A TD Pass from Julian Edelman Catapulted Patriots past Eagles
It was only right that Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots overcame the Philadelphia Eagles by giving them a dose of their own medicine.
The "Philly Special" was the story of the Eagles' Super Bowl win over the Patriots roughly two years ago. In fact, there is a statue of the play in front of Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field.
During Sunday's 17-10 win over the Eagles, it was the Patriots' turn to get creative.
New England proved to be rather anti-climatic for most of the game. Tom Brady was inaccurate on a number of his throws and the offense could never put together consistent drives. Three first half field goals by Nick Folk kept the Patriots in the game, but it wasn't anything to be excited about.
Down 10-9 at the break, the Patriots were set to receive the second half kickoff. On the opening drive of the third quarter, the Patriots capped off a 10-play, 84-yard march with a play that gave the whole Patriots team the boost they needed. Tom Brady threw a backwards screen pass to Julian Edelman, allowing him to throw the ball himself. Phillip Dorsett ran a post route over the middle of the field, and Edelman found him the end zone for the lone score of the second half for both teams. The Patriots then attempted a two-point conversion, which succeeded as James White ran the ball in, giving the Patriots a 17-10 lead over the Eagles. This score would then stand pat for the last 25 minutes of the game.
In his postgame press conference, Bill Belichick was happy with the execution of the play.
“Good read on the play," he said. "He checked the cross and it was open. (Edelman) made a good decision and puts his quarterback rating up there pretty high. I am sure he’ll have to ice his shoulder down this week, massage it, and everything else. It was a great play by Julian. Like I said, there were a couple options on the play. A lot of ball handling involved on the play there but he got his eyes down field, made a good decision, made a good throw. It was a big catch by (Phillip Dorsett II)."
Edelman is quietly racking up some impressive passing statistics. After his Week 11 passing touchdown, he is now 5-of-6 with 141 yards and two TD's for his career. Not a bad line for a wide receiver.
After the game, Edelman was asked about the opportunity to throw the ball.
“I just do what the coaches ask of me," said Edelman to MassLive's Chris Mason. "It isn’t like I am going to the coaches and saying, ‘Yo, let me throw a ball.’ I guess it’s cool to do. They trust me to go throw the ball and its fun to throw the ball sometimes.”
In a game that showcased a number of offensive struggles, one big play proved to be enough. The Patriots improved their record to 9-1, as they are now set to come back home and game plan for their next game, a home matchup vs. the NFC East leading Dallas Cowboys.
