There was, for the slightest of moments, a hesitation before everyone at Lincoln Financial Field understood it to be over, before Eagles 31, 49ers 7 was not just inevitable but official.
Third-and-goal, less than a minute left in the third quarter Sunday, the Eagles leading by 14 points and 1 yard away from a touchdown that would bury a tough but shorthanded 49ers team, and Jalen Hurts took the snap and surged forward a few inches into a pile-up of monster-truck men, then kept pushing, then finally crossed into the end zone. And only when two officials raised their hands like goalposts and fireworks crackled in the ink-black sky could the 67,000 in the stands scream in joy and relief.
Only then could the 49ers cast aside any thought of a miraculous comeback. Only then could the Eagles give each other head rubs and blow kisses to the fans and know in their bones, even with another quarter yet to play, that they were going to the Super Bowl.
Hey, you never know what’s going to happen. This is Philadelphia. We’ve seen some stuff.
But then, it’s hard to say that anyone has seen anything like this Eagles team. That 2017-18 championship club will forever hold a place in people’s hearts here, with its underdog masks and its visor-donning head coach and his daring play-calling, with its backup quarterback-turned-big-game MVP.
This team is different. This team might turn out to be the best in franchise history, if it isn’t already. This team has won 16 of its 19 games, and it has won its two postseason games by a combined score of 69-14, and it has shown that it has enough talent, enough depth, and enough coaching acumen to win a game in any manner that it needs to win a game.
It can throw the ball with Hurts, on a rocket ride to stardom that few expected when this season began. It can run the ball with three capable tailbacks, with Hurts himself, and with the best offensive line in the NFL.
It can shut down an offense, thanks to the league’s best pass rush and two terrific cornerbacks.
It can outthink an opponent, thanks to a precocious coaching staff.
Mostly, this is a team that wins games with the cold efficiency of a group that knows how good it is. The Eagles have lost once this season when Hurts has started, and the lone period of apprehension came in late December, when Hurts fell to the frozen sod of Soldier Field in Chicago and sprained his shoulder and, days later, tackle Lane Johnson tore a tendon in his groin. It does not go too far to say that Hurts and Johnson are the Eagles’ two most important players on offense, perhaps on the entire roster. The team staggered without them, losing to the Dallas Cowboys and the New Orleans Saints, sluggish in the regular-season finale, a victory over the New York Giants that clinched home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.
People were worried. How hurt was Hurts? Could he throw? Could he take a hit? Could he be himself? Could Johnson really play through the pain, and how effective could he be? One bad day is all it would take for a dream to die.
Hell, yes, people were worried. Hey, you never know what’s going to happen. This is Philadelphia. We’ve seen some stuff.
“Obviously, the end of the regular season was pretty uncomfortable,” center Jason Kelce said last week. “Whenever you’re losing the starting quarterback, it’s going to affect you. Lane Johnson goes down. Best tackle in the NFL. These things that happen, you can either go one of two ways, and I think it’s made us stronger. It’s made us better. We understand ourselves more. We understand our strengths and weaknesses more.”
Not all of those strengths were on display Sunday, but enough were. DeVonta Smith made a brilliant, one-handed catch on fourth down. The 49ers ranked first in the NFL against the run this season, but the Eagles ground them down for 148 yards and four rushing touchdowns. But maybe the sweetest, most satisfying aspect of Sunday’s victory was the performance by the Eagles defense, for that performance was a throwback to eras and teams still cherished here.
A long time ago — more than 32 years ago, actually — there was a football game in Philadelphia that was particularly memorable, and anyone old enough to remember it should have found it coming to mind Sunday. That game has, to this day, a nickname that is considered endearing here and infamous everywhere else: “The Body Bag Game.” On a Monday night at Veterans Stadium in November 1990, in a 28-14 victory, the Eagles so battered Washington that nine of its players left the game with injuries, and running back Brian Mitchell had to play quarterback … because he was the last viable option left after Reggie White, Jerome Brown, Seth Joyner, and their friends took care of the first two.
Professional football has changed a lot since then. Linebackers and defensive ends can’t tee off on quarterbacks as they once did. Head trauma was downplayed or disregarded then and is a constant concern now. The sport has a high-tech, souped-up veneer that can sometimes mask what is at its core, and what is at its core is physical damage. And the Eagles inflicted plenty of it against the 49ers.
Fred Warner writhed on the ground. Christian McCaffrey came up limping. Nick Bosa had to be helped off the field. Haason Reddick sacked Brock Purdy, forced Purdy to fumble, and knocked him from the game with an elbow injury. Josh Johnson, Purdy’s replacement, took a shot from Ndamukong Suh, suffered a concussion, and couldn’t continue. Purdy had to return, even though he could barely throw a football.
By then, the outcome was all but decided. Hurts surged across the goal line with 43 seconds left in the third quarter. All the reasons for worrying and cynicism and fear were gone. All that was left was the celebration and the chance to look ahead to Feb. 12. To State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. To Super Bowl LVII.
This is Philadelphia. We’ve seen some stuff. Just nothing like this football team.
