December 29, 2024
Bill Streicher/Imagn Images
The Eagles got a pair of interceptions in Week 17 from safety C.J. Gardner Johnson.
The Eagles are NFC East champions and they did it at home against the Cowboys. It doesn't get better than that, right?
Granted, their dominating 41-7 victory came against a Dallas team playing without Dak Prescott or CeeDee Lamb, and saw touchdown passes for the home team from Kenny Pickett and from Tanner McKee. But it counts just the same, and Philly's 13th win of the season assures they won't need to worry about getting a 14th as their playoff fate has now been sealed.
Here's a look at a player whose stock is back on the rise, and a reason for Eagles fans to lament a bit after a very convincing win on an unseasonably warm December afternoon:
Last week, the Eagles lost to the Commanders for two main reasons (no disrespect to Jayden Daniels and his epic performance): Jalen Hurts left in the first quarter with a concussion, and Gardner-Johnson was ejected in the third quarter after his second unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. The Eagles' thinness at the safety position directly contributed to their inability to stop the Washington passing game.
A week later, CJGJ — known around the NFL for both being a ball hawk and one of the league's most notorious trash talkers — decided to make it up to Eagles fans.
CJ Gardner-Johnson PICK-6!!!
— NFL (@NFL) December 29, 2024
📺: #DALvsPHI on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/3WSZb2eQzk
His pick-six in the Birds' first defensive stint in the game helped to give the offense find its sea legs under a backup quarterback.
He added a second interception — his sixth of the season (the second most of any NFL player) — and that led to another Eagles touchdown. A total of 14 points off of Gardner-Johnson forced turnovers, not shabby at all.
Gardner-Johnson hobbled off the field with an abdomen in the fourth quarter, and the hopes are it will be a minor one (his return was officially "questionable").
Three more points off another Dallas miscue came in the first half, when Oren Burks jarred a ball loose in the second quarter that was recovered by Jordan Davis. A fourth Eagles turnover came from, who else, Zack Baun who created a Rico Dowdle fumble in the fourth.
Defensively, the Eagles keep finding ways to do it. If they're not suffocating offenses at the line of scrimmage or sticking to opposing wide receivers like gloves, they're creating big plays and turnovers. This kind of play could keep them on the field deep into January (or February).
Hoisted with their own petard.
The Eagles locked up the NFC East crown, as well as the NFC's 2-seed throughout the postseason. Which means that there is almost no chance any big name starters will see the field next week against the Giants in a totally meaningless Week 18 game in South Philly.Â
(The only circumstance that would see the Eagles with a reason to play in Week 18 is both the Lions and Vikings losing later this weekend. If they both lost there would be a shot at the 1-seed.)
Which means that Barkley's epic, unforgettable season will probably end, with the running back at 2,005 yards for the 2024 regular season. He'll fall an even 100 yards short of Eric Dickerson's all-time rushing record after a 23-yard fourth quarter scamper made him the NFL's ninth ever 2,000 yard rusher.
With the fanfare, handshakes and hugs after the run that got him to the 2k mark, it seemed like a fitting end to Barkley's regular season. While the 1984 record is painfully within reach, 100 yards would require Barkley to play the majority, if not all of Week 18, and the risk of injury is too great for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.
Ironically, Barkley's 16 games played are right on par with the record he was chasing — as many were critical that he could theoretically be eclipsing the mark with an extra 17th game played. Dickerson set his record on 379 carries, while Barkley had 345 carries. If he had the same number of rushing attempts as Dickerson he'd be the record holder.
In Sunday's win against Dallas, everything appeared to be going wrong for the running back early, as he was stuffed near the line of scrimmage repeatedly, collecting just 25 yards on his first 12 carries. But he turned it around, looking like his old shifty spry self, finishing with 167 rushing yards in the game.
It was nice to see Barkley able to post solid numbers on the ground without Hurts under center. It is expected that the starting quarterback will return for the Wild card playoff round on the second weekend in January, when the Eagles host the No. 7 seed in the NFC.
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