Week 1 Awards: Eagles corner wins NFC Special Teams Player of the Week
After Detroit cut the Eagles’ lead to ten points with four minutes remaining in the 3rd quarter, Lions kicker Austin Seibert attempted to catch Philly off guard with an onside kick.
CB Zech McPhearson wasn’t fooled, however; awaiting the kick before darting downfield and securing the ball. The critical play set the Eagles up for a game-winning TD drive en route to beating the Lions 38-35.
McPhearson’s recovery has earned him NFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors, per the league’s announcement.
The NFC Players of the Week 👀@saquon | @UchennaN_42 | @ZMcphearson pic.twitter.com/SGBX1dyZP4
— NFL (@NFL) September 14, 2022
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“I had an experience in college where I learned the hard way, so I didn’t want that to happen anymore,” McPhearson said. “Let’s just say I didn’t catch the ball, and I took a mean hit, so this time I was just focused on catching the ball and eating the hit.”
Eagles ST coordinator Michael Clay prepared his unit for this scenario in practice; it paid off for them on Sunday.
“It’s always great when you have a full off-season going against an opponent that you know can pull out some trickery here and there,” Clay said. “I could tell the guys until I’m blue in the face, watch out for the onside kick, but kudos to Zech to stay disciplined, stay in there at that time of the game not to panic. He stayed patient right there.”
Zech McPhearson won NFC Special Teams Player of the Week. Here's the all-22 of his onside kick recovery: pic.twitter.com/s6gqXqgW4D
— Kevin Kinkead (@Kevin_Kinkead) September 14, 2022
Mandatory Credit: Matt Rourke/Associated Press
