PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Saquon Barkley dashed 60 yards for a touchdown on Philadelphia’s first play and finished with 118 yards and three scores, Jalen Hurts rushed for three TDs and the Eagles soared into the Super Bowl with a 55-23 win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday.
Hurts and the Eagles are in the Super Bowl for the second time in three seasons, and this time Barkley is along for the ride. The Eagles will play either the Buffalo Bills or former Eagles coach Andy Reid’s Kansas City Chiefs.
The 55 points are the most any team has scored in a conference championship game since the 1970 merger.
Hurts, wearing a brace on his left knee, also threw for 246 yards and a touchdown pass and the Eagles had a towel-waving crowd in a frenzy for the NFC championship game at Lincoln Financial Field.
A.J. Brown caught six passes for 96 yards and a touchdown and the Eagles scored a season high in points to usher the franchise into their fifth Super Bowl.
The Commanders played a role in getting the NFC title game to Philly with two straight road wins — including last week’s stunner at No. 1 seed Detroit that set the stage for the second-seeded Eagles to host.
Jayden Daniels threw for 255 yards with one touchdown, one interception and fell short in his bid to become the first rookie quarterback to lead his team to the Super Bowl. The Commanders were doomed by four turnovers, including a lost fumble by Austin Ekeler in the third quarter and the Commanders down 34-23.
The Eagles won their only Super Bowl in the 2017 season and Nick Foles, the QB in that game against New England, was the honorary captain.
The Eagles cut to other stars from that game in attendance on the big screen and now — two years after coach Nick Sirianni’s Eagles lost to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl — the franchise has a chance at winning their second one.
Much as he has all season, Barkley led the way for the Eagles.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Dan Gelston, The Associated Press
