Tag: EAGLES
Eagles fall to Saints, but still should have no issues securing the top spot in NFC
The Philadelphia Eagles(13-3) had an opportunity to wrap up the NFC East and get the number one seed in NFC on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints(7-9) at Lincoln Financial Field.
Unfortunately for the Eagles, they played one of their worst games of the season on offense(season-low 10 points) and fell to New Orleans 20-10.
The Eagles have their first two-game losing streak of the season but can still clinch the number one seed and division with a win over the Giants at the Linc next week.
Gardner Minshew made his second consecutive start for the injured Jalen Hurts(shoulder), and at times, he struggled, and the Eagles’ offense struggled.
Last week, against the Cowboys, Minshew helped the Eagles score 27 points on offense as he threw three touchdowns, but he had two interceptions. This week, he was 18/32 for 274 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.
Philadelphia had four three-and-outs to start the game, and Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said the Minshew and offense were not at their best against the Saints.
“Obviously, he’s going to want plays back,” Sirianni said about Minshew. “We’re all going to want plays back, right? I’ll have to look at the tape right there. “Obviously, 23(Lattimore) made a good play on the interception in a critical time on that one. I’ll look at what that really looked like up close. I don’t want to comment yet. Obviously, it wasn’t Gardner’s best game, and it wasn’t our best game as an offense. Not even close, right?
“Gardner is capable of playing better. We’re capable of coaching better, and we are capable of playing better as an entire unit.”
The backbreaker for the Eagles was the pick-6 by Marshon Lattimore in the fourth that gave New Orleans their only points in the second half and put the game away.
A.J. Brown was the target on the interception, and according to Brown, who caught four passes for 97 yards, including a 78-yard touchdown reception, he tried to tell Minshew that New Orleans had changed their coverage on the play.
“It was initially a press [coverage],” Brown said. “I was trying to get [Eagles QB] Gardner’s [Minshew] attention to look up, but he never looked back at me. [Saints CB Marshon Lattimore] actually caught it right out, and he basically doubled me on the play.”
Here’s how Minshew explained the play:
“We ran that same play earlier and it was the same coverage and they made a great adjustment to jump the route,” he said. “I should have seen that leverage when we made the motion. I assumed since it was the same coverage, [Saints CB Marshon Lattimore] was going to play it the same, but he made a great adjustment and made the play to beat us.”
Despite the loss, Brown says there’s no pressure on the Eagles.
“There’s still no pressure,” he said. “We’ve got to go out and play ball. We’ve got to go out and execute. Today was just unacceptable.”
Now, the Eagles have to hope they can get Hurts back against the Giants, and according to Sirianni, he’s close to returning.
“He was close this week,” Sirianni said. “Obviously, we will take it one day at a time. I mean, for me to say right now and today that, yeah, Jalen is playing or, no, he is not playing, I don’t think is fair to anybody because so many things can happen in a week. We’re going to have to evaluate and see where he is. Nothing changes in that aspect of it. His health is the No. 1 priority, and not putting him in a position that is going to risk his health.
“We’ll evaluate that as the week goes. Obviously, if he’s ready to go, he’ll play.”
It’s clear that the Eagles need Hurts to be on the field for this offense to flourish. At this point, Hurts is the system! In reality, barring a collapse, the Eagles should be able to get the top spot in the NFC. Their Week 18 opponent, the Giants, who clinched a playoff berth on Sunday, have nothing to play for as they are locked into the sixth seed, so they might only play a few of their starters, which bodes well for Philadelphia.
Notes:
Following a seven-sack performance on Sunday (2nd-highest total this season), Philadelphia has now totaled a team-record 67 sacks. Only four teams have posted more sacks in NFL single-season history – the 1984 Bears (72), 1989 Vikings (71), 1987 Bears (70) and 1985 Giants (68).
The Eagles are the first team since 1982 to post six-plus sacks in five consecutive games.
Playoff scenarios for Week 17 in NFL
As we enter Week 17, five of the seven teams in AEC have clinched(Bills, Chiefs, Ravens, Bengals, Chargers), while in the NFC, four teams(Eagles, Vikings, 49ers, Cowboys).
