Eagles chairman/CEO Jeffrey Lurie doesn’t speak publicly very often about his team.
An ecstatic Lurie talked to reporters on the field about his NFL powerhouse, after the Eagles clinched a Super Bowl berth by defeating the 49ers, 31-7, Sunday.
- “Howie [Roseman, general manager] has done a great job,” Lurie said. “It takes a village. It’s everybody in the building. His staff is great. Howie’s great.
- “You know, Nick [Sirianni, head coach], it’s his staff. Jonathan Gannon [defensive coordinator], Stout [Jeff Stoutland, run game coordinator and offensive line coach], Shane [Steichen, offensive coordinator], you name it.
- “People think it’s one person. I’m the owner, it’s not just me. It’s the entire staff of dedicated people that just want to make it wonderful for these fans.”
About quarterback Jalen Hurts, to whom he might pay the largest contract in NFL history one day, Lurie knows what he has in the 24-year-old league MVP candidate.
- “You could start to see last year, the second half of last year,” Lurie said. “But we know Jalen, we know how committed he is and dedicated he is.
- “If anybody with those athletic skills and with a live arm like he has, dedicates an offseason and dedicates every day at work, the potential is huge. And that’s what we saw.”
The Eagles’ reputation is that of a well-run organization. Lurie thinks the team’s culture feeds off its personnel and vise versa.
- “The culture is very important,” Lurie said. “Having the right people all through the organization is crucial.
- “And having the right mentality of players and coaches and personnel staff and everybody that goes into it, training, doctors. It takes everybody.
- “If you have one area that’s a weakness, you won’t get this far.”
NEW DEAL FOR STOUTLAND
Eagles offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland, considered one of the NFL’s best assistant coaches, agreed to a contract extension according to ESPN.
Stoutland’s line is considered the best in the league and the real engine that protects Hurts and drives the powerful running game. Stoutland has been with the Eagles since 2012. Other teams had reached out about hiring him as an offensive coordinator.
BYE-WEEK SUCCESS
The Eagles are 3-0 in their bye weeks under Sirianni, including two games this season.
The Eagles defeated the Steelers, 35-13, in Week Eight after the bye. They pounded the Giants in the divisional round game, 38-7.
Last year, the Eagles defeated Washington, 27-17, coming off the bye week.
While Sirianni’s winning percentage is impressive, Andy Reid is a legend off the bye week: 27-4.
MISSED CONNECTION
One area of concern: Hurts badly overthrew an open A.J. Brown against the 49ers. A connection likely would have been a 76-yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead.
Hurts has been right on the money with the long ball all season. Did he miss simply because he was due to miss? Nothing to see here? Not throwing the long ball in practice due to his right shoulder injury? Not as many practice reps?
- At a news conference Thursday, Hurts addressed his injury: “I’m getting there. I’ve made it clear this whole time it’s something I’m dealing with.”
HISTORY ON REPEAT?
In 2017, the Eagles won the Super Bowl, the Golden State Warriors won the NBA title and the Houston Astros won the World Series.
In 2022, the Warriors and Astros again won championships. Can the Eagles make it a hat trick?
Speaking of history, favorites are 37-19 straight up in Super Bowl history. The Eagles are two-point favorites.
PAVING THE LANE
RIght tackle Lane Johnson, playing his second game on a torn adductor, played 60 of 74 snaps against the Niners. He often was matched up against All-Pro defensive end Nick Bosa, the likely NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
Bosa had four tackles, two for losses. Bosa, the NFL sack leader, had zero sacks, zero quarterback hits, zero forced fumbles and zero fumble recoveries. Bosa played 59 snaps.
Eagles linebacker Haason Reddick had the kind of game you might have expected from Bosa: two sacks, one (devastating) quarterback hit on Brock Purdy, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery. Reddick only played 29 snaps, most on the defensive line.
COACHING VACANCIES
Three of the five NFL head coaching jobs have been filled by guys with Eagles connections
- DeMeco Ryans, Eagles linebacker from 2012-15, is the new coach at Houston.
- Frank Reich, Eagles offensive coordinator in 2016-17, is the new coach at Carolina.
- Sean Payton, Eagles quarterbacks coach in 1997-98, is the new coach at Denver.
The open jobs are Indianapolis and Arizona. The Colts have indicated they might keep interim coach Jeff Saturday, who they plucked out of an ESPN studio.
HURTS ON LEADERSHIP
The Eagles quarterback might be the epitome of leadership. He leads by example and by his thoughtful words.
- “I think I just have the desire to win,” Hurts said. “I put the work in for it. Try and be diligent with everything. Try and be the best teammate and leader that I can be. Ultimately try to set the pace and set the temperature of the room.
- “I think the thing about leadership, I say it all the time, is people lead because their peers let them lead. That takes a lot of hard work, that takes a lot of sacrifice, it takes a lot of trust and ultimately those things bring respect.
- “As a team, we’ve come a very long way.”
