Jalen Hurts and the Eagles are back in midseason form. Opponents, beware.
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PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Eagles had made an emphatic statement with their play here Saturday night, outclassing the New York Giants in a 31-point victory to advance to the NFC championship game. But for safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, there was more to be said as he left the field in a celebratory mood and made his way to the home locker room at Lincoln Financial Field.
“We got two more,” he said in the general direction of a group of reporters gathered outside the doorway. “I told you all that [stuff].”
If Gardner-Johnson had been certain about how the Eagles would play in this game following their first-round postseason bye, he was among the few. This was the NFL’s best team for most of the season, winning 13 of its first 14 games while quarterback Jalen Hurts became a league MVP candidate.
That was a fading memory by Saturday, however. The Eagles hadn’t been that team for more than a month. Hurts had suffered a sprained right shoulder and missed two games. It took the Eagles three tries to clinch the NFC’s top seed, finally accomplishing that with a triumph over the Giants in the regular-season finale, in which Hurts played but clearly wasn’t at full capacity.
To the relief of so many in this not-exactly-laid-back sports town, the version of the Eagles on display Saturday was the superb one. Hurts was back to running the ball with force and abandon. He threw the ball accurately. The offense amassed 268 rushing yards. The defense more than did its part. The Eagles trounced the Giants, 38-7.
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“I know this is high praise,” Coach Nick Sirianni said. “But to have [Hurts] out there is like having — I shouldn’t even go there — but it’s like having Michael Jordan out there. He’s your leader. He’s your guy. Hopefully that’s the biggest respect I can pay to him, comparing his ability to be on the field to a Michael Jordan. This guy leads. He brings calmness to the entire team. He plays great football.”
Hurts threw a 40-yard completion to wide receiver DeVonta Smith on the game’s second play from scrimmage. The tone was set early, and the Eagles led, 28-0, at halftime. Hurts finished with two touchdown passes and one rushing touchdown.
“It seemed like the old Jalen to me,” tailback Miles Sanders said.
The Eagles will host the San Francisco 49ers or Dallas Cowboys next Sunday with a Super Bowl berth at stake. They are returning to the NFC title game for the first time since they won the Super Bowl in the 2017 season with Doug Pederson as their coach and Nick Foles as their fill-in quarterback in place of an injured Carson Wentz.
This is a new regime. Sirianni was hired to replace Pederson following the 2020 season, and Hurts is finishing his second full season as the starter at quarterback. Saturday’s triumph punctuated the Eagles’ relatively rapid return to the NFL’s upper echelon. And now perhaps Sirianni and Hurts can attempt to inspire a statue to go alongside the one here that commemorates the “Philly Special” sideline deliberation between Pederson and Foles during the Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots.
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“I love the fact that we’re starving,” Hurts said late Saturday night, “that we’re not just hungry for it. But we’re starving for it. We’re starving for growth. We’re eager for growth.”
Asked how he’d felt physically, Hurts said, “Good enough.”
When Hurts plays that way, the Eagles can be next to unstoppable on offense. Opposing defenses must account for him in the running game, opening space for others.
“He helps out a lot,” Sanders said. “It goes through him. And he’s the captain of the ship.”
Even as a young player, Hurts is unquestioned as a team leader.
“That’s what you want from … your number one guy,” Sanders said. “He puts his heart out into this stuff. He eats, sleeps this stuff. And we see that.”
The Eagles also benefited from the return of standout right tackle Lane Johnson, who missed the final two regular-season games because of a groin injury that eventually will require surgery.
“Lane is the best tackle in the NFL,” Sirianni said. “So to have him back … that’s huge.”
The Eagles didn’t really open up the passing game Saturday. Smith and tight end Dallas Goedert had touchdown catches, but wideout A.J. Brown was quiet, with only three catches for 22 yards. Hurts had a modest 154 passing yards. The approach might have to be more varied next weekend.
The celebration in the postgame locker room was “lit,” as Sirianni described it.
“You’ve got to enjoy those times,” he said. “And it was fun. We had a good time in there. … Of course we’re excited tonight. But we know we have so much bigger goals.”
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Indeed they do, now that they are back to resembling a team fully capable of such larger accomplishments.
“I truly never put a limit on myself,” Hurts said. “I never put a limit on what this team can do. So there’s always more out there for us to get. To come out there and play the way we did tonight, I’m proud of this group. I’m proud of this team. I’m proud of the preparation that we put in to get to where we are. So [there’s] a lot to be grateful for. But it was earned during the week. I’m excited to have another opportunity to play for something big again.”