“Mahomes is very, very good when you rush five or six – at reading it, seeing the blitz – and then making big plays off of it,” Fangio told reporters after the game. “So the plan was not to do it much.”
Fangio is a great coach. And, yes, coaching is important. But without Philly’s front four, Fangio’s plan would have failed. Players trump schemes.
The Eagles used nine front-four players Sunday. Eight of them were drafted by Eagles General Manager Howie Roseman. Six of them are 25 or younger and were drafted in the past three years.
In 2022, the Vikings needed a defensive tackle. They had the 12th overall pick but traded down 20 spots and took Georgia safety Lewis Cine. Roseman said thank you very much and took monstrous Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis 13th overall.
A year later, Roseman took Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter ninth overall. With another first-round pick, he took Georgia edge rusher Nolan Smith 30th overall. Then, in the seventh round, Roseman loaded up another defensive tackle, Moro Ojomo.
Josh Sweat and Jalyx Hunt close in on Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes for one of the Eagles’ six sacks in the Super Bowl. (Stephanie Scarbrough/The Associated Press)
On Sunday, Davis, Carter and Smith started while Ojomo played 25 snaps to help keep fresh legs chasing Mahomes. Heck, even Cine won a ring on Sunday. Signed by the Eagles last month, the former Viking suited up for all four playoff games but did not play.