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Pride can go a long way in a football game. Especially when you are down two scores, with a division crown on the line.
The Eagles fought back last night in a driving rain and windy conditions to beat the Giants 23-17 in a must-win game. Running back Boston Scott and tight end Zach Ertz will get the bulk of the headlines, but one man finally delivered the signature moment everyone had been clamoring for.
Carson Wentz put on his surgical gloves and went to work. He commanded the huddle by telling the guys to “keep believing” and backed it up in the second half by going 22-for-31 for 228 yards and two touchdowns. More impressively, Wentz did it basically by throwing the ball to rookies and practice-squad members like Josh Perkins, Greg Ward and Scott.
“It became kind of a pride issue. We just got to man up and figure out a way to get this done,” Eagles coach Doug Pederson told 94WIP’s Angelo Cataldi. “Our quarterback did an outstanding job in the second half. He’s a great leader of this team.”
“He really put the team on his back, especially offensively, and says, ‘Hey we’re going to get this thing done’ and obviously that elevated the guys around him,” Pederson said. “For Carson to do that, one it boosts his confidence — and then, two, as a team, it boosts our team’s confidence moving forward and it was really good to see.”
Wentz Never Gave Up on Team or Season
Carson Wentz has never been the rah-rah type of guy. Still, the Eagles quarterback felt he needed to send a message to his teammates in the locker room at halftime.
Wentz, who was playing with two wide receivers and backup running backs, took it upon himself to lead. That’s what franchise quarterbacks are supposed to do. Credit the 26-year-old for stepping up and doing it.
“Just keep believing, keep believing,” Wentz told reporters after the game, via CBS Sports. “It’s time to make a decision on how this is gonna define us tonight.”
“Obviously, we knew it was not our first half,” Wentz said. “That was a rough one; that was an ugly one. But we just said, ‘Hey, keep believing, keep staying together.’ Defense is gonna take care of their piece, which they did, and we were able to do enough offensively to get this win.”
Doug Pederson Describes Decision to Punt
There was one moment on Monday night that had everyone’s hearts nearly explode out of their chests.
Doug Pederson left his offense out on the field on a crucial 4th-and-1 play around his own 40-yard line. There was about 40 seconds left in a 17-17 tie game. It looked like the Eagles may try to get that tough yard instead of playing for overtime.
Then, Giants head coach Pat Shurmur called a timeout and the Eagles sent their punting unit onto the field. According to the head coach, the decision to go for it there never crossed his mind. Not once.
“C’mon! We’re playing mind games with the opponent there,” Pederson told 94WIP. “He [Shurmur] had called a timeout there. Listen, I wasn’t going to risk that, it was really more of a 4th-and-2.”
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