By Tim Kelly, Sports Talk Philly editor 
In perhaps the greatest Super Bowl in history, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles led the Eagles to one of the most improbable Super Bowl wins ever. Foles went 28/43 with three touchdowns passes and one touchdown catch, en route to the Super Bowl MVP.
Here are my in-game notes about Foles' performance against the Patriots:
First Quarter
Drive One
- After the Patriots won the opening kickoff and deferred, Foles and the Eagles began the game's opening drive on their own 25-yard line.
- To open the game, Foles connected with Agholor for a five-yard gain.
- Foles hit Agholor on a screen pass on the following play, but Agholor only gained a yard, as his blocking never really got set up.
- On third and four, Foles rolled to his left and found Alshon Jeffery, who adjusted his route, and made a catch for a first down.
- After LeGarrette Blount lost two yards on the team's first running play of the game, Foles kept the ball on a run/pass option. He gave Torrey Smith a chance to catch the ball by the sideline, but the ball was broken up.
- On third-and-12, Foles fired a slightly high pass, that Smith caught for a third-and-long conversion.
HUGE 3rd down completion #Eagles #SBLII pic.twitter.com/YnSmMVXiGL
— Dan Levy (@DanLevyThinks) February 4, 2018
- Foles followed that up with another run/pass option, making a seven-yard completion to Zach Ertz.
- Following a first-round run from Jay Ajayi, Foles handed to Ajayi again, this time for a six-yard gain. Had Kyle Van Noy not tackled him, it would have gone for at least 10 yards.
- On second and four, Foles tossed a screen pass to Corey Clement, which went for a 25-yard gain.
- A first-down run from Blount got the Eagles down the Patriots two-yard line, but the Eagles were backed up after a Ertz false start penalty.
- On second and goal, Foles faked a halfback toss, then rolled out to the left. He didn't have anyone wide open, but he probably should have been able to connect with Agholor. Instead, he overthrew it.
- On third-and-goal, Foles took a shot for Jeffery, but it was knocked away by former Eagle Eric Rowe. Ajayi did a good job to hold off James Harrison just long enough for Foles to make a throw.
Good defense by former Eagle Eric Rowe on 3rd down #SBLII pic.twitter.com/ycAXEpN562
— Dan Levy (@DanLevyThinks) February 4, 2018
- Jake Elliott hit a 25-yard field goal to cap off the first drive, which took more than seven minutes off the clock. On one hand, Elliott hitting shorter field goals is always an encouraging sign. It's also encouraging to be the first team on the board. But man, the Eagles had a great drive until the Ertz false start, it was a bit disappointing to only walk away with three points.
Drive Two
- After the Patriots tied the game with a field goal on their first offensive drive, the Eagles started their second drive on the 24, following a return from Kenjon Barner.
- On first-and-10, Foles connected with Agholor, who spun off James Harrison, and carried for a seven
- Following a successful first play of the drive, Blount ran up the middle, then after great blocks from Brandon Brooks and Stefan Wisniewski, he bounced outside for a 36-yard gain:
Blount smoked the Patriots defense there. #SBLII pic.twitter.com/Ka9grdif72
— Dan Levy (@DanLevyThinks) February 4, 2018
- Pederson, as he normally does, dialed up a deep shot early. Foles, as we were accustomed to in 2013, made a great throw, giving Jeffery a chance to make the catch. Jeffery, one of the league's most physically gifted receivers came down with the ball for a 35-yard touchdown:
.@TheWorldof_AJ hauls it in. #Eagles take the lead.#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/FMS6bniPQ1
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 5, 2018
- Unfortunately for the Eagles, Elliott missed the extra point.
Second Quarter
Drive Three
- After a bad hold caused the Patriots to miss a field goal, the Eagles took over on their own 20-yard line.
- Following a two-yard gain on a halfback toss from Ajayi, Foles threw the ball away on second-and-eight.
