Philadelphia, Pa. (94WIP/WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Philadelphia Eagles are heading to their second Super Bowl in three years after beating the Washington Commanders, 55-23, in Sunday's NFC Championship at Lincoln Financial Field.
Eagles QB Jalen Hurts, who was dealing with an injured knee, was excellent in the game completing 20-28 passes for 246 yards and a touchdown in the air and three more touchdowns on the ground.
Saquon Barkley, in his first-ever Championship Game, took his first carry for a 60-yard touchdown. Barkley finished the game with 15 carries for 118 yards and three scores.
Eagles backup running back Will Shipley added a rushing touchdown.
Philadelphia's seven rushing touchdowns on Sunday is tied for the most in a playoff game.
A.J. Brown led Philadelphia in receiving with six catches for 96 yards and a touchdown.
The key to the game was three fumbles lost by the Commanders, all resulting in Philadelphia touchdowns.
Defensively, Owens Burks — replacing the injured Nakobe Dean at linebacker — had a fantastic game for the Eagles, recording 4.0 solo tackles, 1.0 sack and a forced fumble.
Linebacker Zack Baun, a candidate for Defensive Player of the Year, had 7.0 solo tackles and a forced fumble.
Nick Sirianni, who is 48-20 in the regular season in four years as the Eagles' head coach, is now 5-3 in the postseason with two NFC Championships. He has the highest winning percentage of an active NFL head coach, and the third-highest winning percentage in the Super Bowl era.
Dating back to 2017 when they won the Super Bowl under Doug Pederson, the Eagles have reached the postseason in seven out of eight seasons, most in the NFC. Since 2001, the Eagles have played in eight NFC Championship Games, also most in the NFC.
In two weeks, they'll look for their second Super Bowl victory in franchise history.
Philadelphia will face the winner of the AFC Championship Game between the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX.
The Chiefs, led by Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid, defeated the Eagles, 38-35, in Super Bowl LVII in the 2022 season, and then beat the San Francisco 49ers in last year's Super Bowl.
Kansas City could become the first team to win three Super Bowls in a row. In the history of the NFL, only the 1929-31 and 1965-67 Packers — pre-Super Bowl era — have won three-straight titles.
As for the Bills, they're looking to return to the Super Bowl for the first time in 31 seasons. They have yet to win a title after trips to four-straight Super Bowls from 1990-93.