How the Philadelphia Eagles reached Super Bowl LVII
Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown in the divisional round playoffs last month. Credit: AP/Chris Szagola
REGULAR SEASON
The Eagles won the NFC East with a 14-3 record, two games ahead of Dallas. They started 8–0 for the first time in franchise history before their winning streak was snapped with a 32–21 upset loss to the Washington Commanders in Week 10. They won 13 of their first 14 games.
In his third NFL season, quarterback Jalen Hurts blossomed. One example: He went from 21st in the league in passing yards in 2021 to 10th this season. … The Eagles averaged 28 points a game and yielded 18.8. … Miles Sanders ranked fifth in the league in rushing, with 1,269 rushing yards, easily his career high in four seasons. The Eagles were the only team in the league with two receivers ranked in the top 10: A.J. Brown (1,496 yards) and DeVonta Smith (1,196). Defensively, T.J. Edwards ranked 7th in the NFL with 159 total tackles in 2022, the 2nd-most in franchise history trailing Byron Evans in 1992 (175). And, of course, the Eagles led the league with 70 sacks, 15 more than runner-up Kansas City. Fifteen!
With a 48–22 road win over the division rival Giants in Week 14, the Eagles clinched their second straight playoff berth, and their fifth in six seasons.
DIVISIONAL ROUND
Eagles 38, Giants 7
Jan. 21 at Philadelphia
This was the teams’ third meeting in the 2022 season. It also was no contest. The Eagles led 28-0 before the Giants got on the board.
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP
Eagles 38, 49ers 7
Jan. 29 at Philadelphia
What if 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy didn’t sustain a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing elbow on the sixth play of the game? We will never know, of course. But the Eagles offense did plenty against the vaunted San Francisco defense. After the Niners tied the score at 7, Philadelphia closed it out by scoring 24 unanswered points.
Kimberly Jones covers the Giants for Newsday, a beat she first worked in the early 2000s before joining the YES Network to cover the Yankees. She worked for the NFL Network for more than a decade and has been heard semi-regularly on WFAN.