Below are the playoff scenarios for Week 17 in the NFL:
AFC
CLINCHED:
Buffalo Bills – AFC East division title
Kansas City Chiefs – AFC West division title
Baltimore Ravens – playoff berth
Cincinnati Bengals – playoff berth
Los Angeles Chargers – playoff berth
BUFFALO BILLS (12-3)
Week 17 – at Cincinnati (11-4), Monday, 8:30 PM ET, ESPN/ABC
Week 18 – vs. New England (7-8)
Buffalo clinches homefield advantage and AFC’s lone first-round bye with:
-
BUF win + KC loss
CINCINNATI BENGALS (11-4)
Week 17 – vs. Buffalo (12-3), Monday, 8:30 PM ET, ESPN/ABC
Week 18 – vs. Baltimore (10-5)
Cincinnati clinches AFC North division title with:
-
CIN win + BAL loss or tie OR
-
CIN tie + BAL loss
MIAMI DOLPHINS (8-7)
Week 17 – at New England (7-8), Sunday, 1:00 PM ET, CBS
Week 18 – vs. New York Jets (7-8)
Miami clinches playoff berth with:
-
MIA win + NYJ loss or tie OR
-
MIA tie + NYJ loss + PIT loss or tie
NFC
CLINCHED:
Minnesota Vikings – NFC North division title
San Francisco 49ers – NFC West division title
Dallas Cowboys – playoff berth
Philadelphia Eagles – playoff berth
NEW YORK GIANTS (8-6-1)
Week 17 – vs. Indianapolis (4-10-1), Sunday, 1:00 PM ET, CBS
Week 18 – at Philadelphia (13-2)
N.Y. Giants clinch playoff berth with:
-
NYG win OR
-
NYG tie + SEA loss or tie + WAS loss or tie
OR
-
NYG tie + SEA loss or tie + DET loss or tie OR
-
NYG tie + WAS loss or tie + DET loss or tie + GB loss or tie OR
-
SEA loss + WAS loss OR
-
SEA loss + DET loss + GB loss or tie OR
-
WAS loss + DET loss + GB loss
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (13-2)
Week 17 – vs. New Orleans (6-9), Sunday, 1:00 PM ET, FOX
Week 18 – vs. N.Y. Giants (8-6-1)
Philadelphia clinches NFC East division title with:
-
PHI win or tie
OR
-
DAL loss or tie
Philadelphia clinches homefield advantage and NFC’s lone first-round bye with:
-
PHI win
OR
-
PHI tie + MIN loss or tie
OR
-
DAL loss or tie + MIN loss + SF loss or tie
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS (7-8)
Week 17 – vs. Carolina (6-9), Sunday, 1:00 PM ET, FOX
Week 18 – at Atlanta (5-10)
Tampa Bay clinches NFC South division title with:
-
TB win
WASHINGTON COMMANDERS (7-7-1)
Week 17 – vs. Cleveland (6-9), Sunday, 1:00 PM ET, FOX
Week 18 – vs. Dallas (11-4)
Washington clinches playoff berth with:
-
WAS win + SEA loss + DET loss + GB loss or tie
Eagles’ Steichen: ‘I thought Gardner [Minshew] was really efficient throwing the football’
In his first start of the season for the injured Jalen Hurts, Eagles quarterback Gardner Minshew completed 24-of-40 passing attempts for 355 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs, and added a one-yard rushing TD.
In addition, he became the first Eagles QB since 1991 to record a fourth-down passing TD and fourth-down rushing TD in the same game.
Unfortunately, the Eagles would fall to the Cowboys 40-34 on Saturday.
As a whole, Minshew was solid and gave his team an opportunity to win late.
On Tuesday, Eagles offensive coordinator Shane Steichen gave his thoughts on Minshew’s performance.
