to put ourselves in this position.”
GAME WAS CLOSE FOR MOST OF THE FIRST HALF
After Barkley’s first touchdown, the Commanders took over at their own 27-yard line. Like they did for most the game, The Commanders moved the ball well.
But on the fourth play if this Daniels hit Dyami Brown with a six-yard pass to the right. He was met with ill humor by linebacker Zack Baun and safety Cooper DeJean. Baun was able to punch the ball from Brown’s hands, causing a fumble that safety Reed Blankenship recovered at the Washington 48.
Hurts was methodical hitting tight end Sallas Goedert fir a 10-yard gain, then wide receiver DeVonta Smith for 20 yards, then A.J. Brown for 11 yards.
Barkley finished off the drive with a four-yard run to the end zone to make the score 14-3.
The Commanders made the score 14-12 on a 36-yard touchdown pass from Daniels to Terry McLaurin with 7:15 to go in the first half. The two-point conversion failed. That’s as close as the visitors got all day.
The Eagles made it 20-12 after a 12-play, 72-yard drive ended with a Tush push one-yard TD. The two-point conversion failed.
The Commanders would commit a turnover on the ensuing kick when Jeremy McNichols fumbled after getting hit by Eagles Will Shipley. The ball was recovered by Kenneth Gainwell at the Commanders 24-yard line.
Hurts finished the drive with a four-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Brown making the score 27-12 with 39 seconds left in the half.
Daniels showed again he could move the ball on the Birds with a five-play, 46-yard drive that ended with a 42-yard field goal. The score was 27-15 at the half.
All Pro linebacker Baun talked out the keys to getting these wins.
“Keep taking the ball away and playing complimentary football,” said Baun, who led the game with 12 tackles (eight solo). “I think the last game we played them they beat in the special teams battle and that really influenced the game....and not take your foot off the gas.”
Baun elaborated on the value of complimentary football.
“The offense was really clicking today,” Baun said. “I think that was the main point of [complimentary football]. Complimentary football is when we get a takeaway. Offense takes advantage of the situation we put them in as well as special teams...winning the field position is huge.”
EAGLES OWNED THE SECOND HALF SO MUCH THEY WERE NEARLY AWARDED A TOUCHDOWN
Cam Jurgens did not the start the game at center. The Pro Bowler was dealing with back issues.
Fellow Pro Bowler and All American center from Alabama Landon Dickerson started in his place. Tyler Steen started at left guard.
But Jurgens ended up playing the second half after Dickerson had to leave with a knee injury early in the second half. Eagles running back Kenneth Gainwell was also taken out of the game with a concussion symptoms.
Jurgens played well and the Birds piled on score after score. The home team outscored The Commanders 28-8 in the second half.
The Birds were 5 of 10 on third down and one for one on fourth down conversions. Two of Hurts’ touchdowns came from a one-yard “Tush push.” Several of the third down conversions with the Eagles now legendary quarterback sneak that is virtually unstoppable.
The Eagles had a first and goal from the one with 13:43 left in the fourth. The score was 34-23. Desperation time it seemed for Washington.
Know they weren’t stopping the “Philly Shove,” defensive coordinator Joe Whitt, Jr. tried something different. Why not? A trip to the Super Bowl was on the line.
Defensive tackle Jonathon Allen and linebacker Frankie Luvu each took turns to intentionally draw false start penalties in an effort apparently to either time the instant Jurgens snapped the ball and break up the play or simply hope to cause an Eagles mistake.
They knew the penalty was minimal…half the distance to the goal…from the one yard line? According to the law of physics, the Commanders could do this for eternity and the offense would never score.
But there is a new rule in place where the referees can award a touchdown to the offense it the officials
Referee Shawn Hochuli started to warn the Commanders that these intentional penalties needed to stop. After the fourth penalty, the refs had seen enough.
“Encroachment, defense No. 93," Hochuli said. "Washington has been advised that at some point the referee can award a score if this type of behavior happens again.”
The Eagles scored to on the next play to go up 41-23. Game-set-match at that point.
After the game, Jurgens seemed stunned that they almost had an NFL-first awarded touchdown.
“Is that what they said?” Jurgens said in amazement at his locker after the game. “I didn't hear that.”
When told the incident and call by the referees was real and it was a change in the rules sparked by a similar tactic done by Von Miller in a big game several years ago, Jurgens said he didn’t hear what the referee said to the Commanders bench over the public address system simply because he was so focused on the play at hand.
“I said it earlier...when Lane went up on the conference (call) the other day...He said emotions don't win games, talk don't win games...execution wins games...they were talking, they were all fired up...we executed. We were locked into what we were doing. That's how you win.”