- On third-and-eight, Foles stepped up in a collapsed pocket, and fired the ball to Ertz, who wasn't able to haul it in. It was uncharacteristically athletic from Foles to step up past two defenders, he probably should have continued with his athleticism, and ran for a first down. If Carson Wentz was playing – we'll only do this once tonight – he would have had a 10-plus yard run in the same scenario.
Drive Four
- After the Patriots turned the ball over on downs, the Eagles began their fourth drive on their own 35.
- Following two consecutive, largely unsuccessful, runs from Ajayi, Foles found Ertz over the middle of the field for a 19-yard gain.
- On a run/pass option on first down, Foles threw the ball too high for a wide-open Jeffery, and he wasn't able to haul it in.
- He atoned for it on the following play, as he floated a ball between three defenders, giving Jeffery ample space to make a great reception.
- Blount, the former Patriot, capped off the drive on the following play, rushing for a 21-yard touchdown:
Rollin into the end zone.#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/F1FMuVnJdJ
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 5, 2018
- Rather than attempting the field goal, the Eagles lined up and went for two. They lined up in trips right, isolating Jeffery on the left side, but the two weren't able to connect.
Drive Five
- The Patriots hit another field goal to knock the score down to 15-6, before kicking a touchback on the following kickoff. The drive started with Ertz getting called for his second false start penalty, backing the Eagles up to their own 20.
- After a one-yard run from Clement, Foles, who was being blitzed, hit Smith for a 10-yard gain, setting up a third-and-four.
- Following an explosive 26-yard run from Ajayi, Foles took a shot deep to Jeffery, who nearly caught the ball with one hand. Instead, he bobbled it up into the air, and it was intercepted by Duron Harmon. It sure looked like Stephon Gilmore was holding Jeffery's left arm. Tough break, because the Eagles were in the midst of a great drive.
Drive Six
- The Patriots scored a touchdown on their fifth drive, but missed the extra point. Barner gave the Eagles good starting field position, returning it to the 30-yard line.
- Foles made an awkward, yet effective pass on first down, finding Ertz on a slant for a seven-yard gain.
- On second-and-three, Foles made a nice pass to Smith, who initially caught the ball, but wasn't able to control it to the ground.
- On third-and-three, Foles found Clement on a swing pass that he carried 55 yards. Had Foles led him a bit more, he probably would have walked into the endzone:
How do you get 55 yards on a wheel route? Doug Pederson is how. #Eagles pic.twitter.com/n9e8vAUuXv
— Dan Levy (@DanLevyThinks) February 5, 2018
- Foles wasn't able to connect with Jeffery on third-and-goal, after back-to-back runs from Clement on first and second-and-goal. It appeared there was a real case for pass interference on Gilmore, but nothing was called.
- The Eagles initially lined up on fourth-and-goal on the New England one-yard line. After taking a timeout, Pederson dialed up perhaps the greatest passing play in team history. Just as Foles was standing next to Lane Johnson screaming his name on what appeared to be a broken play, Clement took a direct snap, flipped to Burton on an end-around and he lofted a touchdown pass to no other than Nick Foles, the first catch of his career:
Fourth down, #SBLII, Doug Pederson calls this play.#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/UZU6hNQnkA
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 5, 2018
- As it turns out, Pederson borrowed that play from the Texas high school that Foles attended:
It’s a Westlake thing🤷🏼♂️ @NFoles_9 #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/2JmY7WriHM
— Sam Ehlinger (@sehlinger3) February 5, 2018
- The Eagles went into halftime with a 22-12 lead after Jake Elliott tacked on an extra point.
Third Quarter
Drive Seven
- After Rob Gronkowski put together a dominant drive to cut the lead to 22-19, the Eagles started their first drive of the second half on their own 15-yard line.
- Following a four-yard run from Blount on first down, Foles faked to Blount and rolled left. He threw the ball behind Agholor, though it probably should have been caught.