“I thought [QB] Gardner [Minshew] was really efficient throwing the football,” Steichen said. “He got the ball out of his hands quickly, really efficient on 3rd down, made some really good plays. That 4th-and-2 hit to [WR] DeVonta [Smith], he was coming out, and we had [TE] Dallas [Goedert] in the flat, and [Cowboys CB Trevon] Diggs passed it off and tried to take Dallas, and he snapped around, flipped his hips and hit the big one.
“Then the 3rd down to DeVonta in the red zone versus blitz zero was really good, too. He had off coverage right there and liked what he saw, and DeVonta ran a great route, and he laid it just out in front for him to catch it. Overall, really strong performance by him, I thought.”
Minshew did throw two picks, both involving wide receiver Quez Watkins. Steichen discussed both interceptions.
“The one on the slant, that was a really good play by the DB,” Steichen said. “It was a bang-bang play—credit to them in that situation.
“The other one was just like a little pivot over the ball. It was just off by a little bit. Sometimes those things happen, and we know that we have to get those things cleaned up. When you turn it over four times and put our defense in bad situations like we did with short fields, we know that we can’t do that. That’s one of our formulas is taking care of the football, and we didn’t do a good enough job doing that.”
If Hurts can’t go on Sunday against the Saints, Minshew would get another shot, and if Hurts is not completely healthy, it’s probably best that he continues to play.
The Eagles have to win one of their final two games, and they can’t beat the Saints this week and the Giants next week, both at Lincoln Financial Field; they don’t deserve to be the number one seed and may not be Super Bowl contenders after all.
Eagles’ Sirianni: ‘Gardner(Minshew) will be our guy, and Gardner will be ready’
It’s official; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts(shoulder) will miss Saturday’s game against the Cowboys. In his place, Gardner Minshew will get the start.
Last season, in his only start, Minshew was very effective as he threw for 242 yards and two touchdowns in the team’s 33-18 win over the Jets.
On Friday, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said Hurts did everything he could to get on the field, but he was just not healthy enough to play.
“Yeah, it’s looking like it’s going to be [QB] Gardner [Minshew],” Sirianni said. “[QB] Jalen [Hurts] did everything he possibly could to get his body ready to go, and just at the end of the day, he’s not going to be able to do it.
“Man, he tried like crazy, and I know he still wants to go. That’s just the toughness [he has]. Jalen Hurts is the toughest player I’ve ever been around. My brother and I talked last night. I talk to my brothers at the end the week all the time. He’s in recruiting now. He’s not out here, but he needs to get some of the good Eastern Pennsylvania players over there in Western Pennsylvania.
“He’s like, ‘Man, how did he play through that? Like he did that to his shoulder?’ [I said] ‘Yep, yep, that’s what he did.’ [He said] ‘How did he throw any passes after that?’ I go, ‘Because he’s the toughest son of a gun that I’ve ever been around.’
“For him to go out there and do what he did after he had that sprained shoulder was really truly remarkable that he was able to go and not just play, but play really well.
“He’s so tough. But we just felt like it’s the best thing that he doesn’t play this week. His body is not there yet. Gardner will be our guy, and Gardner will be ready. Gardner worked his butt off for this opportunity against a really good football team and had a great practice yesterday.
“I think you guys have all heard that, how good a practice he had yesterday. A lot of energy out there. He’s ready to go.”
When asked if Hurts would be ready next week against the Saints, Sirianni did not want to say.
“You know I’m not going to go there yet,” he said. “We’ll take it one day at a time, one game at a time, obviously. Again, like I said, he’s worked his butt off to try to get himself back. We’ll see day by day of where he is.”
There’s no reason to rush Hurts back, especially with Saturday’s game not being a must-win situation. Hopefully, for the Eagles, Minshew can get the job done. If not, they can still clinch the number one seed in the NFC if they defeat the Saints at the Linc.
Eagles led the way with eight Pro Bowl selections
The Philadelphia Eagles, who have the best record in the NFL at 13-1, led all teams with eight Pro Bowl selections as the NFL announced on Wednesday night the AFC and NFC rosters for the 2023 Pro Bowl Games.
Thirty teams had at least one player selected to the 2023 Pro Bowl Games roster.
