If you only have to gain one yard to win the game, do you pick:
A) Patrick Mahomes to throw to Travis Kelce
B) Lamar Jackson to run it
C) Brock Purdy, Deebo Samuel, and CMC to execute a classic Shanahan play
D) Jalen Hurts to sneak it
The most foolproof answer, based on recent history, is D. Push that tush.
The Eagles were 4-for-4 on quarterback sneaks in Week 7's win against the Dolphins, one of which resulted in a touchdown for Jalen Hurts. Philly is now 41 of 44 on the "Brotherly Shove" play -- for all the "New Heights" fans out there, that's a whopping 93 percent success rate.
The play works to near perfection for the Eagles more so than any other team. Why is that? As head coach Nick Sirianni put it in a post-game interview, "they can't do it like we can."
Sirianni proudly boasted, "We watch the rest of the league and quite frankly, they can't do it like we can. The competition committee can look at it, but until then, people have to stop it.
Eagles HC Nick Sirianni will defend the "Brotherly Shove" until his dying breath
The quarterback sneak works so well in Philly for two main reasons: Jason Kelce and Jalen Hurts. Kelce, an ever-humble Philly legend, has been hailed as one of the most important non-QB players in the league for rightful reasons. He's the glue that holds the Eagles' offensive line together, and he's the driving factor of the sneak.
Throw in Jalen Hurts' powerful frame and legs, add in a little push on the tush, and the Eagles will gain that one yard almost every time.
A few teams here and there have, against all odds, managed to stop the inevitable Eagles play, but most try and fail. Sirianni is 100 percent correct: the Eagles do it better than anyone else thanks to their offensive personnel. It's not a cheat code. It's just a fortuitous pairing of skilled individuals performing a seemingly simple but specific task.
Haters will hate only because they can't do it themselves.
