Eagles safety Jenkins made sure team knew they can win without Wentz

PHILADELPHIA Shortly after franchise quarterback Carson Wentz left the field with a torn ACL, Malcolm Jenkins gathered his teammates following a comeback win that clinched a division title. He gave an emotional speech, imploring them to believe they can win the Super Bowl without the guy who got them to that point.

The Philadelphia Eagles are two wins away from their goal. First up is the NFC championship game Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.

“Carson being out of this, that sucks,” Jenkins told the team in the locker room after a 43-35 win at the Los Angeles Rams on Dec. 10. “But dig this, we set this up for whoever (is) in this room, that’s who we ride with, man. We said, ‘we all we got, we all we need.’ Believe that .... We got bigger goals ... championships and that’s it.”

Wentz is the franchise quarterback and a leader by example. Jenkins, the two-time Pro Bowl safety, is the in-your-face leader. He’s the first one to address the group after coach Doug Pederson gives his post-game speech.

“He’s embraced it and guys look forward to it,” Pederson said. “He’s got a lot of profound messages. He speaks from the heart and he speaks truth. So that’s been a positive.”

Jenkins says he always has a purpose when he speaks.

“I kind of try to analyze the situation of where we are as a team, do a little bit of reflection, but make sure that it’s not just an emotional response to keep everybody in perspective,” he said. “A lot of times I’m talking to myself to be most honest.”

As the underdog Eagles (14-3) prepare to host the Vikings (14-3), Jenkins reflected on his inspirational message following Wentz’s injury.

“Knowing that the media was getting ready to come in right after and those seeds of doubt, words of doubt were getting ready to come, I wanted to make sure there was a message of confidence and perspective before they had to actually address the media,” Jenkins said. “Obviously, we all hurt for Carson. It’s a huge blow to the team, but in no way does it change our goals. No way does it change our demeanour. Nothing’s changed, and that was kind of the message.”