The players from each conference will compete in a series of exciting Pro Bowl Skills competitions throughout the week and the first-ever AFC vs. NFC Flag football games on Sunday, February 5, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
The 2023 Pro Bowl Games will begin with both new and fan-favorite Skills and continue on Sunday with Skills and Flag games
There will be a lot of youth in the quarterback rooms in this Pro Bowl. Four of the six quarterbacks selected to the initial roster – Buffalo’s Josh Allen, Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow, Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts(first time), and Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes – are age 27 or younger.
Seattle quarterback Geno Smith, who is having the best season of his career, was chosen for his first Pro Bowl in his 10th career season
The Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs each had seven players chosen. Three additional teams – the Baltimore Ravens(six), Minnesota Vikings(five) and San Francisco 49ers (six) – each placed at least five players on the Pro Bowl roster.
Twenty-five of the players selected to the Pro Bowl today are first-time All-Stars.
Roster selections are determined by the consensus votes of fans, players and coaches. Each group’s vote counts one-third toward determining the 88 All-Star players.
Below are the complete Pro Bowl rosters for the NFC & AFC:
2023 PRO BOWL GAMES PLAYERS BY POSITION
(*First-time Pro Bowl selection; Bold/Italic: Starter)
AFC
OFFENSE (21)
|
|
QUARTERBACKS (3) |
TIGHT ENDS (2) |
||
Josh Allen, Buffalo |
Mark Andrews, Baltimore |
|||
Joe Burrow, Cincinnati |
Travis Kelce, Kansas City |
|||
Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City |
||||
TACKLES (3) |
||||
WIDE RECEIVERS (4) |
Terron Armstead, Miami |
|||
Davante Adams, Las Vegas |
Orlando Brown, Kansas City |
|||
Ja’Marr Chase, Cincinnati |
Laremy Tunsil, Houston |
|||
Stefon Diggs, Buffalo |
||||
Tyreek Hill, Miami |
GUARDS (3) |
|||
Joel Bitonio, Cleveland |
||||
RUNNING BACKS (3) |
Quenton Nelson, Indianapolis |
|||
Nick Chubb, Cleveland |
* |
Joe Thuney, Kansas City |
||
Derrick Henry, Tennessee |
||||
Josh Jacobs, Las Vegas |
CENTERS (2) |
|||
* |
Creed Humphrey, Kansas City |
|||
FULLBACK (1) |
* |
Mitch Morse, Buffalo |
||
Patrick Ricard, Baltimore |
DEFENSE (18)
|
|
DEFENSIVE ENDS (3) |
|
INSIDE/MIDDLE LINEBACKERS (2) |
|
Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas |
C.J. Mosley, N.Y. Jets |
|||
Myles Garrett, Cleveland |
* |
Roquan Smith, Baltimore |
||
Trey Hendrickson, Cincinnati |
||||
CORNERBACKS (4) |
||||
INTERIOR LINEMEN (3) |
* |
Sauce Gardner, N.Y. Jets |
||
Chris Jones, Kansas City |
Xavien Howard, Miami |
|||
Jeffery Simmons, Tennessee |
Marlon Humphrey, Baltimore |
|||
* |
Quinnen Williams, N.Y. Jets |
* |
Pat Surtain II, Denver |
|
OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS (3) |
FREE SAFETY (1) |
|||
Matthew Judon, New England |
Minkah Fitzpatrick, Pittsburgh |
|||
Khalil Mack, L.A. Chargers |
||||
T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh |
|
STRONG SAFETIES (2) |
||
|
|
Derwin James, L.A. Chargers |
|||
|
|
* |
Jordan Poyer, Buffalo |
SPECIALISTS (5)
PUNTER (1) |
RETURN SPECIALIST (1) | |||
| * | Tommy Townsend, Kansas City | Devin Duvernay, Baltimore | ||
| PLACEKICKER (1) | SPECIAL TEAMER (1) | |||
