ATLANTA — You cannot write the story of the Philadelphia Eagles' upset of the Patriots in last year's Super Bowl, without including two words:
Philly Special.
For that landmark win, securing the Eagles' first-ever Lombardi Trophy, Philadelphia had reached a crossroads moment of the game, holding on to a 15-12 lead just before halftime ... and staring at a 4th-and-goal situation at New England's 1-yard line.
The Eagles could have gone the safe route, perhaps settling for the chip-shot field goal and taking a six-point lead into the locker room.
On a slightly riskier plane, the Eagles could have relied on the bull-rushing acumen of running back LeGarrette Blount, or maybe hit the sure-handed Zach Ertz on a quick slant pattern in the end zone.
Instead, Philly tossed aside all convention for this watershed moment and executed a play that hadn't always worked in practice.
Here's how it went down:
**The Eagles running back took a quick pitch and began sprinting to the left.
**Backup tight end Trey Burton came running from behind on the opposite side and readied himself from a crossing lateral.
**Quarterback Nick Foles briefly performed the duties of a statue, before taking off for the right sideline downfield.
**At that point, with a full head of steam and his eyes upfield, Burton (a quarterback in college) read the confused Patriots defense and lofted a pass to Foles.
As the floating ball reached its apex, Foles responded to the challenge of fielding Burton's pass and solidifying his legacy as a Super Bowl-winning quarterback.
(Philly would eventually produce a 41-33 victory, the highest-scoring Super Bowl of all time.)
Fast forward to the present: The Rams are known for their aggressive play-calling and utilizing their talent in highly creative ways on pass plays.
And yet, the club apparently has no intention of putting their own spin on 'Philly Special' for Sunday.
At least according to Rams tailback Tood Gurley.
The rationale for not using the play, aside from it still being fresh in the minds of the Patriots defensive coaches?
With a smile, Gurley. a UGA football legend, told The Washington Post, "(Quarterback Jared) Goff can't catch."
Technically, Gurley's correct.
Through three NFL seasons, the pass-happy Goff (8,492 yards passing, 60 TDs since 2017) doesn't have a single pro reception to his credit.
However, at the University of California, Goff once caught a ball ... and then rumbled 10 yards downfield.
