Standing in front of his locker at MetLife Stadium, Eagles backup quarterback Marcus Mariota had a hushed conversation Sunday with starter Jalen Hurts, whose right middle finger looked like a twisted pretzel after banging a helmet late in the first half of a numbing loss to the New York Giants.
It’s going to be a few days before Hurts knows the extent of the pain he will have to play through when the Eagles visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the wild card round of the playoffs on Monday night. That is, if he plays.
Eagles coach Nick Sirianni is confident Hurts will be able to work through it, but you never really know. And that’s where Mariota comes in.
Considering the circumstances, Mariota, 30, was among a sub-group of Eagles who played decently in the otherwise brutal 27-10 loss. Compared to the cat who flamed out with a 34-40 record over nine seasons after being the second overall pick out of Oregon in the 2015 draft, he looked reborn.
Truth be told, Mariota, the 2014 Heisman Trophy winner, was seriously wondering whether to move on from the game before joining the Eagles.
“You know, I’ve kind of had an up-and-down career,” Mariota said. “I was pretty over it, to be honest with you guys, at the end of my time in Atlanta. It’s a great locker room here, it’s a great culture. And to be able to play with these guys, it just kind of lights up the adrenaline a little bit and kind of gets those feelings of passion again for the game. I enjoyed that part of it. For me, personally, it’s just kind of about enjoying the game.”
Throughout the season Mariota took pleasure in talking about the quarterback position, whether it was the NFL, college or otherwise. He made a compelling draft argument for J.J. McCarthy of Michigan, who some believe has lost ground in draft status to Michael Penix, the bombs away quarterback with Washington. The teams squared off Monday in the national championship game.
But back to Mariota and the Giants, who provided Mariota the opportunity to take and avoid hits just like old times.
Mariota completed 13 of 20 passes for 148 yards and one touchdown against the Giants, a 16-yard throw to Quez Watkins, who made a leaping grab in a sea of Giants. That duo formed a connection, as the much-maligned Watkins caught the bulk of eight passes for 93 yards from Mariota, who finished with an 82.9 passer rating.
Mariota marched the Eagles into Giants territory on three straight possessions in the second half, two resulting in scores, but fumbled at his 28-yard line inside of four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. He finished with six rushes for 46 yards, including a 17-yard scamper.
The game reinforced the importance of having a reliable backup. Tyrod Taylor, who took over this season for the Giants when starter Daniel Jones tore an ACL, completed 23 of 32 attempts for 297 yards with one TD, one interception and a 98.0 rating Sunday. He also had eight rushes for 38 yards.
You could do a lot worse than backups Mariota or Taylor, who this season are hauling in $5 million and $1.4 million respectively. Taylor is 2-3 for the lowly Giants (6-11). Both of those contracts are up after this season. If Hurts struggles with his middle finger, Mariota has a chance to make himself more money in relief for an Eagles team that has lost five of its last six games.
“Football is kind of wild,” Mariota said. “You’re going to have some ups and downs and I think adversity will make a team stronger. Jalen did a great job at the end of this game, in the locker room, just talking about it. He said ‘Hey, just dominate your box. Just do what you’ve got to do. Embrace your role.’ And I think as a group we’ll be ready to go. And I’m excited to see what goes on next week.”
It would be a miracle if the wild card game went smoothly for the Eagles (11-6), who are cratering after a 10-1 start. Nothing has been easy for this team since the start of December.
The way Mariota spoke, and the way Hurts’ finger appeared, maybe Mariota hasn’t seen his last huddle with the Eagles.
Contact Bob Grotz at rgrotz@delcotimes.com
Source: Berkshire mont
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