Eagles News: NFL coaches criticize “terrible” James Bradberry penalty call

Let’s get to the Philadelphia Eagles links ...

Patrick Mahomes and NFL officiating, both better than ever: Mike Sando’s Pick Six - The Athletic
Super Bowl LVII ended the way the AFC Championship Game ended two weeks ago, with the Kansas City Chiefs kicking the winning field goal while millions lamented the penalty that made it all possible. Is this what commissioner Roger Goodell thinks has never been better about officiating? Text messages from coaches around the NFL were flying back and forth Sunday night after a call for defensive holding against the Philadelphia Eagles’ James Bradberry allowed the Chiefs to run down the clock before punching through a chip-shot field goal for a 38-35 victory, their second Lombardi Trophy in three Super Bowl appearances over the past four seasons. “Terrible! Not one holding called all game!” a game-management coach protested. “Way to f— up a great game,” a former head coach raged. “Late flag tells me the K.C. sideline called for it,” an exec speculated. [...] Bradberry’s uncommon grace and Cheffers’ stock answer do not change that Jenkins, a nine-year NFL official, threw a flag in a situation when officials frequently do not throw flags, with legacy-altering consequences. “You know how many times that route gets run and it is not called?” a veteran offensive play caller said. “It’s a play teams perennially send into the league and never get the call. Guys grab like that all the time. If it stopped the receiver from getting to the ball, I understand, but that was not the case.”

Super Bowl LVII Takeaways: Penalty Overshadows Eagles’ Dominant 2022 Season - SI
It’s disappointing that the 2022 Eagles will be remembered for the flag that was thrown on the play where their shot at a world title went away. Because that Philly team was talented, balanced, well-coached, well-constructed—it had just about everything, including a quarterback who could go blow for blow with Patrick Mahomes. Jalen Hurts was absolutely spectacular. So it’s a shame this Super Bowl won’t be remembered in Philadelphia for the 304 passing yards he had in completing 27 of 38 throws, or the 70 rushing yards he churned out, or how he accounted for all four of Philly’s touchdowns—three on the ground—or the Houdini acts he pulled on a third-and-8 throw to Zach Pascal for nine yards and a third-and-6 to Dallas Goedert for 17 yards, or the absolute dime he delivered to Goedert for 17 yards on third-and-14. It’s unfortunate, in the end, that this one will be remembered for what might’ve been for the Eagles, had the NFL’s alleged all-star crew kept the flags in their pockets at the end.

The Holding Call on the Eagles May Have Been Technically Correct, but It Felt Wrong - The Ringer
No game is truly decided by one play, of course, and it’s simultaneously true that the Chiefs made the plays they needed to make to win, and the Eagles squandered too many of their own opportunities. But it’s hard to get past the thought that the league’s officials once again committed the cardinal sin of postseason football: unnecessarily inserting themselves into the story line. The resulting milquetoast finish left viewers facing an unfortunate reality: That one late call marred what could’ve been an all-time game.

Eagles vs. Chiefs Super Bowl Edition: The good, the bad, and the ugly - BGN

The defeat, however, cannot overshadow the amazing game of Jalen Hurts, who thoroughly outplayed Mahomes for most of the game, completing 27 of 38 for 304 yards, scoring three rushing touchdowns, a Super Bowl record for quarterbacks, and throwing for another. Mahomes’ numbers were modest in comparison, though he did throw three touchdown passes and converted 4 of 5 third downs in the second half on a gimpy right ankle. If the Eagles were broken in any one area, it was on the defensive side of the ball, where they registered no sacks on Mahomes and gave up critical yards in crucial situations. The Eagles did nothing to alter Mahomes’ rhythm. The Chiefs showed great balance, rushing the ball 26 times and passed 27 times. Using that balance, anything Mahomes wanted to do, he did in the second half. Here’s a look at some very good, some bad and a whole lot of ugly in Kansas City’s 38-35 Super Bowl LVII victory over the Eagles.

BGN Instant Reaction Show: Eagles fall to Chiefs, 38-35 - BGN Radio
Shane Haff and John Stolnis react to the Eagles loss to the Chiefs, 38-25 in Super Bowl LVII.

Jalen Hurts played like the Super Bowl MVP in the Eagles’ loss to the Chiefs - SB Nation
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was named MVP of Super Bowl LVII, but the award could very well have gone to his Philadelphia Eagles counterpart: Jalen Hurts was outstanding, even though his team eventually lost with a final score of 38-35. The Eagles’ third-year QB was arguably the best player on the field on Sunday. Not only did he go 27-for-38 for 304 yards and a touchdown throwing the football, he also gained 70 yards on 15 carries while finding the end zone three times. Additionally, he crossed the plane on a two-point conversion. Hurts’ performance was one for the record books. His rushing and touchdown totals are both new single-game Super Bowl highs for a quarterback.

