PHILADELPHIA — Fly Eagles Fly.
With the wind and against it.
With Nick Foles engineering several long drives, Jake Elliott converting three field goals and the defense getting stingy in the tightest spot, Philadelphia moved into the NFC championship game Saturday with a 15-10 victory over the Atlanta Falcons.
Foles directed marches of 74 and 80 yards in the second half – one into the whipping wind, the other with it – and Elliott atoned for missing an extra point by hitting from 53 yards at the end of the second quarter, and 37 and 21 in the second half. Then the Eagles (14-3) held when Atlanta (11-7) got to the 9-yard line with a first down, and to the 2 on fourth down in the last minute.
When Matt Ryan’s final pass sailed over Julio Jones’ head in the end zone, Philly could celebrate its first playoff victory since the 2008 season.
Next Sunday, the Eagles will host either Minnesota or New Orleans for the conference crown. The Eagles last made the Super Bowl in the 2004 season, losing to New England.
“I mean, we just kept believing in each other,” said Foles, who became the starter when Carson Wentz, a leading MVP contender, injured his knee in December. “That was it. Our team never wavered, defense did an amazing job, special teams – that’s just been the story this year is that we just all stuck together.”
The Falcons, of course, memorably blew a 28-3 second-half lead to the Patriots in last year’s Super Bowl. They will not get the opportunity to atone for it, though Ryan got them close at the end.
Despite being underdogs as the No. 1 seed, the Eagles showed plenty of moxie.
A masterful 74-yard, 12-play drive on which Foles was 5 of 6 for 70 yards – the only incompletion was Jay Ajayi’s drop – led to Elliott’s 37-yard kick into the wind that made it 12-10.
The Eagles put together their best drive, an 80-yarder covering 14 plays, yet again faltered close to the end zone. Elliott added a 21-yarder with 6:02 remaining after Coach Doug Pederson briefly considered going for it on fourth-and-1 at the Atlanta 3.
Then, as the fans held their breath, the Eagles held on deep in their territory.
“Man, just stay calm,” said defensive tackle Fletcher Cox, who was a force all day. “We always talk about that. We’ve been in those situations during the regular season, so we kind of know how to handle those situations, not try to make a play but let the play come to us.”
And the road to the Super Bowl remains through Philly.
This story will be updated
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