Even though the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs have two of the best big-play offenses in the NFL, Super Bowl LVII could still come down to a game of inches. And if it does, the Eagles should have a pretty significant advantage.
Especially if it comes down to needing to gain a yard in a must-have situation.
That is when the Eagles will likely put the ball in the hands of quarterback Jalen Hurts and let him push forward behind one of the NFL’s most dominant offensive lines.
No team has been more successful utilizing quarterback sneaks this season than the Eagles, converting a mind-blowing 31 first downs on sneaks during the 2022 season (including the playoffs). Just to put that number into perspective, Pro Football Focus notes that no team over the past 15 years has had more than 20 first downs come by way of a sneak.
Aside from the performance of the offensive line, the Eagles have also done a masterful job of exploiting the league’s rules that now allow for teammates to push players from behind in assisting them forward. The Eagles routinely have two, and sometimes three players lined up in a position where they can push Hurts forward on those short-yardage situations.
It has resulted in them converting over 90 percent of their quarterback sneaks this season.
As NFL.com pointed out this week, that success has had a profound impact on the Eagles’ offense and the decision-making of its coaching staff.
Not only does it open up the Eagles’ playbook more on third-down situations, leaving them with more running options, it has also helped them extend several drives due to head coach Nick Sirianni’s aggressiveness on fourth down.
That sort of aggressiveness and success keeps drives alive and can not only lead to more points, but also the potential to flip field position even if you don’t end up scoring on that particular drive.
The quarterback sneak has been on the rise in the NFL in recent years, but nobody has been better at it than Hurts and the Eagles.
It is one of those things that is easy to keep doing as long as you are successful at it. And given how good the Eagles’ offensive line is, how they have managed to exploit the league’s pushing rules and how fearless Hurts is when it comes to making plays, there is no reason to believe that success is going to dry up anytime soon. It could even help lead them to a Super Bowl win.
