The celebrations for the Philadelphia Eagles are extending beyond the football field this week after a dominant 16-9 defensive win over the Detroit Lions. After consolidating their hold on the number one seed in the NFC East, Philadelphia celebrated Safety Reed Blankenship and his wife, Elsa Blankenship, who were blessed with their first child. Celebrating this heartwarming moment, several Eagles stars, including RB Saquon Barkley, poured in love and wishes via social media.

Barkley, Reed’s teammate of two seasons, commented, “Congrats‼️” on the Instagram post shared by the Blankenships welcoming their first child. In the post, the couple is seen sharing a cake with the words “Oh Baby,” along with an ultrasound photo and a picture of them embracing each other.

“Hey @reedblankenship, remember when we said this year couldn’t get any better? Baby Blankenship coming soon…💝,” said the caption of the post.

Reed himself replied to the announcement with “GIRL DAD 🫡.” Teammates joined the celebration: cornerback Cooper DeJean wrote “Oh baby let’s goooo,” linebacker Nakobe Dean posted “🙌🏾,” alongside Saquon Barkley’s comment.

Other Eagles players and fans flooded the post with congratulations, and with the roster rallying around moments like this, plus the team’s stingy defense… a repeat Super Bowl run doesn’t feel out of reach for Philadelphia!

This defensive prowess was highlighted in their dominant win over the Lions as quarterback Jared Goff went 0-of-12 passing while under duress, his second-most such incompletions in a game in his career. Furthermore, the Detroit quarterback finished with a completion percentage of just 38%, the lowest by any shot caller this season. He was also pressured 20 times and absorbed seven QB hits.

After the Eagles’ win over the Lions, Saquon Barkley offered a praiseworthy comment about the defense and also addressed the offensive issues the team had faced.

How did Saquon Barkley react to the win over the Lions?

Alongside shutting down Jared Goff, the Eagles’ defense shone, with defensive tackle Jordan Davis having three batted passes, one of which resulted in a Cooper DeJean interception. Similarly, Jalen Carter added two batted passes. This defensive stronghold also ensured the Dan Campbell-coached free-flowing offense went 0-for-5 on fourth down.

“You’ve got to give credit to the defenses. They’re doing a good job,” said Saquon Barkley, highlighting the Philly defense, as reported by PennLive.com. 

He then highlighted the offensive issue faced by the Eagles and deemed that he and his teammates needed to do a “better job.”

And yes, the Eagles have needed this dominant defensive effort because their offense has just scored 26 points during a two-game win streak. This tally is the lowest for Philly since 1997. The Eagles are also tied for their second-fewest over a two-game win streak in franchise history (19 in 1934).

Now that the Dallas Cowboys are next up on the schedule, the Eagles will have to address these offensive issues to ensure that they become the next team after the Kansas City Chiefs to repeat as Super Bowl champions.