Roob's 10 observations a month after the Super Bowl

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It’s been a month now, and I’m guessing most Eagles fans still wake up some mornings, sit up, look around and then the reality hits them.

“Holy crap … The Eagles actually won the Super Bowl.”

This is called winning. And it's fun.

All of our lives changed in one way or another that frigid February evening in Minneapolis. So let’s take a look back with 10 Eagles Observations One Month after They Won the Super Bowl.

1. One thing I didn’t expect going into the Super Bowl was a big game from LeGarrette Blount. Blount’s productivity had clearly dropped the second half of the season. Through the Bears game in November, he was averaging 4.8 yards per carry — fourth-highest in the NFL. The next seven weeks, Blount averaged 2.9 yards per carry — second-worst in the NFL during that span. The other thing is, the Super Bowl is a young man’s game. Going into Super Bowl LII, only two running backs Blount’s age had rushed for 50 yards in a Super Bowl while averaging 4.0 yards per carry — none since O.J. Anderson in 1991. No running back 31 or older had ever averaged 6.0 yards per carry in a Super Bowl. Or even 5.0. So history was against him. And on the Eagles’ first drive, Blount had two carries for minus-1 yard. But Doug Pederson stuck with Blount, and on Blount's next carry, he plowed through traffic for a 36-yard gain, and on his following carry, he ran 21 yards for a touchdown. Blount finished with 14 carries for 90 yards, unprecedented numbers for a back his age. It was a remarkable performance, even more remarkable considering his age and the way he finished the season.

2. Putting Tom Brady’s performance in context, he became only the seventh quarterback in NFL history — regular season or postseason — with 500 passing yards and no interceptions in a game. That’s what the Eagles overcame.

3. And this: Going into the Super Bowl, 39 teams in NFL history had gained 600 yards in a game and none had lost. The Eagles allowed 613 and won.

4. Keep this in mind when watching the combine: The Eagles’ Super Bowl roster had more players who were undrafted or drafted in the fifth through seventh rounds (28) than drafted in the first three rounds (23). The combine has its purpose, but ultimately how many reps you do or how fast you do the three-cone drill doesn’t make you a champion.

5. For those who still buy into the nonsense that Nick Foles’ postseason was a fluke, consider this: Only six quarterbacks in NFL history have had more postseason games with a passer rating of 100 before their 30th birthday: Troy Aikman, Brett Favre, Joe Flacco, Russell Wilson, Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers. If Foles was a fluke, then those guys were flukes, too.

6. Let’s put the Eagles’ offensive performance in Super Bowl LII into context: The Eagles netted 374 passing yards and 164 rushing yards. That made them the first Super Bowl team and only the fourth team in NFL postseason history with 350 passing yards and 150 rushing yards. The Eagles recorded the fifth-most passing yards in a Super Bowl and the sixth-highest rushing average. How do you stop that combination? It speaks volumes about Pederson’s play calling that the Eagles were able to do whatever they wanted whenever they wanted and that he was able to mix up the play calls to the point where whatever he dialed up worked. Doug called a perfect game. The man is a genius.

7. Regarding the Philly Special, I don’t know what’s more incredible to watch: The exchange between Doug and Nick on the sideline or the play itself. I still can’t believe either one actually happened.

8. All year Pederson spoke about how he wanted his guys to just have fun, do what they do best, relax and enjoy every moment. That was just Corey Clement, Trey Burton and Nick Foles being themselves and having fun on that play. You can’t execute that play under that spotlight, on 4th down in a Super Bowl, with 100 million people watching, if you aren’t loose and free and having fun.  

9. I was talking to Clement postgame in the locker room when an emotional Jeff Lurie came over and embraced him. I snapped this with my phone. Love this picture:  

10. Fourteen
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