‘Talk is cheap’: Eagles enter NFC championship vs. Commanders determined not to take the bait
The Eagles' loss to the Commanders in December included numerous penalties, Jalen Hurts getting injured, and C.J. Gardner-Johnson getting ejected. Can the Birds contain their emotions?
If Joe Whitt’s comments about tackling Jalen Hurts “like a running back” had any ripple effects inside the Eagles locker room, they didn’t make it to the corner where Jordan Mailata’s stall is situated.
The Eagles left tackle, sitting in a folding chair at the far end of the room on Friday, acknowledged that he was aware of the Commanders defensive coordinator’s warning of the physicality Hurts the ballcarrier would face.
What was the team’s reaction to such comments?
“No team reaction,” Mailata said. “That’s tactics, man. He’s trying to get us off our objective. None of that [stuff] matters. Talk is cheap. Quote me there. Talk is cheap.”
Whitt’s comments, and Mailata’s response to them, could be central themes in the Eagles’ NFC championship clash with the Commanders on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. The teams’ previous meeting in Week 16 featured plenty of heated moments, including C.J. Gardner-Johnson getting ejected for two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and a few other unnecessary roughness calls against the Eagles as well.
With a Super Bowl berth on the line in the grudge match against a division rival that also prides itself on physicality, players said Eagles coach Nick Sirianni emphasized the importance of controlling the intensity that is sure to come on Sunday to avoid letting it affect the game.
“We had a couple penalties there last time,” Sirianni said Wednesday. “We addressed that. I think we talked about that the week it happened, right? We’ve done a good job since then, and we’re on that path of controlling ourselves and celebrating with each other. We’ve been doing a good job of that since then.”
Mailata added: “The theme this week was ‘Focus on us.’ Don’t focus on what happened two weeks ago, the second game, or the first game against them, because that [stuff] is over with. That was the theme. All of that is over with, and it’s about us.”
Hurts left in the first quarter of the Commanders’ 36-33 win over the Eagles in Week 16 after suffering a concussion on a hit from Washington linebacker Frankie Luvu. Speaking with reporters earlier this week, Whitt reaffirmed that Hurts would be fair game as a ballcarrier in his third matchup against the Commanders defense.
“We’ve had a number of these guys that we’ve had to prepare for,” Whitt said Wednesday. “The one thing is, if he’s going to run the ball, and if the coordinator makes the decision for him to run the ball, we’re going to treat him like a running back, and we’re going to hit him that way. So that’s their decision if they want to get him hit the way he gets hit. If they don’t, they’ll keep him in the pocket. So that’s what we’re going to do.”
When asked about Whitt’s comments on Friday, Hurts said he is accustomed to the intended physicality that comes from defenders when he breaks the pocket.
“Every game is different, and every game there’s always an intent out there on the other side of the ball,” Hurts said. “But, ultimately, you always want to make it about what you do and just go out there and play clean ball.”
Although Hurts’ absence serves as an important qualifier, the Commanders are the only team to beat the Eagles in the last three months. Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels orchestrated three touchdown drives in the fourth quarter to take a decisive lead in the game’s final seconds.
Gardner-Johnson, who was tossed early in the third quarter for what NFL official Shawn Smith characterized as “taunting,” called the moment “a learning lesson” a week removed from the game.
“Nah … you get what you get. You get the hand you were dealt,” said Gardner-Johnson, who had two interceptions the following game against the Dallas Cowboys. “I think it was a learning lesson. I got to grow the hell up because this team obviously needs me when I’m here. I ain’t saying like in a way as though I’m a superstar. My presence is being out there with the guys and having fun.”
While the Eagles rebounded quickly from the loss to Washington with four consecutive wins, the Commanders have been just as hot since the comeback victory, largely thanks to the confidence Daniels is playing with in his first season.
Preparing for Daniels and the rest of a Washington team that scored 45 points against the No. 1-seeded Detroit Lions last Sunday, Hurts and defensive tackle Jalen Carter echoed the sentiment about prioritizing the team, even if tempers flare.
“You have to have a selfless approach to it,” Hurts said. “Because you never want to do anything that’s detrimental to the guys around you. That’s the No. 1 thing that I always take that approach with, I never want to do anything that’s going to hurt my guys. I never want to let them down. So as we go into this game, it’s a hell of a moment and a hell of an opportunity, but you have to make it about what you do. You have to make it about us.”
Carter, who was called for an unnecessary roughness penalty in Week 16 but hasn’t drawn once since, added: “You just got to look at what you did last time and don’t do it again. Just think about the team. Because at the end of the day, I’m playing for the team.”
The Eagles host to the Washington Commanders on Sunday in the NFC championship game. Join Eagles beat reporters Olivia Reiner and EJ Smith as they dissect the hottest storylines surrounding the team on Gameday Central, live from Lincoln Financial Field.