| Justin Tucker, Baltimore | * | Justin Hardee, N.Y. Jets | ||
| LONG SNAPPER (1) | ||||
| Morgan Cox, Tennessee |
2023 PRO BOWL GAMES PLAYERS BY POSITION
(*First-time Pro Bowl selection; Bold/Italic: Starter)
NFC
OFFENSE (21)
| QUARTERBACKS (3) | TIGHT ENDS (2) | |||
Kirk Cousins, Minnesota |
T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota |
|||
* |
Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia |
|
George Kittle, San Francisco |
|
* |
Geno Smith, Seattle |
|
||
|
|
TACKLES (3) |
|||
WIDE RECEIVERS (4) |
Lane Johnson, Philadelphia |
|||
A.J. Brown, Philadelphia |
|
Trent Williams, San Francisco |
||
Justin Jefferson, Minnesota |
|
Tristan Wirfs, Tampa Bay |
||
CeeDee Lamb, Dallas |
|
|||
* |
Terry McLaurin, Washington |
GUARDS (3) |
||
* |
Landon Dickerson, Philadelphia |
|||
RUNNING BACKS (3) |
* |
Chris Lindstrom, Atlanta |
||
Saquon Barkley, N.Y. Giants |
|
Zack Martin, Dallas |
||
* |
Tony Pollard, Dallas |
|
||
* |
Miles Sanders, Philadelphia |
CENTERS (2) |
||
|
|
Jason Kelce, Philadelphia |
|||
|
|
FULLBACK (1) |
|
Frank Ragnow, Detroit |
|
|
|
Kyle Juszczyk, San Francisco |
|
DEFENSE (18)
|
|
DEFENSIVE ENDS (3) |
INSIDE/MIDDLE LINEBACKERS (2) |
||
Nick Bosa, San Francisco |
* |
Demario Davis, New Orleans |
||
Brian Burns, Carolina |
Fred Warner, San Francisco |
|||
Demarcus Lawrence, Dallas |
||||
CORNERBACKS (4) |
||||
INTERIOR LINEMEN (3) |
Jaire Alexander, Green Bay |
|||
Jonathan Allen, Washington |
Trevon Diggs, Dallas |
|||
Aaron Donald, L.A. Rams |
Darius Slay, Philadelphia |
|||
* |
Dexter Lawrence, N.Y. Giants |
* |
Tariq Woolen, Seattle |
|
OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS (3) |
FREE SAFETY (1) |
|||
Micah Parsons, Dallas |
Quandre Diggs, Seattle |
|||
| * |
Haason Reddick, Philadelphia |
|||
Za’Darius Smith, Minnesota |
STRONG SAFETIES (2) |
|||
Budda Baker, Arizona |
||||
* |
Talanoa Hufanga, San Francisco |
SPECIALISTS (5)
PUNTER (1) |
|
RETURN SPECIALIST (1) |
||
Tress Way, Washington |
* |
KaVontae Turpin, Dallas |
||
PLACEKICKER (1) |
|
SPECIAL TEAMER (1) |
||
Jason Myers, Seattle |
* |
Jeremy Reaves, Washington |
||
LONG SNAPPER (1) |
||||
* |
Andrew DePaola, Minnesota |
Eagles’ Sirianni on Hurts: ‘He is one of the toughest guys I know, and he heals fast’
On Monday, it was reported that Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts suffered a sprained right shoulder in the team’s 25-20 win over the Bears on Sunday, and on Tuesday, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni confirmed the injury.
According to reports, Hurts could miss two games. However, according to Sirianni, there’s a chance Hurts could play on Saturday in Dallas against the Cowboys.
“I’m never going to put a timetable on anybody,” Sirianni said. “I know you will always try. I’ll never put a timetable on him. He has a sprained shoulder, and I don’t put anything past [QB] Jalen Hurts as far as his mental and physical toughness. There’s a chance he could play this week.
“He is one of the toughest guys I know, and he heals fast. He’s a freak. His body is not like – pardon me – yours or mine. I’m shaming myself there a little bit, too. His body is not like ours. He heals fast. He came back fast from his injury last year, and I will not rule him out, will not put a timetable on him, and we’ll see. We’ll see what happens this week. He’ll be ready to go if he can play this week, and so will [QB] Gardner [Minshew].”
