Amid heavy snowfall, the Philadelphia Eagles earned the right to host the NFC Championship Game by defeating the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.
It didn't come without a cost. Quarterback Jalen Hurts appeared to injure his knee while being taken down during the second half and although he finished the game, he was clearly limited.
"Tough game, a challenging game," Hurts said when asked about his health after the 28-22 victory. "I was able to finish the game. We'll see how the week goes."
When pressed, the Eagles QB added that he was confident he'd be able to play next Sunday against the Washington Commanders.
Hurts' final stat line from the Divisional Round triumph won't wow the average fan, at least not in the passing department. He completed 15 of 20 passes for 128 yards and was also sacked seven times for a total of 63 yards, bringing the Eagles' final net passing total down to 65 yards. It was a physically brutal game for Hurts, who was under plenty of pressure throughout but fought through the knee pain to stay on the field in a performance that prompted Saquon Barkley to call his quarterback a "warrior."
Those totals usually aren't good enough to win a playoff game, but it was for these Eagles because of Barkley, who ripped off a 62-yard touchdown run in the first half and closed Philadelphia's scoring for the day with a 78-yard romp for six points late in the fourth. With Hurts struggling to move, Sunday may have marked the peak for Barkley's value to this team in his first season with the Eagles.
That wasn't lost on Hurts, who got a head start on Barkley with a 44-yard touchdown run of his own for the Eagles' first touchdown of the day.
"We love to start off fast, some type of way, get some explosives, and pop some big-time explosive plays in the second half. Saquon has been tremendous at that," Hurts said. "Rain, sleet or snow, he's been able to pound, pound, pound, and then take it off. That was fun. That was cute, I said, being able to pop it off first for once. … Saquon needed a break, so I said I'd do it first."
The Eagles will likely need Barkley to come through in a big way again next weekend when the division-rival Commanders come to town for their third meeting this season. If Hurts is limited, they might need legitimate heroics from Barkley to keep this offense moving.
Luckily, he's produced plenty of those already this season and is fully prepared, embracing moments like Sunday and explaining "this is why I came to Philly ... to be part of games like this."
"The beautiful thing is they've got to go through Philly," Barkley said of the Commanders. "I remember after we lost to Washington, some of those guys were looking at us and saying that, 'We're going to see you again.' And here we are."
Barkley will experience an even bigger one in a week.