Philly public transit dealing with significant delays morning after Super Bowl loss - DraftKings Nation
The Super Bowl hangover is something we often hear about the losing team. They sometimes struggle the following season after coming up short in the big game. It’s safe to say there’s a more immediate Super Bowl hangover for fans right after the game. It’s often been suggested that the day after the Super Bowl be a national holiday, and given what we sometimes see, maybe it already effectively is. SEPTA — the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority — announced on Monday morning that there are significant delays for the regional public transit service due to operator unavailability. 70 different lines were dealing with delays during rush hour on Monday morning.

Super Bowl LVII: The “Corn Dog” That Won It All For Kansas City - FMIA
Goats of the week: Jonathan Gannon, defensive coordinator, Philadelphia. Fool him once on a fake jet motion, fine. Twice? Not good. Not good at all. The two Kansas City touchdowns early in the fourth quarter both were prompted by fake jet motions—first by Kadarius Toney, next by Skyy Moore—and when both men turned back to the sideline, Patrick Mahomes found both for short TD passes. That’s something you’d forgive the Philadelphia play-callers for once. Twice? No way.

Super Bowl 57: 10 highest-graded players from Chiefs victory over Eagles - PFF
QB Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles. PFF Grade: 92.2. Hurts recorded five big-time throws, which tied for the second-most in a Super Bowl over the past 22 years. He went 27-of-38 for 304 yards and produced a 92.9 PFF passing grade. ... QB Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs. PFF Grade: 89.5. Mahomes went 21-of-27 for 182 yards and three scores, and two of his six incompletions came on throwaways. He has 80.0-plus PFF grades both as a passer and runner.

Super Bowl LVII DVOA/Quick Reads - Football Outsiders
So, remember when we said Mahomes’ success rate was 63%? Hurts’ was only 43%. He had 10 failed completions that added 40 yards to his total without doing much to help Philadelphia win. (Only one of those came on third down, if you’re curious.) Each quarterback had exactly 17 successful dropbacks, and Hurts’ successful plays were better than Mahomes’ But Hurts had 13 more failed plays, and though none of them were terrible (he had no interceptions, and his two sacks lost just 1 yard each), they did include failures to convert on second-and-1, second-and-2, and third-and-3. Nearly 30% of his yardage total came on two completions to DeVonta Smith (we’ll get to him later); take those out and his average gain drops from 7.6 yards to 5.6. He had a terrible day in the red zone, going 3-of-4 for 11 yards with more sacks (one) than successful completions (zero). He only threw three passes down the middle, completing one for 5 yards. He had a big day on third downs (7-of-9 for 93 yards and six conversions), but he needed to because he only had five first downs in 31 dropbacks on first and second down. In fact, Hurts threw for fewer first downs (11) than Mahomes (12) despite completing six more passes in 13 more dropbacks and gaining over 100 more yards. We haven’t even gotten to Hurts’ rushing yet—he had 15 carries for “only” 70 yards (a 4.7-yard average, which is rotten for a quarterback), but 10 first downs, including three scores, and he moved the chains on each of his carries with 4 yards or less to go. But there was also that third-and-5 fumble that was returned for a Kansas City touchdown; that play alone lost 27 DYAR, more than twice as many as he gained on any of his good runs.

Who could Super Bowl champion Chiefs face to kick off 2023 season? - NFL.com
Let’s kick off the 2023 season where Super Bowl LVII finished. The Chiefs stormed back in the second half Sunday after getting punched in the mouth by the Eagles in the first half. Even on a tweaked ankle, Mahomes led K.C. to a spirited second-half comeback victory. The back-and-forth affair was made-for-TV drama. A late flag on James Bradberry — which the corner admitted was a hold — took some of the pizzazz off a potential historic ending. Kicking off the season by giving the Eagles a chance to avenge their Super Bowl loss would be a full-circle opportunity.

Handing out 10 awards from the Eagles’ Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs - PhillyVoice
7) The ‘Missed Opportunity’ Award: Quez Watkins. Watkins doesn’t get many opportunities in each game because the Eagles have star players in A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Dallas Goedert. But when a shot play is dialed up for him and the quarterback puts the ball on the money, you have to make the play.

So Close - Iggles Blitz
One thing everyone can agree on is that the field was a disaster. Players from both teams were slipping and sliding. The NFL should be embarrassed that they had issues like this on the biggest sporting event in the world. This cannot happen again.

