Nick Foles ‘shut some people up' in starting return

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All week leading up to their meeting with the New York Giants, Nick Foles’ offensive teammates all claimed that they had the utmost faith in their new starting signal-caller. Of course, that faith would only be confirmed by Foles' play on the field. On his first drive of the day, he was 4 for 4 for 27 yards and a touchdown pass.

Over the first 30 minutes, he tallied just 85 yards through the air, but — aided by an interception and a blocked punt — Foles had three TD passes. But an offense which usually racked up big chunks of real estate had only 141 yards. On the day, Foles’ stats were not eye-opening but they were efficient. He moved the offense when he had to. He made the necessary throws when needed. He didn't turn the ball over, and he was 4 for 6 in the red zone. Running back Jay Ajayi said Nick Foles did what he was supposed to do. 

"It was just about running his game,” Ajayi said. “There's a different guy under center. We knew what our game plan was, and it was about letting him execute it. He kind of showed a lot of people what he can do, and shut some people up. He went out there and threw four touchdown passes."

Don't compare him to Carson Wentz because you can't. He's not as shifty with his feet, but he's familiar with Doug Pederson's offense and has been for a few years. 

"I've played with Nick a little before,” center Jason Kelce said. “Obviously, we were looking forward to this game, the first couple of drives to see how it would look in a game situation. Everybody has full confidence in him. Kudos to Nick. I thought he played great today … put our offense in a lot of good situations, made some great plays. So that was awesome to see.” 

Foles will have at least one more chance to sharpen his skills. The Eagles might have the No. 1 seed wrapped up by the time they meet Dallas in the regular-season finale, and Pederson may rest his starters. This is Foles’ team the rest of the way. As right tackle Lane Johnson revealed, their replacement QB provides a demeanor that exceeds your typical backup. 

"As far as Nick, nothing really changed,” Johnson said. “He was always calm in the huddle, always maintained presence, and he did a great job.”

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