Getty Former Eagles center Julian Vandervelde spent five seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Happy Anniversary, Philadelphia Eagles fans! January 21 marks four years to the date that the team defeated the Minnesota Vikings in the 2018 NFC Championship Game to advance to the Super Bowl.
Coincidentally, the anniversary came one day after Nick Foles’ 33rd birthday. The MVP of Super Bowl LII was getting shouts out and virtual hugs all day from Eagles fans who took a happy trip down memory lane. One of Foles’ former teammates was showering the quarterback with love, too.
Julian Vandervelde wasn’t a part of that epic championship squad, but he played alongside Foles in Philly for two seasons. He was a reserve center who often had the pleasure of … having a “Super Bowl MVPs hand on my taint.” Hilarious take from the man who holds the NFL record for being released 21 times.
[Julian Vandervelde] I feel like a lot of my success in life can be attributed to the fact that I used to snap to #NickFoles. The fact that the back of Saint Nick’s hand has rested upon my taint gives me a confidence and swagger rivaling kings and… t.co/jOC8Fp621e
Vandervelde — a fifth-round pick in 2011 who spent five seasons in Philly — wasn’t done stirring the pot, though. He took aim at the Philadelphia Museum of Art for not memorializing Foles’ greatest play, the Philly Special. Vandervelde called it a “travesty” that the play isn’t displayed prominently in the entryway of the museum.
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Eagles Fans Celebrate Foles, Vikings Win
Nostalgia was running high on Twitter over the past 24 hours. Foles’ birthday combined with the NFC Championship Game win had a lot of people beating their chests. That miraculous Super Bowl run was one for the ages and the memories never get stale.
4 years ago today
You could just feel it, that the Eagles were going to beat the Vikings to go to the Super Bowl because of the juice we saw pregame 🔽
The highest completion percentage in #NFL playoff history?
Nick Foles (68.1%).
The Super Bowl LII MVP turns 33 today.
26/33, 3 TD, 0 INT, 352 yards, 141.4 passer rating.
Four years ago today, Nick Foles torched the Vikings and put the Eagles in the Super Bowl.
Nick Foles 2017 postseason throws ranked:
1. Corey Clement TD Super Bowl 52
2. Flea Flicker TD throw to Torry Smith NFC Championship Game
3. Bomb to Alshon TD NFC Championship Game
4. Bomb to Alshon TD Super Bowl 52
5. 4th and 1 play to Ertz, 4th quarter, Super Bowl 52
Four years ago on this day, I watched Nick Foles and the Eagles drag their nuts all over the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship. Good times, good times.
Foles recalled back in 2020 that the Eagles had planned to use the Philly Special against Minnesota in the game before the Super Bowl. Doug Pederson actually dialed up the play, but Foles called it off with the Eagles leading the Vikings 31-7.
“We were going to run the Philly Special vs. the Minnesota Vikings and Doug called the play,” Foles said, via NBC Sports Philadelphia. “I talked to Doug and I was like, ‘ah, we don’t need it. We’re up by so much, let’s not waste it.’
“But in reality, another reason was I was worried about turning and running out and trying to catch the ball. I didn’t know if I would be able to lift my arm up and turn and catch it because of the rib shot earlier in the game.”
Eagles Committed to Winning Another Championship
Four years is a long time and the desire to win another Lombardi Trophy hasn’t been lost on the Eagles’ front office. General manager Howie Roseman detailed his plan to get back to being a franchise that competes for championships every single season during his end-of-year press conference. That work started months ago when the Eagles started inking players to in-season deals.
Howie Roseman says he’s sure there are people who are sick and tired of the Philadelphia Eagles drafting linemen. “But that’s how we won a championship and that’s how we’ll win another one.”
“We know that we have to get to a certain level to be a team that has a bye, that has home playoff games and eventually competes to win a world championship,” Roseman said. “We are certainly not satisfied with where we are. We know there is a lot of work to do, and we started that. We started that during the season by resigning our own free agents. We did that to get a head start and a kick start into the season, but there is a lot of work to be done, and excited about the opportunity ahead.”