Hurts was injured when Bears DE Trevis Gipson tackled him on a run play in the third quarter. The third-year quarterback stayed in the game and did not seem impacted by the injury. According to Sirianni, that’s a testament to Hurts’ toughness.
“With [QB] Jalen [Hurts], he hurt that, as you guys know, in the third quarter, and that hurt him,” Sirianni said. “He was hurting. He had a freaking great fourth quarter.
“Pain tolerance with this guy, I never worry about. He’s an unbelievable competitor, unbelievable toughness. This is why every time there’s a question asked about Jalen, the first thing that you get, regardless of how he’s playing or whatnot, is about his leadership ability and his toughness, both mentally and physically. It will be more about the healing with Jalen than it will be about the pain because he can play through anything.”
At this point, the Eagles need to win one of their last three games to win the NFC East and be the number one seed in the NFC, so many would say if there are any questions about Hurts’ health, they should sit him and start backup quarterback Gardner Minshew. However, Sirianni disagrees.
“Because we don’t take anything for granted,” he said. “We want to make sure that we go out there and take care of our business. We all know we need to win one more game to make sure that we win the division. That’s your first goal that you want to do.
“We want to go out there and win this game, and if a guy is ready to play, then he’s ready to play. We’re never going to put the guy in a scenario where we’re going to be detrimental to him or set him back. So, it is all about if he’s ready to play. We think that that’s a possibility.”
Last season, Hurts missed one game due to an ankle injury in Week 13. Some question whether a dual-threat quarterback like Hurts can last an entire season, but Sirianni believes Hurts’ ability to pass and run makes this offense special.
“I think he’s got — what does he have, 13 (rushing)touchdowns, different ways to do that,” Sirianni said. “Like I said, we’re always going to think about his safety first, and I know you guys are probably like, well, he got hurt. Well, he also ran for 180 yards against Green Bay, and I get it; sometimes, it’s a result-based thing. Well, he didn’t get hurt that one; he’s our MVP, oh, he did get hurt; what are you guys doing? I get that. I get that that’s going to be part of the scrutiny, and I understand that. But we are who we are as an offense, explosively, scoring-wise, all those different things, because Jalen can do so many things, both running the football and passing the football.”
Losing Hurts negatively impacts the team, but the Eagles have three games left, and two of those three games are against the Saints and Giants at the Linc.
The Eagles could win one of those two games without Hurts, so if there are any questions about Hurts’ health, Philly should sit him, which will probably happen.
NFL playoff scenarios for Week 16
Things are starting to heat in the NFL, and as we get closer to the end of the season, more teams are beginning to clinch playoff spots.
The Chiefs(AFC West) and Bills have clinched in the AFC, and in the NFC, the Eagles, Vikings(NFC North), 49ers(NFC West), and Cowboys are all in.
