Eagles honor retiring Nick Foles, MVP of Super Bowl victory

PHILADELPHIA — Let it be recorded — or at least by the social media videos of hundreds of viewers — that Nick Foles’ last official pass in Philadelphia was that of a dog mask into a ravenous, roaring crowd the night he was celebrated by the franchise he led to its only Super Bowl victory.

Spurred on by former center Jason Kelce, Foles and former Eagle Fletcher Cox were brought on stage in their dog masks as surprise guests at a pregame party.

The German Shepherd masks were introduced during the 2017 season to allude to the underdog theme that characterized the Eagles on their way to victory in Super Bowl LII over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.

Perhaps no player this season fit the underdogs’ scheme as well as Foles, who served as backup QB until replacing injured starter Carson Wentz in Week 14.

From then on, Foles, who announced his retirement last month, rose only from second place to become the Super Bowl’s most valuable player.

Foles threw for 373 yards and three touchdowns against the Patriots, but is best remembered for the “Philly Special.” On the Patriots’ fourth down five, Foles floated behind the right tackle before the snap from center, leaving running back Corey Clement alone in the backfield. Clement took the snap and Foles hesitated before running unprotected into the end zone. Clement threw the ball to tight end Trey Burton, who threw a short pass to Foles, resulting in a 22-12 halftime lead.

“My first thought when I walked back to the huddle was don’t smile, don’t smile,” Foles said. “Just act serious. The defensive linemen are watching the quarterback from the sidelines. If I smile, they think something is wrong. I had to put on a show. I had to go up there and yell ‘kill, kill’ and act so serious, like it was a real audible signal.”

He was named the Super Bowl’s Most Valuable Player after leading the Eagles to a 41-33 victory over the Patriots.

The 2017 championship banner hangs at Lincoln Financial Field. Foles and former coach Doug Pederson share a statue outside the stadium that includes Foles’ quote, “Want Philly Philly?” A photo of Foles catching the touchdown hangs on the wall in the Eagles’ locker room as part of a collage of great moments from that season.

“Trey threw an unbelievable ball,” Foles said. “He doesn’t get enough credit. The ball was perfect. The only person who could have messed it up was me, so thank God I didn’t mess it up.”

Foles served as honorary captain before Monday night’s home opener against the Atlanta Falcons and encouraged the crowd to chant “Fly, Eagles, Fly.”

Foles nearly choked up during his 45-minute speech as he thanked his family and coaches. As he rattled off the names of offensive linemen, including Kelce and current Eagle Lane Johnson, he called them the “true heroes” of the offense.

“Stepping into that group was a feeling of peace,” Foles said. “These guys were incredible.”

“One of my favorite moments is the NFC Championship game when we were just starting our 7-on-7 warm-ups and you guys were all so loud and dancing, we were dancing. I had to stop and just watch and take it in and realize how lucky I was to play for a great city, a great organization.”

Nick Foles speaks to the Eagles’ home crowd

Foles, 35, was selected in the third round by the Eagles in 2012 and played for five years in two stints in Philadelphia.

Foles made the Pro Bowl in 2013 after throwing seven touchdown passes in a win at Oakland, leading the league in passer rating (119.2) and setting an NFL record of 27:2 in the number of touchdowns to interceptions in a season. He was the first quarterback to throw 20+ touchdowns in a season with no more than two interceptions.

Foles played for five other teams, most recently for Indianapolis on January 1, 2023. Foles threw for 14,227 yards with 82 touchdowns and 47 interceptions.

He saved his final greeting for the Eagles fans.

“You all make this place so special,” he said. “One of my favorite moments is the NFC Championship game when we were just starting our 7-on-7 warmups and you were all so loud and dancing, we were dancing. I had to stop and just watch and take it in and realize how blessed I was to play for a great city, a great organization.”