NFL
What is the Philly Special? Super Bowl winner Nick Foles honoured by the Eagles
The Monday Night Football clash between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Atlanta Falcons will also feature a special retirement ceremony for Foles.
Philadelphia Eagles legend Nick Foles will be honoured with a special retirement ceremony this evening during the Monday Night Football clash.
The Eagles take on the Atlanta Falcons on Monday night with Jason Kelce taking part in the coverage alongside Foles. Both players were involved in the Eagles’ sole Super Bowl triumph, playing key roles in the 2018 victory over the New England Patriots.
Both Kelce and Foles played a part in the famous ‘Philly Special’, a stunning trick play during the second quarter of Super Bowl LII. On the fourth down, quarterback Foles wandered up to his offensive line, allowing Kelce to snap the ball straight to running back Corey Clement. This movement allowed Foles to drift into the end zone and receive a pass from Trey Burton, becoming the first player in Super Bowl history to both throw and catch a touchdown pass.
That moment is enshrined in Philadelphia’s sporting history with a statue outside the Lincoln Financial Field. The statue depicts the now-famous conversation between Eagles head coach Doug Pederson and Foles during the timeout before the iconic trick play.
‘You want Philly Philly?’ Foles asked Pederson on fourth-down-and-goal. ‘Yeah, let’s do it,’ the head coach replied.
Why did Nick Foles leave the Philadelphia Eagle?
Leading the Eagles to the first, and so far only, Super Bowl triumph in team history made Nick Foles a bona fide Philadelphia sporting legend. He joined the team as a third round, 88th overall pick at the 2012 NFL Draft and went on to spend two spells with the team.
His second stint began in 2017 in the championship-winning season but there was a drop-off the following year as the Eagles were beaten by the New Orleans Saints in the Divisional Round. Following the culmination of the 2018 NFL season Foles opted to void a $20 million option in his contract, allowing him to enter free agency.
He went on to sign a four-year deal worth up to $102 million with the Jacksonville Jaguars but struggled for form. He moved to the Chicago Bears after just one year and later spent two years with the Indianapolis Colts, before going unsigned for the entirety of the 2023 season. He announced his decision to retire earlier this year and will return to the Linc to make it official.
“It will be my first time to go to a game as a non-player. I’ve never been to an NFL game without a jersey on, running out of the tunnel,” Foles said of his return to Philadelphia. “I’m so grateful I get to do it as a Philadelphia Eagle. I’ve dreamed of going out of that tunnel at least once more and being there with the crowd and seeing them cheering on the Eagles, cheering on this team – it’s a new team each and every year – and I really don’t know what the emotions will be like.”