PHILADELPHIA — Saquon Barkley consulted along with his household earlier than the star operating again determined — sure, it was time to go away his solely skilled dwelling with the Giants and signal with the Eagles.
His youngest daughter, Jada, had one query for dad as he advised her the household was headed to Philadelphia.
Does this imply dad will win now?
As Barkley lay on a soccer area suffering from confetti and cradled his daughter in opposition to his chest, the reply was plain: You guess Barkley and the Eagles are going to win now — with an opportunity on the largest one of many season nonetheless forward with a date in the Super Bowl.
Barkley dashed 60 yards for a landing on Philadelphia’s first play and completed with 118 yards and three scores, Jalen Hurts rushed for 3 TDs and the Eagles soared into the Super Bowl with a 55-23 win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday.
Hurts and the Eagles are in the Super Bowl for the second time in three seasons, and this time Barkley is alongside for the trip. They may play former Eagles coach Andy Reid’s Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl for the second time in three seasons.
“I got here to Philly to be a part of video games like this,” Barkley stated. “And there’s nothing higher than a sport the place you’ll be able to advance to the Super Bowl.”
The 55 factors are essentially the most any workforce has scored in a convention championship sport for the reason that 1970 merger.
Hurts, carrying a brace on his left knee, additionally threw for 246 yards and a landing move and the Eagles had a towel-waving crowd in a frenzy for the NFC championship sport at Lincoln Monetary Discipline.
“I don’t need anyone else main this workforce at quarterback apart from him. He’s a winner,” coach Nick Sirianni stated. “Once more, he offers with a lot criticism which simply blows my thoughts due to the questions I’ve to reply. I don’t look an excessive amount of into that. The questions I’ve to reply it’s similar to, man, this man wins. He’s received his complete life.”
A.J. Brown caught six passes for 96 yards and a landing — and faked tossing the NFC championship trophy off a platform — and an Eagles workforce at simply 2-2 headed into the bye week scored a season excessive in factors to usher the franchise into their fifth Tremendous Bowl.
The Commanders performed a task in getting the NFC title sport to Philly with two straight highway wins — together with final week’s stunner at No. 1 seed Detroit that set the stage for the second-seeded Eagles to host.
Jayden Daniels threw for 255 yards with one landing, one interception and fell quick in his bid to turn into the primary rookie quarterback to steer his workforce to the Super Bowl. The Commanders have been doomed by 4 turnovers, together with a misplaced fumble by Austin Ekeler within the third quarter and the Commanders down 34-23.
“We believed that we belonged right here,” Daniels stated. “It was simply one other sport for me. That’s how I handled it.”
The Eagles received their solely Tremendous Bowl within the 2017 season and Nick Foles, the QB in that sport in opposition to New England, was the honorary captain.
The Eagles lower to different stars from that sport in attendance on the large display screen and now — two years after Eagles misplaced to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl — the franchise has an opportunity at profitable their second one.
A lot as he has all season, Barkley led the way in which for the Eagles.
After the Commanders opened the sport with an 18-play drive and a area objective that quieted a raucous crowd, Barkley whipped the followers that included actor Bradley Cooper right into a frenzy on the Eagles’ first offensive play from scrimmage.
Solely the ninth operating again to hurry for two,000 yards in a season, Barkley took the pitch from Hurts and lower left, spun round a pair of defenders and took off on the landing run.
The Eagles recovered a fumble on the subsequent drive and Barkley added a 4-yard run — making him 2 for two on carries and touchdowns — for a 14-3 lead.
Together with the playoffs, Barkley prolonged an NFL report Sunday along with his seventh dashing landing of 60-plus yards in a season.
“When he does it early, it doesn’t actually matter who will get the occasion began, only for us to achieve some momentum as an offense and acquire a rhythm, (we) maintain going,” Hurts stated.
Daniels, who led the Commanders to 6 consecutive victories, made his share of massive performs that included a 36-yard landing move to Terry McLaurin that pulled them to 14-12.
“I had quite a lot of confidence in what we’d do and the way we’d play,” Commanders coach Dan Quinn stated.
Hurts, who damage his knee when he was sacked final week by the Rams, had his greatest sport but in a postseason the place the Eagles performed all three video games at dwelling. He closed the primary half with a tush push 1-yard landing and threw a 4-yard scoring move to Brown to ship the Eagles into halftime with a 27-15 lead.
“I assume he let me out of my straitjacket somewhat bit immediately,” Hurts stated of Sirianni’s offense.
Hurts secured the Super Bowl berth with a tush push landing within the fourth quarter — after a humorous second when an official stated he’d award the Eagles a landing if Washington didn’t cease leaping offside — and his ninth profession postseason dashing rating gave them a 41-23 lead.
Small quantities of inexperienced confetti began to fly from the higher deck at that time on the countdown was formally on for the Super Bowl.
The Commanders’ determined gasp at one other late comeback win ended with a thud when Nolan Smith sacked Daniels on fourth down within the fourth quarter. Will Shipley gave Barkley a wanted breather within the blowout and punched in a 2-yard landing run for a 55-23 lead. The “E-A-G-L-E-S! Eagles!” chants started in earnest and it’s positive to ring loud in New Orleans.
Accidents
Eagles: Professional Bowl middle Cam Jurgens was energetic and performed by way of a again harm. … G Landon Dickerson suffered a knee harm. … RB Kenneth Gainwell was evaluated for a concussion suffered within the third quarter.
Up subsequent
The Eagles head to New Orleans for a Feb. 9 matchup in opposition to the two-time defending champion Chiefs. Barkley turns 28 that day. Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs beat the Eagles 38-35 two years in the past in Tremendous Bowl 57.
