Nick Foles almost quit the game. Now he’s one game from the Super Bowl.
PHILADELPHIA – Nick Foles almost quit the game. Now he’s one game from the Super Bowl.
In 2016, the journeyman quarterback asked to be released by the Rams and his NFL future was a haze. St. Louis had just drafted Jared Goff No. 1 overall, and Foles seriously considered walking away from football.
“I talked a lot to my wife and I remember just saying a prayer,” Foles, 28, said this week as he prepares for the NFC title game. “I literally said a prayer and… my heart said go back. At that moment, it was going to back to play for coach (Andy) Reid, and when I did, you know, I am a better person because of that decision.”
A week later, Foles signed a one-year contract to play for Reid in Kansas City. Reid originally drafted Foles in Philadelphia, so there was some familiarity there as he kept his sputtering career alive with the Chiefs as a backup to Alex Smith. Foles then signed a two-year deal with the Eagles prior to this season, impossible to forecast the position he is currently in.
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“It wasn’t an easy decision,” Foles said of ditching the retirement talk. “I leaned on my wife, I leaned on my family and I leaned on my faith in those moments, and I’m very grateful I made the decision I did and we made it together.”
Right now, the Eagles are grateful, too. While Foles has not set the world on fire since taking over for injured MVP candidate Carson Wentz in December, he hasn’t done anything to screw up this opportunity, either. In the NFC divisional round, he outplayed Matt Ryan and now has the Eagles, who have never won a Super Bowl, 60 minutes from getting a chance to bring their first one home.
The Eagles may not be the same team with Foles as they were with Wentz, but Foles is no slouch. Outside the Eagles locker room is a long line of posters of all the Pro Bowl players in recent history. Foles, who made the game in 2013, is right up there, giving teammates a reason to believe.
“I walk by that hallway in there every day and you see this No. 9 with these locks hanging out the back of his helmet on that Pro Bowl wall, and that’s Foles,” receiver Torrey Smith said. “It’s the same guy that threw seven touchdowns in one game. That’s Nick Foles. So we’re lucky we had him as a backup. We believe in him.”
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He is the modern-day version of what the Eagles can only hope is Jeff Hostetler, who came in for an injured Phil Simms to lead the Giants to Super Bowl XXV. The Eagles will settle for Trent Dilfer, best known for quarterbacking the Ravens to a championship simply by not messing it up for Baltimore’s vaunted defense.
If Foles completes the task, he’ll go down as a forever folk hero in a city that is legendarily passionate about its Birds.
Standing in his way of putting the ultimate cherry on top of this wild journey is Case Keenum, the same guy Foles lost his job to in St. Louis when he was thinking about quitting. Keenum, 29, is with his third team (he’s played for both Houston and St. Louis twice) since 2012 and has been every bit the journeyman as Foles.
“It’s pretty wild,” Foles said. “We were on the same team not too many years ago. I’ve said over and over again, Case’s success and the way he plays doesn’t surprise me because him and I were together and we prepared together. We were around each other every day. But I think the big message there is no matter what happens, you’ve just got to keep believing in yourself, keep working hard and just never give up.”
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Oddsmakers have not been sold on Foles. Both last week and in the NFC title game Sunday, the top-seeded Eagles are underdogs on their home field. Maybe you’ve heard about it? It’s been Philly’s rallying cry, and a major reason, if not the reason they aren’t getting the respect they believe they’ve earned begins and ends with Foles.
He may not have the fastest feet or the most powerful arm, but Foles certainly seems to have the heart to win the next, biggest game of his life.
“A few days ago… I sat there with my wife and we just talked about how blessed we are to be in this moment,” Foles said. “But I know where my heart is and my heart was all being in Philly, being with these guys, going out there on the field, like stepping in the huddle and knowing that each guy is playing for each other, that’s a special thing and that’s been the testament of this season. And you know it’s an honor and blessing to be here and play in this game.”