Below are the playoff scenarios for Week 16 in the NFL:
AFC
CLINCHED:
Kansas City Chiefs – AFC West division title
Buffalo Bills – playoff berth
BALTIMORE RAVENS (9-5)
Week 16 – vs. Atlanta (5-9), Saturday, 1:00 PM ET, FOX
Week 17 – vs. Pittsburgh (6-8)
Week 18 – at Cincinnati (10-4)
Baltimore clinches playoff berth with:
-
BAL win + MIA loss or tie + NE loss or tie OR
-
BAL win + MIA loss or tie + NYJ loss or tie OR
-
BAL win + NE loss or tie + NYJ loss or tie OR
-
BAL tie + NE loss + NYJ loss OR
-
BAL tie + NE loss + MIA loss + LAC win OR
-
BAL tie + NE loss + MIA loss + NYJ tie OR
-
BAL tie + NE loss + NYJ tie + LAC win OR
-
BAL tie + NE tie + NYJ loss + MIA loss OR
-
BAL tie + NE tie + NYJ tie + MIA loss + LAC win OR
-
NE loss + NYJ loss + CLE loss or tie + LV loss or tie + TEN loss or tie + LAC win\
BUFFALO BILLS (11-3)
Week 16 – at Chicago (3-11), Saturday, 1:00 PM ET, CBS
Week 17 – at Cincinnati (10-4)
Week 18 – vs. New England (7-7)
Buffalo clinches AFC East division title with:
-
BUF win or tie
OR
-
MIA loss or tie
CINCINNATI BENGALS (10-4)
Week 16 – at New England (7-7), Saturday, 1:00 PM ET, CBS
Week 17 – vs. Buffalo (11-3)
Week 18 – vs. Baltimore (9-5)
Cincinnati clinches playoff berth with:
-
CIN win or tie
OR
-
NYJ loss or tie
LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (8-6)
Week 16 – at Indianapolis (4-9-1), Monday, 8:15 PM ET, ESPN
Week 17 – vs. L.A. Rams (4-10)
Week 18 – at Denver (4-10)
L.A. Chargers clinch playoff berth with:
-
LAC win + LV loss or tie + NE loss + NYJ loss OR
-
LAC win + LV loss or tie + NE loss + NYJ tie + MIA loss OR
-
LAC win + LV loss or tie + NE tie + NYJ loss + MIA loss
NFC
CLINCHED:
Minnesota Vikings – NFC North division title
San Francisco 49ers – NFC West division title
Dallas Cowboys – playoff berth
Philadelphia Eagles – playoff berth
NEW YORK GIANTS (8-5-1)
Week 16 – at Minnesota (11-3), Saturday, 1:00 PM ET, FOX
Week 17 – vs. Indianapolis (4-9-1)
Week 18 – at Philadelphia (13-1)
N.Y. Giants clinch playoff berth with:
-
NYG win + WAS loss + DET loss
OR
-
NYG win + WAS loss + SEA loss OR
-
NYG win + DET loss + SEA loss
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (13-1)
Week 16 – at Dallas (10-4), Saturday, 4:25 PM ET, FOX
Week 17 – vs. New Orleans (5-9)
Week 18 – vs. N.Y. Giants (8-5-1)
Philadelphia clinches NFC East division title with:
-
PHI win or tie
-
Philadelphia clinches homefield advantage and NFC’s lone first-round bye with:
-
PHI win
OR
-
PHI tie + MIN loss or tie
Eagles get win number 13 in Chicago
Win number 13 was not a masterpiece for the Philadelphia Eagles, but it was a win as they defeated the Chicago Bears 25-20 at a cold and windy Soldier Field on Sunday.
With the win, Jalen Hurts(24 years, 133 days) is the youngest quarterback in NFL history to lead a team to a 13-1 start.
At times, the Eagles offense struggled. They had three turnovers, including two Hurts’ interceptions. Those turnovers kept the Bears in the game.
Despite the turnovers, Hurts made some big plays: he completed 22-of-37 passing for 315 yards and added 61 yards rushing on 17 attempts with three touchdowns. Hurts became the second quarterback since the 1970 merger to have multiple three-plus rushing touchdown performances in their career.
Hurts battled the cold and won.
“I think early in the game, personally, I really couldn’t feel my hands,” Hurts said. “It was very cold, didn’t really have good vision on the field, personally. Just a lot of different things going on. I think to be able to persevere through that, that’s not something that was done by myself.”
It wasn’t all Hurts; he got some help from his weapons. A.J. Brown led all receivers with nine catches for a career-high 181 yards, while DeVonta Smith hauled in five catches for 126 yards.
Those guys made big plays throughout, and Brown came up huge when the Eagles needed him the most. In the fourth quarter, and the Eagles leading 17-13, Hurts connected with Brown on a 68-yard completion that set up Philly’s final touchdown. After the Bears cut the lead to 25-20, Hurts connected with Brown on a 12-yard completion that allowed the Eagles to run out the clock.
Again, this was not a pretty win for the Eagles, but they did what they needed to do, and now, they get ready for their big showdown in Dallas against the Cowboys on Christmas Eve.
