EAGLES FACTS
OFFENSE Vikings DEFENSE Vikings SPECIAL TEAMS Eagles COACHING Eagles INTANGIBLES Eagles
Two teams of destiny fighting it out for a trip to Super Bowl LII - does it get any better for football fans? It’s impossible
since training camp, the guys breaking up the routine of practice with group victory celebrations. Little did he know the electric slide the defense did during a blowout of the Denver Broncos would be one of the favorites to win the ongoing NFLwide celebration contest.
“Even when he first got here, he said to just let your personality show,” Eagles veteran Malcolm Jenkins said. “I think you’ve seen that all year. Whether it be the celebrations or just the demeanor about which we go and play, guys have been able to kind of be themselves in a way that doesn’t step outside of the team either. I think it’s a nice balance that we have where we feel like we can cut it loose, be ourselves, but also be a team.”
Last week Eagles players weren’t surprised to see offensive tackle Lane Johnson and defensive end Chris Long wearing the German Shepherd masks immediately after the 15-10 win over picking against Doug Pederson and the Eagles, who are 3-point underdogs. Even with Ed Hochuli officiating. Can’t you just see Doug in the center of the locker room, pregame, holding a screenshot of the league’s botched Facebook post touting the Vikings and Patriots in the Super Bowl and saying, even the league thinks you’re going to lose? On to Minneapolis!
Make it Eagles 23, Vikings 17.
the Atlanta Falcons. Johnson, who shaves his head, began mastering goofy gestures back in training camp when he wore a full length blonde wig to practices.
The dog masks and underdog T-shirts that thousands of Eagles fans will be wearing Sunday night, creating a scene that Long believes will resemble the horror movie The Purge, are the ultimate expression. Not only are Johnson and Long making a point, the T-shirts have raised a chunk of money for Philadelphia schools.
“I think Doug does an amazing job of letting our personalities show,” said tight end Zach Ertz, who leads the team in receptions and receiving yardage. “He never kind of reels guys in to kind of shelter them by any means. He wants us to go out there and have fun and kind of leave it all out there. Lane and Chris, I think devised it last Thursday night that they were going to have these dog masks out there. And then Lane got the shirt right after the game, and that thing has made a ton of money to Philadelphia schools, which is an amazing thing that’s going on right now, but guys are having fun. We play for each other and those 53 guys in the locker room, each and every Sunday. We don’t want this thing to end.”
The Vikings and Keenum, who got here on Stefon Diggs’ walk-off 61-yard scoring reception, operate the same way. They got to this point with defense. And it will be defense – the Vikings ranked first, the Eagles third – that decides who goes to the Super Bowl.
“The cliché that defense wins championships is alive and well,” Jenkins said. “The biggest thing at the quarterback position, if you have a strong defense, is to take care of the football. All of the quarterbacks do that. They take care of the football. They don’t make a ton of mistakes. So, they allow their team to play patient games, to run the ball, play defense, and then strike when you have the opportunity.
“And in that way, I think we’re very similar to the Vikings.”
The Eagles’ edge could come from their head coach who, if his players prevail might pick up the microphone of that charter to Minnesota and make his own statement.
“Here’s a message from the head coach. You are free to move around the country.”