The city of Philadelphia With a 55-23 victory over the Washington Commanders on Sunday, the Eagles sailed into the Super Bowl. Saquon Barkley ran 60 yards for a touchdown on Philadelphia’s opening drive and finished with 118 yards and three touchdowns. Jalen Hurts also carried for three touchdowns.
Barkley is traveling with Hurts and the Eagles to the Super Bowl for the second time in three seasons. Either the Buffalo Bills or the Kansas City Chiefs, led by former Eagles coach Andy Reid, will face the Eagles.
I won’t lie. It’s simply incredible, man, even though I attempted to minimize it in my mind. It’s incredible. Here we are. “The Super Bowl,” remarked Barkley. But simply getting there wasn’t the aim. Winning is the aim. After celebrating and enjoying this, we will immediately return to our work.
Since the 1970 merger, no team has scored more points in a conference championship game than the 55 points.
A towel-waving crowd was in a frenzy for the Eagles’ NFC championship game at Lincoln Financial Field as Hurts, who had a brace on his left knee, threw for 246 yards and a touchdown pass.
What about our quarterback? What about our quarterback? According to Eagles coach Nick Sirianni, he’s a stud. That’s how I knew he would play. I was aware. Don’t question him. He only succeeds.
To lead the Eagles to their seventh Super Bowl, A.J. Brown caught six catches for 96 yards and a touchdown, and the team scored a season-high number of points.
With two consecutive road victories, including their stunning victory against No. 1 seed Detroit last week, which prepared the way for the second-seeded Eagles to host, the Commanders helped bring the NFC title game to Philadelphia.
Jayden Daniels failed to become the first rookie quarterback to lead his team to the Super Bowl after throwing for 255 yards with one score and one interception. Four turnovers, including a lost fumble by Austin Ekeler in the third quarter that left the Commanders behind 34–23, were the Commanders’ undoing.
According to Daniels, we felt like we belonged here. For me, it was simply another game. I handled it that way.
Nick Foles, the quarterback in that game versus New England, was named honorary captain of the Eagles when they won their lone Super Bowl in the 2017 season.
Two years after losing to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, the Eagles have a chance to win their second one after cutting to other stars from that game in attendance on the big screen.
Barkley led the Eagles as he did throughout the season.
Barkley sent the spectators, who included actor Bradley Cooper, into a frenzy on the Eagles’ first offensive play from scrimmage after the Commanders had calmed a boisterous crowd with an 18-play drive and a field goal to start the game. Barkley caught Hurts’ pass, cut left, swerved around two defenders, and started on the touchdown run, becoming only the ninth running back to rush for 2,000 yards in a season.
On the following drive, the Eagles recovered a fumble, and Barkley added a 4-yard run to make it 2 for 2 on carries and scores, giving them a 14-3 lead.
With his eighth rushing score of 60 yards or more in a season on Sunday, Barkley extended an NFL record that includes the playoffs.
Daniels, who guided the Commanders to six straight wins, made his fair share of spectacular plays, including a 36-yard pass to Terry McLaurin that put them ahead 14–12.
Commanders coach Dan Quinn stated, “I was really confident in what we were going to do and how we were going to play.”
In a playoffs in which the Eagles played all three games at home, Hurts, who injured his knee when he was fired by the Rams last week, had his greatest game to date. The Eagles led 27-15 at the break after he tossed a 4-yard scoring pass to Brown and finished the first half with a tush push 1-yard touchdown.
Following a hilarious incident in which an official threatened to award the Eagles a touchdown if Washington continued to jump offside, Hurts earned the Super Bowl spot with a tush push touchdown in the fourth quarter. His ninth career postseason rushing score gave the Eagles a 41-23 lead.
At that point, the Super Bowl countdown officially began, and tiny bits of green confetti began to fly from the upper deck.
Nolan Smith sacked Daniels on fourth down in the fourth quarter, ending the Commanders’ frantic attempt at yet another late comeback victory. In the blowout, Will Shipley provided Barkley a much-needed reprieve and punched in a 2-yard touchdown run to put the team ahead 55-23. The enthusiastic chanting of “E-A-G-L-E-S! Eagles!” will undoubtedly reverberate throughout New Orleans.
Injuries
Eagles: G Landon Dickerson had a knee injury. RB Cam Jurgens, a Pro Bowl center, was active despite a back ailment. After suffering a concussion during the third quarter, Kenneth Gainwell was assessed.
Up next
On February 9, the Eagles travel to New Orleans to play the AFC champion.
— AP Sports Writer Dan Gelston
