Adrian Fedkiw
As the game came down to its final conclusion, the Philadelphia Eagles’ season remained alive due to Treyvon Hester’s left hand and Soldier Field’s left upright and crossbar.
That heart-stopping moment wouldn’t have been possible without the magic of Nick Foles.
They’re not done … yet.
Former Eagle Cody Parkey’s 43-yard field goal with 10 seconds left ricocheted off the left upright before caroming off the crossbar, bouncing backwards into the air and falling harmlessly onto the Soldier Field grass as the Eagles snuck past the Chicago Bears 16-15 in a Wild Card Playoff thriller.
I'm shaking pic.twitter.com/OnRfK6CXEW
— The Bitter Birds (@AdrianFedkiw) January 7, 2019
And yes, Hester got a piece of it.
All-22 footage clearly shows Treyvon Hester got a piece of Cody Parkey’s final FG attempt vs. Eagles. pic.twitter.com/kAZdjdXug4
— Nick Shook (@TheNickShook) January 7, 2019
So cool, so calm, it didn’t matter that the not-so-perfect Foles showed up for 55 minutes. Down with the ball in his hands with the game on the line, was there ever a doubt?! Foles came through with the go-ahead touchdown drive.
Here’s every play of it …
So cool, so calm, it didn't matter that the not-so-perfect Foles showed up for 55 minutes. Down with the ball in his hands with the game on the line, was there ever a doubt?! Foles came through with the go-ahead TD drive. Here's every play of it … pic.twitter.com/MknQYzjlLe
— The Bitter Birds (@AdrianFedkiw) January 7, 2019
Eagles head coach Doug Pederson knew that Foles would stay calm in the moment.
“Nick is Nick. He’s gonna stay calm, he’s gonna stay collected. Just very efficient. It wasn’t pretty at times, I know the two turnovers early in the first half, which could’ve led to some points, but he hung in there and did some good things.”
The Bears came in with statistically the best defense in the NFL, allowing the fewest points (17.7 ppg) and committing the most takeaways. They’re stacked on all three levels and there isn’t a lot of weaknesses. If there was anything to pick on, it was their slot cornerback Sherrick McManis, who was replacing the injured Bryce Callahan. Callahan broke his foot in early December. Sure enough, on the fourth down call, Golden Tate quickly faked McManis off the line and Foles fed him for the touchdown with 56 ticks on the clock.
Foles talked about the play.
“We talked about it on the sideline. We were over there talking and I figured, you know, from studying those situations where the game is on the line, they like to blitz and bring a lot of pressure. So, you know, why don’t we move the pocket and put one of our best guys on one of their guys and let them win.”
Alshon Jeffery, who caught six passes for 82 yards, hauled in a key 15-yard reception to begin the march and moved the chains on a 3rd-and-9. I also loved the screen call to Dallas Goedert, who played a key role in the game with a touchdown and his 10-yard pickup on the screen.
As for the two-point play, I thought Wendell Smallwood got in. Whatever call they ruled on the field, that’s the way it was going to be.
Thankfully it didn’t wind up biting the Eagles in the ass.
Another underlying mistake that Bears head coach Matt Nagy wound up making was letting the clock run down once the Eagles got into 1st-and-goal. By saving those extra 30-plus seconds, Parkey’s game-winning attempt would’ve been a little closer.
As for that final Chicago drive, Mitchell Trubisky lofted a 25-yard completion to Allen Robinson down the right sideline to put the Bears into Eagles territory, but from 43 yards out, Parkey couldn’t steer the kick through the uprights.
I'm shaking pic.twitter.com/OnRfK6CXEW
— The Bitter Birds (@AdrianFedkiw) January 7, 2019
Robinson posted 10 catches for 143 yards and his 34-yard score with 9:04 to go gave Chicago a 15-10 lead. It became an all too familiar script with Avonte Maddox late in the game, the dreaded double move and Robinson burned him a couple times with it.
Allen Robinson beats Avonte Maddox for the TD as Chicago goes in front, but Bears don't convert the 2-point conversion. pic.twitter.com/Pk1MCmUXR4
— The Bitter Birds (@AdrianFedkiw) January 7, 2019
Nick Foles was 25-of-40 for 266 yards with two touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. The game’s first touchdown didn’t come until the 5:20 mark of the third quarter. That’s when Foles flipped a 10-yard TD pass to Goedert for a 10-6 Eagles lead. Philly was also aided by a 3rd-down targeting penalty and pass interference penalty prior to the Goedert score.
The game's 1st touchdown came at the 5:20 mark of the 3rd. Aided by a targeting penalty, Pi and a Golden Tate 3rd down conversion, the Eagles found the end zone when Nick Foles hit Dallas Goedert for the TD. pic.twitter.com/YqLMPmcqtE
— The Bitter Birds (@AdrianFedkiw) January 7, 2019
Foles’ first half was underwhelming. Both of his interceptions came in the opening 30 minutes, including this one in the end zone where he lofted the pass into the back right corner of the end zone into a sea of Bears.
He was getting the ball out quickly, however, and vaunted pass rusher Khalil Mack was held without a sack. That means that the Eagles have faced J.J. Watt, Aaron Donald and Mack in the last month and held all of them sackless. The complete 180 of the offensive line has been the main reason for the turnaround offensively.
The Eagles had trouble getting the ground game going, but ran it enough the keep the balance from getting too far out of whack. Philadelphia carried the ball 23 times for just 42 yards (1.8 YPC), with Darren Sproles getting the most work with 21 yards on 13 attempts.
Mitchell Trubisky was 26-of-43 for 303 yards and a touchdown. The Bears struggled to generate traction on the ground themselves, totaling 18 carries for 65 yards (3.6 YPC). Jordan Howard registered 10 totes for 35 yards.
The sixth-seeded Eagles are off to New Orleans to clash with the top-seeded Saints next Sunday.
It’s time for revenge.