- The two atoned on the following play, as Foles hit Agholor over the middle for a slant, and Agholor spun out of a tackle and ran for a first down.
- Foles didn't throw on the next two plays, instead handing off to Blount for two runs that totaled
- On first-and-10, Foles rolled out, but threw low to Smith (probably purposely), who was well covered by Patrick Chung.
- On second down, Ajayi ran for nine yards, setting up a third-and-short.
- On third-and-one, in a situation where the Patriots got into the backfield early, Foles hit an in-stride Ertz for a first down.
- On second-and-six, Foles had time in the pocket, but wasn't able to find an open receiver, ultimately forcing him to throw the ball away.
- On third-and-six, Foles took a shot to the endzone, placing a perfect pass to Clement, who initially appeared to catch it for a touchdown. However, it appeared that the ball moved in his hands and he wasn't able to reestablish control in time. The football gods ruled in favor of the Eagles, however, and the call stood:
What a throw, what a grab.#SBLII | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/ClAOjfQuAA
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 5, 2018
Drive Eight
- As was becoming the trend, the Patriots followed up the Eagles touchdown with a pretty dominant march of their own. The Eagles started their eighth drive on their own 25, after a touchback.
- On first down, Foles kept the ball on a run/pass option, and connected with Agholor on the sideline.
- On the following play, Foles fired over the middle on another run/pass option, this time connecting with Smith over the middle.
- After a two-yard carry from Blount, the Eagles used Agholor on a reverse play, which looked very similar to the one used in the first half of the team's divisional round playoff game against the Atlanta Falcons. This earned them another first.
- On first-and-10, Foles floated a ball near the left pylon, which landed incomplete, in between Burton and Ertz.
- On second-and-10, Foles dumped the ball off to Smith, who ran for eight yards. This turned out to be the final play of the third quarter, meaning the Eagles took a three point lead into the fourth quarter in the Super Bowl.
Fourth Quarter
Drive Eight (continued)
- On third-and-three, the first play of the fourth quarter, Foles fired to Agholor, who was taken down in the backfield to bring up fourth down. Jake Elliott came up with a clutch 42-yard field goal, to extend the Eagles lead to six points.
Drive Nine
- Trailing for the first time in the game, the Eagles started their ninth drive on their own 25.
- After a six-yard run from Ajayi on first down, Foles took a shot deep to Smith.
- On third-and-six, Foles hit Ertz on a slant for a first down. Impressive pass.
- Following a two-yard run from Blount on first down, Foles dumped the ball off to Clement, who tried to run through Patrick Chung for a first down. He was stopped a yard short.
- On third-and-one, Foles kept the ball on a run/pass option, before throwing to Smith. Smith was taken down in the backfield.
- On fourth down, Foles, who was beginning to backpedal, fired to Ertz over the middle of the field. Ertz caught the ball, and held on when a defender met him, securing a first down on perhaps the most important fourth down attempt in team history.
- Blount ran for two yards on first down, which Foles followed up by hitting Agholor for a first down.
- Foles fired to Agholor over the middle for a 10-yard gain on the next play, as it became increasingly apparent that this would be the team's final drive of the game.
- With another first down, Foles looked like he was going to handoff to the running-back, but instead of even faking the handoff, he fired to Agholor for another 10-yard touchdown.
- After a three-yard run from Ajayi, Foles lofted a fade to Jeffery that he didn't have any chance of coming down with in the endzone.
- On third-and-goal, Foles connected with Ertz over the middle, who, in spite of strange NFL catch rules, caught the game-winning touchdown:
.@ZERTZ_86, and the #Eagles take the lead.#SBLII | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/9sDAh6B4VQ
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 5, 2018
Drive 10
- On the final Eagles drive of the game, after Brandon Graham forced a Tom Brady fumble, Foles didn't throw a pass. After three runs, Elliott kicked a field goal, giving the Eagles an eight-point lead, that they held on to win the franchise's greatest Super Bowl.
