Philadelphia Eagles: 3 Takeaways from Divisional Round win over Falcons
By Nick Sparrow
The Philadelphia Eagles proved they were still worthy of the top seed in the NFC by defeating the Atlanta Falcons, 15-10, and here are three takeaways from the game.
Losing Carson Wentz obviously makes the Philadelphia Eagles a lesser team than they once were. However, they may have been just a tad too disrespected coming into the 2018 NFL Playoffs. They entered their Divisional Round matchup with the Atlanta Falcons as the No. 1 seed and as underdogs.
Yes, underdogs. The Eagles became the first-ever No. 1 seed to be home dogs in the Divisional Round. Apparently, they took that to heart. They came into this game and just dominated the Falcons with suffocating defense and did enough on offense to secure a huge win and move on to the NFC Championship Game.
After that performance, here are three takeaways for Philly.
3. Nick Foles might just be good enough
The biggest problem hanging over the head of this Eagles team prior to this game was the play of backup quarterback Nick Foles. Foles had looked mediocre to straight dreadful during his limited outings after replacing Carson Wentz in Week 13. Foles was single-handedly the reason that the Eagles became the first top-seeded team in NFL playoff history to be an underdog in the very first game. However, if Saturday proved anything it is that Foles will not hold this team back from winning.
Now, let me be clear, Foles remains a gigantic downgrade to Wentz, who was considered one of the favorites to win NFL MVP before he went down with his injury. Still, Foles is capable of winning big games due to Philadelphia’s great defense and a backfield stacked with talent. Foles finished Saturday completing 23 of his 30 pass attempts for 246 yards. While Foles did not throw a touchdown in this game he also did not turn the ball over, which might be all a team as talented as the Eagles needs to close out games.
If Foles continues to find success in the postseason it won’t be something new. The Jacksonville Jaguars have been a similar position all season with their quarterback Blake Bortles. If a team’s defense is great enough and their offense does the minimum needed we have seen these teams find great success in spite of their quarterbacks, rather than because of them. Players like Trent Dilfer and Brad Johnson have won Super Bowls on the backs of elite defenses. Foles could easily be within that category if he keeps up the level he played at against Atlanta.