WhoDat!656

Discussion on the iggles running a play before the 2:00 warning.

The Eagles are the 10th team since 2001 to score 14 points on their first two offensive drives and not score the rest of the game.

Eagles at Saints: Now Win Two F'n Games
After three uneventful games this weekend, the Eagles teased us for a quarter with what could have been one of the all-time great upsets in the divisional round. The defending Super Bowl champions dominated the first quarter with a 14-0 lead against this year's regular-season champion Saints. Nick Foles continued to drop playoff dimes while Drew Brees looked terrible with an interception and two more near-turnovers. The hot takes would have been flying left and right from this one. Trade Carson Wentz to the AFC. The Saints were rusty from too much playoff rest. Why was Sean Payton talking up winning three games instead of taking things one game at a time? Can Sean McVay beat Doug Pederson?

But everything changed in the second quarter after Foles misfired on an interception from midfield. Suddenly, Eagles started dropping like flies to injury, and the Saints converted a pair of fourth downs, including a fake punt from their own 30 and a 2-yard touchdown pass. Foles lost his magic touch, and in the third quarter, the Saints embarked on an 18-play, 92-yard drive that actually featured 112 yards of offense due to penalties. Brees threw another 2-yard touchdown pass to Michael Thomas and the Saints led 17-14 going into the fourth quarter.

The reason that teams which take a 14-0 lead usually win is because they continue to score. The Eagles are the 10th team since 2001 to score 14 points on their first two offensive drives and not score the rest of the game. The Saints are now 7-0 this season when holding a one-score lead in the fourth quarter or overtime. Foles had opportunities, but he didn't throw a pass well enough to Golden Tate on a third-and-8 to at least draw pass interference even though P.J. Williams never looked for the ball. The Saints added a field goal to take a 20-14 lead, and Foles' accuracy continued to flounder.

The Saints hit several big plays between the numbers on third-and-long throughout the game. Thomas came through with another to convert a third-and-13 for 22 yards. Just when it looked like the Saints might run out the clock, they called a run to Alvin Kamara on third-and-8. The Eagles snuffed it out well and stuffed him for a 3-yard loss. Kicker Wil Lutz has had a strong season, but from 52 yards away he was wide right with 2:58 left to keep it a 20-14 game. Once again things were going Philadelphia's way in the postseason.

Foles could have really cemented a playoff legacy with another game-winning drive, and it started to look like he was going to do it after a roughing the passer penalty put the ball at the New Orleans 27 with 2:25 left. That's when things went haywire. The Eagles called a rare run to Darren Sproles on first down and it went for no gain. Frankly, that was fine. It felt like a play just to get to the two-minute warning since the Eagles didn't want to score too quickly to leave too much time for Brees, who would have only needed a field goal to win. The Saints were down to one timeout too.

However, the offense hurried to get another play off just before the two-minute warning. It was a simple, short throw to Alshon Jeffery that probably would have set up third-and-6 if it was caught. Instead, Jeffery had the ball go through his hands and right to Marshon Lattimore for his second killer interception of the game. For a postseason that has been lacking in turnovers, this was a huge one, and it wasn't even the quarterback's fault.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dw1QSgzV...jpg&name=small

Should Jeffery have caught the ball? Absolutely, but this is on Pederson for not managing the clock better. Not only was it asinine to run a play there, but his explanation wasn't any better, citing that they had plenty of time for a simple play. It was a simple play too, and if executed properly, it only would have gained 4 yards. So it's not like the Eagles were rushing to exploit a blown coverage or anything. They ruined their season to get to the line for a 4-yard gain on a play they could have run after the two-minute warning with the benefit of a running clock. This was a massive blunder. The Eagles were only down to one timeout too, so it was a pretty decisive play. A miracle was still possible with a three-and-out, but Kamara ripped a 12-yard run on third-and-10 to seal the deal.

The Saints improve to 6-0 at home in the playoffs in the Brees-Payton era and will host the Rams next week. As for the Eagles, it was a miracle run late this season, and they certainly caught some breaks along the way. Remember, Chicago winning in Week 17 to eliminate Minnesota ultimately got the Eagles in the tournament. They nearly pulled off two big road upsets, but the failure to score on the final seven possessions was too much to overcome. Out of all the injuries during the game, it seemed like the loss of guard Brandon Brooks had the most negative impact on the Eagles as Foles wasn't comfortable after that hot start.

Is that the last we see of Foles in Philadelphia? It has been a wild run, and his final DVOA numbers in the playoffs should be interesting. After that unlikely ending, it's too bad Foles gets the interception stat and Jeffery has to live with the drop because the ball simply should have never been snapped.


https://www.footballoutsiders.com/cl...visional-round

"A Veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America" for an amount of "up to and including my life."

73Saint

If's and buts. We dominated 3 of the 4 quarters of that game. Can't blame Jefferey, Foles OR Pederson. How about give Saints credit.

vpheughan

Didn't the Saint lose a playoff game on a "fluke" play? I have no sympathy for the Eagles. Someone call Sproles, Jenkins and Scott and ask politely "HOW DOES IT FEEL?"