10 Super Bowl plays that doomed the Eagles - NBCSP
Jalen’s fumble (9:48 second quarter): Hurts has come a long way in terms of protecting the football. He had lost only one fumble all year, when he was sacked by the Jaguars’ Yannick Ngakoue in Week 4. He had never had a fumble returned for a touchdown, and no Eagle QB has had a fumble returned for a TD since Carson Wentz fumbled against the Vikings in 2018 and current Eagle Linval Joseph returned it three yards for a TD. In fact, it was the first fumble recovery TD against the Eagles in the postseason since 1981, when Wally Henry fumbled a kickoff that the Giants’ Mark Haynes returned for a TD in a wild-card loss at the Vet. What made this play so weird is that Hurts wasn’t even hit. He just lost the ball and it took one big bounce right to linebacker Nick Bolton, who ran 36 yards untouched for a TD. Hurts was magnificent Sunday, but that was the biggest play in a game the Chiefs won by three points. It was the first fumble return TD in Super Bowl history by a winning team in a one-possession game.

Spadaro: A dream ending to a dream season comes up just short - PE.com
After a spectacular halftime show from Rihanna, the game changed completely. Kansas City scored touchdowns on its first three possessions and Mahomes, tender ankle and all, carved up the Philadelphia defense with an array of short passes and a balanced running game. The Chiefs had touchdown drives of 10 plays and 75 yards, followed by a 9-play, 70-yard drive that put the Chiefs ahead, 28-27. Then a Kadarius Toney 65-yard punt return put the Chiefs in business at the Philadelphia 5-yard line and three plays later Mahomes defeated a seven-man blitz and threw to a wide-open Skyy Moore for a touchdown and a 35-27 advantage. But the Eagles weren’t finished. Hurts connected with DeVonta Smith for 45 yards to the Kansas City 2-yard line and Hurts ran for his third touchdown one play later. Hurts then took a sweep left and scored on the two-point conversion to tie things up at 35-35, giving Mahomes one last offensive possession. Philadelphia couldn’t come up with that big stop when it needed it most. Mahomes was 13 of 14 for 93 yards and two touchdowns in the second half and added 4 carries for 33 yards in a performance that earned him the Super Bowl LVII MVP award.

It’s official: Andy Reid is the greatest head coach in Chiefs’ history - Arrowhead Pride
Now that the Kansas City Chiefs have won their second NFL championship under head coach Andy Reid, there can no longer be any debate about it: Reid is the greatest coach in team history. As someone who remembers, respects and admires the late Hall of Fame coach Hank Stram, this doesn’t come easy for me. On multiple levels, Stram was an brilliant innovator, an incredible coach and a fine man. He should forever occupy a place in our hearts — not just in Kansas City, but throughout the NFL. But this franchise now belongs to Andrew Walter Reid. Some time ago, he exceeded Stram’s regular-season record of 0.619. It now stands at 0.722 — and has been earned during a much more competitive period in pro football history.

Gannon on Deck? - Revenge Of The Birds
When Michael Bidwill addressed the Cardinals head coaching search a couple of days ago, he said something to the effect of “we really like the progress we are making.” So, what was Bidwill referring to when he said “progress”? Did he mean this?

Report: Eagles OC Shane Steichen Flying to Indy Monday Afternoon to Finalize Hiring - Stampede Blue
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Shane Steichen is expected to fly to Indianapolis, Indiana, on Monday afternoon to finalize a deal with the Indianapolis Colts to become the franchise’s next head coach.

The Kansas City Chiefs defeat Philadelphia Eagles to win Super Bowl LVII - Blogging The Boys
While this is the outcome that we preferred, we are all capable of acknowledging that the Eagles had an incredible season that came just short of eternal glory. It will be a challenge for Philly to climb this mountain all over again next year with hopes of taking one more step, especially if they lose both coordinators to head coaching positions as seems like it might wind up being the case. It was reported on Sunday morning that Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon could both wind up moving on. Time will tell there.

Could WR Parris Campbell reunite with Mike Groh in New York? - Big Blue View
According to Spotrac.com, the average annual contract for Campbell is projected at $2.5 million. This would put Campbell in the vicinity of Tre’Quan Smith (Saints) and Josh Reynolds (Lions). High second-round picks typically make around $2.5 AAV, give or take. That’s a reasonable number considering the injuries in Campbell’s past. Marquez Valdes-Scantling (Chiefs) and D.J. Chark (Lions) signed $10 million deals last offseason as free agents, and Zay Jones (Jaguars) signed an $8 million AAV deal. It would behoove Campbell to come to a team where there’s familiarity with Groh, and possible opportunity to be earned. I don’t believe the Giants’ final answers at wide receiver lie in free agency. They should look at the draft on Day 1 or 2 to help bolster their receiving corps, but that does not mean veteran additions in free agency shouldn’t be explored. Campbell at a $2.5 million price tag is reasonable, but I’d prefer to retain Darius Slayton if all things were equal.

...

Social Media Information:

BGN Facebook Page: Click here to like our page

BGN Twitter: Follow @BleedingGreen

BGN Instagram: Follow @BleedingGreenInsta

BGN Manager: Brandon Lee Gowton: Follow @BrandonGowton

BGN Radio Twitter: Follow @BGN_Radio