PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia Eagles heard all the talk from the San Francisco 49ers this past offseason heading into Sunday's rematch of the 2023 NFC Championship game. San Francisco will get the opportunity to back up the talk.
"Talk is cheap," Eagles pass rusher Haason Reddick said last week. "They [49ers] get to come back in the Linc. It was a lot of boo hoos last year, a lot of crying, a lot of what if, a lot of this, a lot of that. They get a chance to come back in here, line that shit up and prove it again."
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni felt the same way in his speech to the players this week, which he does the day before every game in order to motivate his team. The message to the Eagles was to "take it personally," per Fox Sports.
Philadelphia has been downplaying the talk this week leading up to the game. Most of the talking has come from 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel, who hasn't shied away from criticism of the Eagles. Samuel called James Bradberry trash after the Super Bowl loss and also said Eagles fans weren't loud prior to the NFC Championship game. He continued to discuss the loss as recently as May and also hung up on an interview when a question was asked about the Eagles.
"We lost because we played with 10 people," Samuel said. "I ain't going to keep going on about what could've happened and what would've happened, but yeah, it would've definitely been a different outcome (if healthy)."
Samuel said Monday he didn't regret calling Bradberry "trash", as Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown gave fans permission to troll him this week.
"[My] most hated team is the Eagles right now. One hundred percent," Samuel said this offseason, via 49ers web zone. "All the trash talk coming from the Eagles fan base and the players, you just get tired of that."
🤷♂️ pic.twitter.com/CbRBcmBfIw
— Coach Yac 🗣 (@Coach_Yac) December 2, 2023
49ers fans have even gotten involved in the fun, putting team jerseys over the famous Rocky statue at the art museum. This has been tried by numerous fanbases in the past, usually not ending up well for the visiting team.
Both the 49ers and Eagles have something to prove Sunday. Sirianni is giving them a little extra motivation.