Foles Pays Off Big For Eagles

Everyone who follows the NFL understands what the game's most important position is.

The Fact that the Eagles are preparing to play the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII on Sunday might highlight what No. 2 is -- backup quarterback.

Philadelphia lost MVP candidate Carson Wentz to a torn ACL and LCL back in Week 14 but has persevered behind backup Nick Foles, something that dates back to a contingency plan in the offseason, according to team owner Jeffery Lurie.

“Our priority, as you’ve seen, is to make sure we have the very best possible other starting quarterback,” Lurie told ESPN.com at Super Bowl Opening Night. “I won’t even call [Foles] a backup, because we had him evaluated as a very strong quarterback. He’s been 18-5 for us over the last 23 games when Nick has started a game and finished. His quarterback rating in the postseason — he’s a big-time, big-game player. That’s Nick."

The Eagles signed Foles to a five-year deal in the offseason that was really a glorified two-year contract with a team option. The guaranteed money for a backup, though, was significant at $7 million and the promise of $12M over the two years is a hefty expense until you factor in the fact that Foles kept a really good team from imploding.

“It may have seemed irrational, but I remember the phone call when it was [executive vice president of football operations] Howie [Roseman] and I talking, and we said, ‘We have an opportunity to do this. Do you have any reservations of using this $12 million this way versus other positions?’ And we both agreed this was absolutely the right thing to do," Lurie explained. "We never knew it would come to this, but we knew that Nick could win big games for us.”

Foles has essentially been the ultimate insurance policy and the average fan can understand how frustrating paying out of pocket for something you don't use can be?

Right up until you need it.