Danny Amendola and Dion Lewis, record-setting third-down conversions, and Vince and Mike Lombardi highlight Monday's edition of 10 random Super Bowl observations, which will appear every day between today and Super Bowl LII on Feb. 4 in Minneapolis.
That should be 140 total random Super Bowl observations!
1. You could just sense Nick Foles and Alshon Jeffery building up their chemistry over the past few weeks, and in these two playoff games Jeffery has played like the star the Eagles hoped they were getting when they signed him. Jeffery was 4 for 61 against the Falcons and 5 for 85 with two TDs against the Vikings. Foles targeted him five times and he caught every one, including that 53-yard TD on a scramble drill. Jeffery needs 66 yards in the Super Bowl to break the franchise record for receiving yards in a single postseason (211 in 2008 by none other than Kevin Curtis). Jeffery is just blossoming now. His two TDs Sunday give him 11 this year, and only Harold Carmichael, Tommy McDonald, Terrell Owens and Mike Quick have had more in a season in franchise history. He just looks more and more comfortable each week, especially in the red zone, where he has a real flair for going up and getting the ball. I have a hunch he's going to have a big game in Minneapolis.
2. The Eagles have allowed 15 second-half points in their last five games.
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3. Pretty funny after everything that's transpired over the past few months that the Super Bowl winner receives the Lombardi Trophy. Definitely not named after Mike!
4. According to Pro Football Focus, 69 of Jay Ajayi's 73 rushing yards Sunday night came after first contact. That means 94.5 percent of his yards came after he was hit. That's remarkable and speaks to just what a tough runner he is.
5. Corey Graham was such an underrated signing. He's been very solid as a third safety and like newcomers LeGarrette Blount, Torrey Smith, Chris Long and Dannell Ellerbe, he's a winner and has a Super Bowl ring. He knows what it takes. Graham's interception Sunday was his third career postseason INT, and only two active players - Antoine Bethea and Tramon Williams, with four each - have more. Solid guy, solid player.
6. Soon after the media was allowed in the locker room after the game Sunday night, linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill snuck over to this panel on the wall and plugged his iPhone into a jack and instantly music began blasting over speakers throughout the locker room. Grugier-Hill closed his eyes and started dancing. Rodney McLeod cracked up but yelled over, "Come on, Kamu. You can't be playing Lil Yachty in the locker room while the media is in here," and everybody cracked up. This team is so loose and having so much fun right now. Doug Pederson deserves so much credit for letting these guys show their personality all the time, whether it's in an end zone celebration, in the locker room before a game or on the sideline with the German Shepherd masks. If you're loose, you can just go out and play your game. If you're tight, it's tough to be at your best. Pederson understands this as well as any coach I've ever been around.
7. Amazing that the Patriots' top two receivers this postseason are former Eagles: Receiver Danny Amendola (18 for 196) and running back Dion Lewis (16 for 111). Amendola spent the early part of the 2009 season on the Eagles' practice squad before the Rams signed him. Lewis was the Eagles' fifth-round pick in 2011 and spent his first two NFL seasons with the Eagles before getting traded to the Browns for linebacker Emmanuel Acho.
8. The Eagles' 456 yards of offense Sunday are the most they've ever had in a playoff game, two more than they had in the 2008 NFC Championship Game. It was the second most the Vikings have allowed in their 49 franchise playoff games. The Giants netted 518 in their 41-0 win over the Vikings at Giants Stadium in 2001. The Eagles' 27 first downs are also a franchise playoff record.
9. I can't get past the fact that 24 months ago Pederson had never coached above the high school level and Foles was mulling retirement. Twenty-four months ago! Look at ‘em now! This is why sports rule!
10. Maybe the craziest thing about Sunday's game was the Eagles' ability to convert on third down against a defense that came into the game historically among the best in NFL history on third down at 25.4 percent. The Eagles were 10 for 14 on third down, good for 71.4 percent. That's third best against the Vikings in any game - regular season or postseason - since 1991, which is as far back as available records go. To put that 71.4 percent figure in perspective, the Eagles converted more third downs Sunday (10) than the Vikings' last four opponents had combined (eight).
