Kenny Pickett played hurt to help the Eagles — his childhood team — capture the division crown
Pickett entered the contest with a ribs injury that forced him to exit early after the Cowboys delivered some shots, but not before the Ocean Township native had put the Eagles on the path to victory.
Before Kenny Pickett and the Eagles’ depth quarterbacks trotted out of the tunnel for warmups, the newfound starter had a prophetic message for his teammates:
Just win at all costs.
Pickett was about to pay his dues. The 27-year-old quarterback, who was starting in place of the injured Jalen Hurts (concussion), was dealing with a ribs ailment that he sustained last week against the Washington Commanders. He gutted through the pain, shot after shot and Tush Push after Tush Push, to lead the Eagles to a 41-7 clobbering of the Dallas Cowboys and clinch the NFC East title.
“All I wanted to accomplish today was to get the win, for the team, for the city,” Pickett said after the game. “Keep the momentum going that we’ve had, a really good season so far. I wanted to keep that going. I just wanted to do my part.”
The former Steeler from Ocean Township, N.J., didn’t have the start he might have envisioned as a kid when he grew up rooting for the Eagles. The offense fizzled on its first two possessions of the game, running just seven plays without a completion across both drives.
But the group began to pick up steam on its next possession in the second quarter thanks to a string of short passing and rushing gains. Then, Pickett pulled off his first explosive play of the day on a third-and-8 scramble-drill hookup with Grant Calcaterra, one of his favorite targets in training camp. The quarterback escaped the pocket to his right and unleashed a 34-yard pass that the tight end caught with one hand at the Cowboys’ 20-yard line.
“I saw him wheel up the field, I just put it up for him, and he made a [heck] of a play,” Pickett said. “Grant is a phenomenal player. Doesn’t get enough love, I feel like on this team, because there’s so much talent. But I’ve been with him since I got here. We got a lot of reps together early on. He’s a special, special player.”
Two plays later, Saquon Barkley lost 5 yards on a short pass to bring up third-and-12 at the 22. The Cowboys sent six rushers — a zero blitz — on the ensuing dropback, but the protection held up long enough for Pickett to connect with DeVonta Smith on a 22-yard touchdown pass that put the Eagles up, 14-7.
The 26-year-old wide receiver beat Cowboys cornerback Andrew Booth out of the slot, hauling in the pass on a corner route with plenty of cushion. After the game, Pickett called the Cowboys’ decision to use a zero blitz “a great look” for that particular play, given that Smith just had to win his one-on-one against Booth.
“We went in the right protection,” Pickett said. “I just had to buy a little bit of time in the pocket and let him work his release, and then just put it up for him. And he got his feet in and did the rest.”
Pickett’s health began to deteriorate when the Tush Push opportunities started to present themselves. On the Eagles’ next possession of the second quarter that ended in a field goal, Pickett executed his first two Tush Pushes of the night, including one that did not count as Micah Parsons was flagged for lining up offside.
The Eagles Tush Pushed twice at the goal line on the following drive, one of which was unsuccessful and the second of which went for a touchdown to put the Eagles up, 24-7. On the second attempt, Pickett had to fight through Parsons, who had leaped over the pile in an attempt to stuff the quarterback.
“The sneaks were a little tough early on,” Pickett said. “All the bodies lying on top of you, and then those couple hits afterward, tough. But it’s part of the game. We love the game. Do anything to win.”
Pickett took a pair of hits on the first drive of the third quarter that prematurely ended his night. Moments after he uncorked an incomplete pass for A.J. Brown on the second play of the drive, Pickett took a late hit from Cowboys defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa that left him curled up facedown in pain.
The quarterback shook off the discomfort and recuperated as Barkley and Kenneth Gainwell combined for eight handoffs on the ensuing nine plays. But on third-and-goal from the Cowboys’ 7-yard line, Pickett scrambled before attempting a pass for Brown in the back of the end zone, taking a shot from Parsons in the process. Pickett initially hunched over in pain, then jogged to the sideline, where he took a knee and clutched his ribs.
The drive wasn’t finished, as a Landon Dickerson holding penalty nullified the touchdown. Pickett’s day, however, was over. The quarterback received a standing ovation as he headed indoors. Tanner McKee, the sixth-rounder out of Stanford in 2023, took over at quarterback for the rest of the game.
“Of course you want to finish it out,” Pickett said. “But I left it all out there. I did everything I could to play today, stay in there as long as I could. I have no regrets or anything, leaving the stadium, we got the win. That’s all that matters.”
In his first start since his two-year stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pickett finished the night going 10-of-15 for 143 yards and a touchdown, plus three carries on the Tush Push attempts for one touchdown. After the game, Pickett said he was feeling “good” despite the early exit. He said he will have more tests on his ribs, just like he did after last week’s game, but he added that he will be “OK.”
The quarterback has memories of going to the Linc with his family members to watch Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook lead the Eagles to victories. Now, Pickett will have memories of his own outing on that same field that helped the Eagles finish atop the NFC East.
“It’s special, man,” Pickett said. “I said out there on the field, I’m sure there’s a kid dreaming about playing for the Eagles and doing things that we went out there and did today. It’s incredibly special.”