The only question no one in the press box could not answer was…who would get credit for officially scoring the touchdown? Jurgens? He was holding the ball? Hurts? Would it go down like an “own goal” as it’s called in soccer?
When asked who should get the score, Jurgens said with a smile, “I’d take it.”
After the game, PFWA Pool reporter Zach Berman spoke with Referee Shawn Hochuli:
Question: The sequence at the goal line with the quarterback sneaks, how was it determined that they were unfair acts by Frankie Luvu?
Hochuli: “Simply put, a team can’t commit multiple fouls in an effort to prevent the score. So, No. 4 jumped the ball a couple of times, that was when the warning came in. Again, if it’s meant to prevent a score, we can essentially award the score.”
Question: The Eagles had used hard counts before. Is that taken into consideration?
Hochuli: “So in terms of a hard count, there’s a play clock that prevents them from doing that too many times. With the defense, since we deem it as an effort to prevent the score – a repeated act – that’s where the potential for awarding the score comes in.”
NICK SIRANNI COACHES EAGLES TO A SECOND SUPER BOWL
According to notes provided by the Eagles, Nick Sirianni (5-3 in the postseason) has won five straight home playoff games, which is the longest streak by a head coach in Eagles history. Philadelphia has the 2nd-longest active home playoff winning streak in the NFL, behind San Francisco (seven).
Jurgens was asked how the Eagles have been such a force under the fourth-year coach.
“I've really got to credit Coach Sirianni and the way he leads this team,” Jurgens said at his locker. “He emphasizes connecting, being teammates, going together.
“When you've got love for a team, when you've got love for your brothers...offense, defense, special teams...everybody's together, anything is possible. You put your body on the line, you fight for your brother, we’ve got a tight team here.”
Jurgens also credited Hurts.
“He's the hardest worker on the team,” Jurgens said. “When you got your leader..the guy getting paid the most money working harder than anyone else. It just breeds confidence...it oozes out throughout the team. It's easy to follow a guy like that.”
STATS
Daniels finished 29 of 48 for 255 yards, one passing touchdown, one interception and a QB rating of 72.8. He was sacked three times.
Zach Ertz caught eleven passes for 104 yards. The Eagles Super Bowl hero from 2018 did not get into the end zone.
The Commanders rushed 25 times as a team and came up with 99 total yards.
The Eagles rushed 36 times for 229 yards including six rushing TDs.
Dallas Goedert caught seven passes for 85 yards.
Smith caught four passes for 45 yards.
After Baun's 12 total tackles (8 solo), forced fumble and fumble recovery, Oren Burks secured nine tackles (five solo) plus a sack, forced fumble and QB hit, Reed Blankenship had six tackles and fumble recovery.
Nolan Smith had four tackles and sack. Jordan Davis registered a sack and two tackles.
SAQUON’S DEEP THINKING
The Eagles All Pro running back Barkley is revealing to NFL fans that he is a deep thinker. He has become an Eagles historian. He has admitted he looks up team records as a way to motivate himself to achieve his goals.
Barkley, who rushed 15 times for 118 yards and three touchdowns talked about being in the field for the post game celebration for winning the NFC Championship.
“It was fun to be out there and see all the confetti and things you envisioned,” Barkley said. “The most special thing about it was being out there with my family. I wanted to have that moment with my family.”
Barkley said the experience was also like a dream.
“For me though, I know I've never been there, but I've been there so many times in my head,” Barkley said. “So it's kind of expected.”
The former Penn State star said the postgame setting was like and unlike a dream at the same time. He was asked about being compared to Wilbert Montgomery’s big 42-yard touchdown run to start the game against the Dallas Cowboys Jan. 11, 1981 at Veterans Stadium for the NFC title.
Montgomery would finish with 194 yards on 26 carries. The Birds would go one to get crushed by the Oakland Raiders 27-10 in the Super Bowl.
“It's awesome,” Barkley said. “I didn't get his record. He did it a little better than me...I think it was like 194 yards. But I do know that the Super Bowl was in New Orleans too and they came up short.
“It's great to have great plays, but at the end of the day, the only thing that matters is winning football games. And we've got one more.'
Barkley was asked if this season has been a breakthrough for him. He said no.
“I've always known who I am, I’ve always known what type of player I would become...Sometimes it takes longer that others...I didn't envision it would take seven years. I didn't even envision being in Philly. I thought I'd be able to accomplish that with New York.
"No time’s better than God’s time I’ll hone in on that, take advantage of that. I’ll use these couple of days to take it all in and push the gear right to whoever we play.” *
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