PHILADELPHIA – Two former NFL general managers sent two spontaneous messages hours after the Philadelphia Eagles brushed aside the Los Angeles Rams, 28-22, in the divisional round of the playoffs, despite having a net haul of 65 passing yards.
There was some help with the short fields from the No. 1-ranked defense and the final would have been 30 in the driving snow for most of the game if Jake Elliott hadn’t missed two extra points.
How can you pack so much offense with a passing attack with less bite than a high school junior varsity team?
The sizzle was 285 rushing yards, 205 of which came from Saquon Barkley, including touchdowns of 62 and 78 yards. The steak was a Mekhi Becton pull-up block or a Cam Jurgens carry and a Jordan Mailata bucket, plus the punishing physicality of Landon Dickerson and Lane Johnson.
It is stipulated in a society obsessed with splashes and low-hanging fruit that Barkley is having a historic season, but the “2K SA” campaign that threatens Terrell Davis’ all-time single-season record was built on the foundations of Jeff Stoutland. offensive line, a group that might be the offensive line coach’s best, something incredible to debate after losing six-time All-Pro and future Hall of Fame center Jason Kelce to retirement.
Let’s return to these texts.
“This is one of the best offensive lines I have ever seen,” the first general manager wrote. The second goes even further: “The offensive line is one of the best ever.”
Armed with this information, Philadelphia Eagles On SI asked Nick Sirianni about the group and the Eagles head coach couldn’t help but smile.
“Those are the guys that keep it going,” Sirianni said. “Saquon is phenomenal, but he can’t be great without the greatness of others.”
Offensive linemen are rarely stars, with Kelce perhaps the first crossover lineman to rival superstars like Barkley in areas like merchandise sales and Q-ratings.
The O-Line is typically the most engaging group in any NFL locker room and that feeling ties into their job description: service to others.
“I like that about the offensive line, the unselfishness,” Sirianni said. “They don’t score touchdowns, and sometimes on an offensive line – the stats you keep on an offensive line are how many pressures you gave up and how many sacks you gave up. Those are the stats we know all as an offensive lineman, so sometimes you just focus on the negative things.
“But I love offensive linemen. I’ve always loved offensive linemen because of their selflessness. They’re protectors, right? They’re there to protect and serve others. C “The best thing you can say about a human being is that you want to do well for yourself to do well for others.”
The Eagles O-Line, left to right: Mailata, Dickerson, Jurgens, Becton and Johnson combine rare talent with this selflessness as a group.
Mailata was the highest-rated football player this season by Pro Football Focus. Dickerson and Johnson were second-team All-Pros and the latter has his GPS set for Canton. Jurgens was a Pro Bowl alternate despite replacing a legend and Becton, once No. 11 overall as a left tackle for the New York Jets, revived his career by moving inside and serving more pancakes at the Penrose Diner in South Philadelphia on a Saturday morning.
“Obviously, we’re very talented there. We have very good players, and Stout trains them tirelessly to get them to perform at a high level, Sirianni said. “So of course, yes, I see them as having a historic season. , being able to send three guys to the Pro Bowl, having two guys on the All-Pro team.
“It’s the result of all the hard work that they do. And I love it when they get recognized because, again, like I said, sometimes you don’t get recognized for that.”
Sirianni then thought about going on Kelce’s ESPN late-night show and loved an idea coming from former NFL offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth.
“I don’t know if you saw it, but they had a conversation like: why do we give an offensive MVP, a defensive MVP, a player of the year, but we don’t give the line award offensive?” Sirianni said. “I’m like, man, they should do that. What a great idea that is.”
The NFL MVP will likely be Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson for the third time. It could be that Buffalo’s Josh Allen and Eagles fans will be upset when Barkley becomes Offensive Player of the Year instead of MVP.
However, the real answer to the NFL’s “Most Valuable Players” is the Eagles offensive line.
“This group is incredible,” offensive coordinator Kellen Moore said. “Great people first and foremost. They work really, really hard. They’re aligned. They work well together. I think they bring the physical tone and the mentality to our entire football team. They lay the foundation.
“We lean on these guys.”
MORE NFL: Eagles CBs Make All-Rookie Team
