Saquon Barkley sizzled in the snow as the Philadelphia Eagles survived a late scare to beat the Los Angeles Rams 28-22 in picturesque but dramatic playoff conditions and reach the NFC Championship Game on Sunday.
Barkley made a 62-yard home run in the first quarter before extending his teamās lead to 205 yards on the night with a 78-yard touchdown burst with five minutes left in the game, continuing a phenomenal first year for Philly, at in which he achieved more than 2,000 rushing yards in the regular season.
Sophomore defensive tackle Jalen Carter starred for the Eagles with two sacks, two tackles for loss and a forced fumble as the Rams suffered costly turnovers.
Jalen Hurts finished 15 of 20 for 128 yards and rushed for a touchdown, while Matthew Stafford threw for 324 yards and two scores as the Ramsā season came to an end.
The Eagles will now face Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders next weekend for a spot in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, a month after losing 36-33 to division rival NFC East in a thriller.
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Saquon Barkley scores a brilliant 78-yard touchdown, his second of the game, to secure the Philadelphia Eaglesā berth in the NFC Championship game
Statistics guide
Los Angeles Rams
- Consist: Matthew Stafford, 26/44, 324 yards, 2 touchdowns
- Rush: Kyren Williams, 19 carries, 106 yards
- Reception: Puka Nacua, 6 catches, 97 yards
Philadelphia Eagles
- Consist: Jalen Hurts, 15/20, 128 yards
- Rush: Saquon Barkley, 26 carries, 205 yards, 2 touchdowns
- Reception: Dallas Goedert, 5 catches, 56 yards
As Rocky Balboa music played in Philly, the snow fell and chaos ensued in a second half full of slips, slides, falls, drama and a dash of Saquon.
The Rams threatened a late turnaround at Lincoln Financial Field when Stafford hit Colby Parkinson for a four-yard touchdown with 2.48 left, just moments after Barkley thought he had tied the game with his 78-yard score Ice laid.
When the Eaglesā next drive stalled, Stafford ā who had 51 game-winning drives to his name ā converted third-and-10 to Demarcus Robinson before surprising the Eagles with a 37-yard strike to Puka Nacua, who came off the bench Hand to make an outstanding diving grab down the sideline to move his team to the 21-yard line with 1.33 remaining.
After Los Angeles was forced back on second-and-12 by a false start penalty on Kevin Dotson, Carter nearly sealed the game moments later by sacking Stafford, leading to a ninth down on third-and-2. With one last chance, the Rams quarterback failed to find Nacua and the Eagles breathed a sigh of relief.
Touchdown runs by Jalen Hurts and Barkley gave the Eagles a 13-10 lead at halftime before Joshua Karty tied the score with his 34-yard field goal on the first drive of the snow-marred second half.
Jake Elliott responded with a 44-yard field goal to restore the Eaglesā lead, but not without shock after Hurts suffered a knee injury on a heavy hit by safety Jaylen McCollough. The quarterback was taken to the blue tent for treatment before returning with a knee brace.
The pain seemed to linger as his lack of mobility allowed Neville Gallimore to drag him to the ground for a safety that would put the Rams up 16-15.
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Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley scores a stunning 62-yard touchdown to give his team the lead over the Los Angeles Rams
Rams running back Williams then felt the wrath of an enthusiastic Carter, who successfully knocked the ball loose before seeing teammate Isaiah Rodgers run it back to the 10-yard line. Barkley was then stuffed at the one-yard line, but where the Eagles would normally have opted for the tush push, they instead turned to Barkley again given Hurtsā injury.
This led to another stop by the Rams defense, followed by a false start penalty on Lane Johnson, forcing the Eagles to settle for Elliottās 23-yard field goal attempt to make it 19-15.
Carter wasnāt the only former Georgia Bulldog upset. Nolan Smith made his presence felt on the Ramsā ensuing drive by forcing another fumble, which Zach Baun recovered to convert Elliottās 37-yard kick for a 22-15 lead with 6.18 left.
Knowing it would snow, both teams detonated the traps and went after an early fort. And it was the Eagles who scored first on the sixth play from scrimmage, as Hurts broke free for a 44-yard touchdown and Elliott missed the ensuing extra point. It was the longest run of the Eagles quarterbackās NFL career and an immediate reminder of Philadelphiaās read-option threat of Hurts and Barkley.
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Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts scores a 44-yard touchdown early in the first quarter of their NFL playoff divisional round game against the Los Angeles Rams
The Rams responded immediately when Tyler Higbee hurled Staffordās pinprick dagger between two defenders at the goal line for a four-yard touchdown at the end of a 13-play drive.
It appeared the possession would stall on the third and seventh when Staffordās deep pass to Higbee was ruled incomplete, but Sean McVay was able to successfully challenge. Williams was there later, converting fourth-and-1 for first-and-goal from the four-yard line.
Barkleyās moment wasnāt far behind, the NFLās leading rusher following a painful block from Mekhi Becton to break away for a 62-yard touchdown and a 13-7 lead.
Karty cut the lead to three with a 30-yard field goal before Verse sank Philadelphiaās next two possessions with derailing sacks to start the half.
Whatās next?
Itās Conference Championship Sunday and the Eagles host the Commanders in the NFC.
Super Bowl LIX will take place on Sunday, February 9th at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. live on Sky Sports NFL.
