Well, we got most of what we wanted. It's like Christmas came again after New Year's Day. The Philadelphia Eagles are back in the NFL Playoffs. They beat the hated New York Giants in the regular-season finale. The best part about everything... Just about everyone is healthy!
Philly beat the G-Men with their second team offense and defense... and their third-string quarterback. That improves their home winning streak vs. Big Blue to a dozen games. They STILL haven't lost to the Giants while wearing their all-black jerseys.
Ainias Smith scored his first NFL touchdown. Not too long after that, E.J. Jenkins did the same. New heroes in this rivalry were birthed. How about a hand for some of them?
Some of the lesser-mentioned Eagles made names for themselves vs. the Giants in the regular-season finale.
We'll never forget that feeling we had when Boston Scott went off with three rushing TDs vs. the Giants in relief of Miles Sanders. We'll never forget the feeling of watching the Birds usher New York to their worst record in franchise history (3-14).
Under-the-radar Birds were asked to step up, and boy oh boy! Did they deliver or what?
Jahan Dotson, wide receiver
If Philly has all of its skill players available, Jahan Dotson will never be more than the fifth option in Philly's offensive attack. However, he proved himself worthy of some burn in Week 18 if Philly wants to throw more passes in his direction.
In the finale, he hauled in seven receptions for 94 yards. He led all Eagles receivers in both categories.
Jeremiah Trotter Jr. and Oren Burks
Vic Fangio's defense has a tendency to funnel things back to the linebackers or it allows them to roam, find holes, and clean up. That's we often saw Nakobe Dean and Zack Baun lead the team in tackles. Today, Jeremiah Trotter and Oren Burks stacked the two highest tackle totals.
It wasn't a perfect performance by either. We saw them miss tackles. Trot got drug once, but they survived and advanced.
Oren Burks was the defensive playcaller. Trot did some nice things with the extended playing time. They combined for 28 tackles including two for a loss of yardage. Hats off to both guys after this one.
Tanner McKee, quarterback
The Philadelphia Eagles had to have snuck a veteran onto the field and stuck him in Tanner McKee's jersey. That's all we can come up with. That's the only thing that makes sense. How can a third-stringer be as good as he is?
McKee ended his day with 27 completions on 41 pass attempts, He tossed two TDs and tallied a 100.6 rating. His TD passes to Ainias Smith and E.J. Jenkins were the first of their NFL careers. There was some adversity. He missed on five straight passes at one point, but he was at his best when his best was needed.
The 1st TD of Ainias Smith's career.. Nice toss from Tanner McKee... #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/CnosMvUsku
— Inside The Iggles (@InsideIggles) January 5, 2025
We haven't discussed E.J. Jenkins in great detail in a while... Nice moment here though.. 1st NFL catch.. 1st NFL TD..
— Inside The Iggles (@InsideIggles) January 5, 2025
Congrats to 84 pic.twitter.com/BoJdV3fKf3
The NFL is notice. Philly's second-vest QB is Tanner McKee, not Kenny Pickett. Tanner may not be a backup for too much longer.
Sydney Brown, safety
Sydney Brown beat up the Dallas Cowboys last week and got ejected from the contest. He ended the game vs. the Giants with an interception this time. His rookie campaign ended vs. the Giants because of a season-ending ACL tear last January. It was nice to see him have his moment.
And, with that, we close the book on the regular season. The Eagles have again won 14 games. They will host the Green Bay Packers in the Wild Card Round of the NFL Playoffs. They open as home favorites on most sports books. That game should be fun to watch.